Torn (Demon Kissed #3) (12 page)

He put the pitcher down and kissed my forehead. “I’m glad I was here to help you.”

“Me too, but I gotta ask… Wasn’t that kinda weird? Evil Valefars using wholesome milk in their witches brew?” I smirk pulled my lips into a smile. The pain was gone and I felt much better.

Collin laughed, pushing his hair out of his eyes. “It was hardly a brew. And even evil people like milk. I enjoy cookies, too.”

Al cleared her throat, “You two are sitting ducks in here. If the Martis come back or anyone asks me what I did tonight, you two are going to have a world of trouble. Better be off now.” She stood and walked toward the door. Collin and I rose and followed her down the dark hallways.

Before we left the building, she leaned in and whispered, “Remember, you decide who you are. Not
no
words, not no angel, not no one. And, Ivy, don’t leave your pie to get burnt. Got it?”

I smiled and hugged her, assuring her that I would take care of my “pie.” In this case, my pie was my massive secret—that I had sapphire serum poisoning me and that I’d die if I didn’t get my soul back from him. That couldn’t be hidden from Collin much longer anyway. And even if I didn’t tell him, he’d eventually find out. What was the worst that could happen?

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

There weren’t any safe places for us to go, and I wasn’t able to effonate anywhere without burning my skin off. I wondered if that was the effect of transporting Collin as well, or if it was the consequences of having sapphire serum in my chest. Either way, I didn’t want to find out. Weakness plagued me, making my movements slow and awkward. Collin asked me if I was all right, but I couldn’t tell him what was wrong, so I put on a fake smile and nodded, then continued to chatter about nothing.

But, as we continued to walk east on foot it became obvious that it was going to be an insanely long walk. I’d seen several run down churches out east by the sod farms when we were at the old stone church months ago. I hoped to find a church that was still occupied to keep hungry Valefar away, and then we’d only have to worry about a Martis stumbling on us. Collin’s fingers were threaded through mine and he swung our arms slightly before turning me toward him.

A soft smile spread across his lips before he said, “Why are we walking? Are you afraid of effonating yourself to bits again?” His fingers wrapped around some loose curls hanging over my shoulders. His piercing blue eyes searched my face, looking for an answer.

I shrugged, “Maybe.” The corner of my mouth pulled into a crooked smile. I broke his gaze, not wanting him to sense the lie. “I know it’s stupid, but I’d rather be outside with you and avoid some pain—for now anyway. I’m turning into a neurotic mess, constantly having my heart ripped out of my chest and enduring crazy amounts of pain.” Biting my lower lip, I looked up at him, “Can we skip effonating for a while?”

Pulling me close, his arms wrapped around my waist and he buried his face in my curls.
“Of course.
I’m sorry I can’t take both of us. I wish I could. I wish I could save you from all the things you’ve been through.” He broke the hug and held my shoulders. “But, we can’t walk to Montauk, or wherever you’re taking us.”

I knew he’d say that. We didn’t have money for a cab, and besides—it wasn’t smart for anyone to know where we’d gone. The area was crawling with Martis and Valefar. The odds of stumbling on one of them were pretty good. And since we couldn’t be certain if any of the people surrounding us were human or not, it was best to keep to ourselves. “Collin, there’s no other way to get there.”

“Yes there is.” He smiled, crossing the street with his arms behind his back. He gave a little skip as he turned and ran off into the darkness. In a matter of seconds I heard an engine purr, and a dark blue car pulled up next to me. The blackened window slid down to reveal Collin grinning, “Get in, beautiful.”

My jaw was scraping against the ground. It was his car. The same car he drove me in before. But, how did it get here? Slowly I reached for the handle like I expected the metal machine in front of me to be a mirage. “Collin…how?” was I all I could manage to ask.

He laughed, “You’re always the most impressed by the simplest things. It’s not the big stuff that fazes you—it’s a car.” I slid into the seat and slammed the door as he pulled away and found the nearest road that would lead us to Route 25. Bobbing and weaving through traffic, I sat there dumbfounded. My fingers slid over the leather seats as I examined the interior.

Finally I asked, “Is this the same car? The one you kidnapped me in?” My gaze turned to him with my mouth hanging open.

He winked at me, “Evil Valefar magic. I can make a car anytime I want.” I wasn’t sure if he was playing with me or not.

“Did you steal this car? You didn’t. This is the same one. It’s the same one that you drove me out East in the first time, before you knew about my mark. How’d you do that? Can you conjure up anything? Can you call people?”

He looked over at me surprised by my barrage of questions. Shaking his head he said, “There are things that you’ll want to learn how to do, but this isn’t one of them.” His voice was stern as his gaze focused on non-existent traffic out the windshield. “You have me. I can do it for you. That’s all you need.”

Why wouldn’t he tell me? What was the big deal? While I didn’t understand his apprehension, I could sense that this topic was no longer open to discussion. It was one of the many aspects of being a Valefar that I didn’t understand. Everything about being a Valefar came at a price. I wondered what the price of the car was, but I didn’t ask.

