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“Oh, thank the ancestors,” Gypsy blurted.
Blinking, I let my eyes adjust to the light while the room slowly came into focus. “I’m not in theEtheranymore,” I exhaled with relief.
“Oh, Cassie.” Ryder’s compassionate tone also betrayed worry. He picked up my free hand and squeezed. “Angel, we’ve been so anxious.”
My eyes scanned the room as all three immortals, my aunt, and Gypsy, stared. The newest addition—Kayde, the jerk—was thankfully absent.
“The rogue witch attacked again,” I explained, wincing as a wave of pain throbbed along my neck and shoulder. “I wasn’t sure what happened until I ended up in theEther.”
“The realm of dreams and nightmares,” Gypsy whispered. “You’re lucky we could find you. I hate that place.”
My aunt agreed.
“These attacks are a problem,” Damian interjected, seeming flustered. Not a great look on a vampire.
‘I always look good.’
I didn’t reply.
“We’ve got bigger problems,” Ryder added, his voice catching. “Cassie’s been bitten.”
“Bitten?” Damian frowned, clearly not knowing everything.
I wondered briefly if he would contradict me. He didn’t.
“I don’t see a bite,” Gabriel added.
“You wouldn’t. I can only see because I walk in the shadows and pass through thefade. As a spirit walker, I’m able to view what can only be seen in other realms or by creatures of darkness.”
“How do we heal her?” Gabe asked, tightening his hold.
“That’s a bit tricky.” Gypsy shook her head. “This is bad.”
“Bad? You think?” Damian asked with his trademark sarcasm.‘You’re hurt, precious.’
I scoffed. ‘Glad you just now noticed.’
He shrugged, but I caught his concerned look in my direction. Damian wasn’t faking his worry, but I knew it was only because of his obligation to the Cosan, not because he cared about his little witch problem.
‘Right, precious.’His defensive tone didn’t change my opinion.
“We have to get rid of the Thrall to heal her.” Ryder’s voice silenced the room.
“This isn’t how I wanted to spend Samhain,” I mumbled, looking at my cousin.
Gypsy reached for my hand and squeezed it. “We’ve got this. Don’t worry, Cas.”
“There are only two ways to get rid of the Thrall,” Aunt Gwen intervened. “Either Cassie finds and destroys the Thrall here in our realm and hopes it hasn’t set up a nest, or she returns to theEtherquickly and destroys the original Thrall who bit her in its nest there.”
“Sounds simple enough.” Damian began to pace. “How do we do this?”
“Now, hold on a minute,” Ryder interrupted, “taking a realm walk through theEtheris no easy or simple task. The Thrall have marked her now, and each one will have her scent. Finding the original demon that bit her will be nearly impossible, not to mention dangerous. Anyone else who goes with her risks the same fate.”
“I can go with Cassie. We’ve already bonded. It makes sense,” Damian volunteered.
He must be bored. Why else would the bloodsucker want to tag along?
He snorted but didn’t reply in my head, which shocked me no small amount. Was he exercising restraint? The thought made me snicker. Damian and self-control shouldn’t be thought of in the same sentence.