We drove the rest of the way to the church in silence.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

The floorboard creaked under my foot. I made sure that the little chapel was still in use before we went inside. The sign said they meet on Sunday mornings with no indication that they would be here late at night on a Thursday, so we went inside. Collin and I waded through the darkness. He insisted that we find some place that provided cover, but some place that wouldn’t trap us. That ruled out the basement, so we went up to the ancient attic. The floorboards were wide old planks that were covered in dust. The room was mostly empty with a few pieces of furniture covered in dusty white cloths. The roof pitched to a steep point, leaving us walking bent over to avoid clunking our heads on rafter beams.

I pulled a sheet off a piece of furniture, and tossed the cover to the floor. It had protected a rose colored chaise with a scrolling back from a lifetime of dust. I was so tired that I thought I’d fall asleep when I sat down. Some of the springs were weird in the bottom cushion and poked into my thigh. I scooted down and leaned against the backrest. Collin walked past me and checked out the rest of the space. It had multiple points of entry, which made it harder to guard, but it also made it easier to escape. I felt the chaise shift as Collin sat on the end by my feet. He was silent so long that I finally opened my eyes and looked at him. There was something in his stance that made me uneasy, but I couldn’t put my finger on why.

He finally asked, “Why won’t you tell me?”

Swallowing hard, I asked, “Tell you what?” I sat up. “I’m fine. We didn’t have to stop here, but I’m not sure what to do. I didn’t think you knew either. I thought it was better to hole up here for a few days, rather than backtrack into Hell again.” A shiver ran through me. I never wanted to go back there.

Collin’s gaze was soft and questioning. It was clear that I didn’t answer his question, but he didn’t press. I knew exactly what he was asking me; Why wouldn’t I tell him what was wrong with me. Why was I hiding it from him? The look on his face said he realized this simple truth. The bond confirmed it. I squirmed as my stomach flip-flopped, but he’d already turned away from me. He could have used the bond to press into me. If he did, he would sense the pain and weariness that plagued me. He’d realize I was losing my strength.

He’d realize I was dying.

I leaned back into the chaise intending to only close my eyes for a moment. Slow breaths of night air filled my lungs, and before I knew what happened, I was dreaming. That was the second time that Collin saw me sleep. It was the second time I was completely vulnerable in his presence. Apparently I trusted him more than I realized.

And as much as I wished it weren’t true, the sapphire serum had left me severely weakened. Sleep seemed to be the only thing that repaired my body. The visions that had overcome me and pulled me into sleep before weren’t the same as the dreams that plagued me now. Everything changed when I was poisoned. As much as I wanted to deny it, sleep was a requirement. Although I could stay awake longer than humans, I grew weary if I didn’t rest. That would make me vulnerable, but I didn’t know how to deal with it yet.

After I had the serum in my chest there was another notable change—my visions were gone. I hadn’t had a vision and I no longer knew if I could, or if I would ever have another. I wasn’t sure if I needed them, and the thing that bothered me most was that it marked that I was changing. I was no longer the same Ivy Taylor that I was a year ago, or even a few days ago. The fang slicing across my chest had severely altered me. I no longer needed to focus on becoming a Valefar before using those powers. They just came to me when I wanted them. And it wasn’t necessary to shift back to being a Martis—it just happened. Using my basic power became more intrinsic, and I didn’t have to think so much about what they were and how to use them. I was aware that anger ignited my ultimate power—the power described in the prophecy—but I was still uncertain of what it could do. The poison made me slow down. Perhaps that was why I noticed these things. It was possible that they would have happened anyway, but I couldn’t be certain.

Sunlight was shining on my face as I cracked my eyelids open. Breathing deeply, I stretched and blinked until my eyes focused. Sunshine flooded through the small windows at the front and back of the attic. It was morning. I never thought I’d see the sun again. Delight in such a small thing strung a smile across my face, but it faded when my gaze fell on Collin’s stormy eyes. He was sitting in an old chair across from me. His fingers were tee-peed as he tapped each one, watching me.

A cold shiver rippled through me, as I pushed myself up. My senses were in overdrive as the bond transmitted discombobulated messages radiating from Collin’s violent mind. It felt as if I’d awoken peacefully only to be cast head first into a raging sea. Emotions were flowing through the bond with such rage that it was crushing me. My breaths became jagged as my skin prickled. Everything inside of me was screaming to run, but my mind wasn’t listening to my body. I sat in front of him, frozen with fear. The eyes that were usually full of vibrancy were rimmed in violet, and filling with red, as sheets of rage poured off of him. He said nothing, staring at me as he ticked off each finger.

When I finally found my voice I asked, “What’s wrong?” Part of me wondered if the slew of emotions struggling within him had anything to do with Kreturus. Could a demon live in someone without me knowing it? I needed to find someone who knew more about these things. My only links to this kind of knowledge weren’t available at the moment, so I had to improvise.

His jaw locked. It looked like he’d been sitting like that for hours. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and freakishly calm. “I’m trying, God knows how hard I’m trying to help you, but it never seems to matter because, no matter what I do, you somehow launch yourself right back into the damn prophecy.” His hands dropped to his knees, and he looked up at the ceiling while pulling his fingers through his hair. He finally returned his exasperated gaze to me. Damn it. I did something stupid. This was Collin, not Kreturus. And he was a completely pissed off, angry Collin. I slid my tongue over the back of my teeth trying to think of what to say was say. I opened my mouth a few times to try to explain, but no words came to me. What did he want me to say? He finally broke the silence, as he leaned forward in his chair and asked, “Do you want to be the Prophecy One, Ivy?”