“You guys okay?” He stops, I think close to us.
“Yeah, I’m just trying to get her to her bedroom,” Blaise replies, inching forward with me in tow. “Did you get the protection spell up before the power went out?”
“Yeah, Jaxon is just locking the doors and windows up.” Alex’s hands find my waist in the dark.
“With his key?” I joke in an attempt to distract myself.
“What’s so funny about a key?” Alex replies in an amused tone.
“I don’t know,” I say. “It just seems weird that basically everything runs off of magic, and yet Jaxon unlocked the front door with a key.”
“Who says that key isn’t magical?” Alex’s lips brush my ear as he speaks, and I shiver. “Only one of us can use it,” he explains, his fingers lightly tracing my sides. “Which means no one can get into this house without our permission.”
That makes me relax a smidgeon.
The two of them begin discussing how long the storm will last and if they should run out and seal up the garage. I grow quiet as we wander through the dark house, and something about this scene is tugging at a memory. But the images are hazy at best. Still, I feel emotions circling inside me that put me a bit on edge. I wish I knew why, what my brain is trying to remember, and why I ever forgot it at all. And what about those memories of me being in the burning forest? Part of me thinks I should tell Alex and Blaise about them, but another part of me doesn’t want to just yet. It’s a part of me I don’t quite understand, either, like my lips have a mind of their own and refuse to say the words aloud.
So, I remain silent as Blaise leads me further into the house. Eventually, we enter a room. At least, that’s what he tells me, but I can’t see a damn thing. Then he releases my hand and walks blindly into the room.
Moments later, candlelight is illuminating around the bedroom, a delicate glow that casts shadows across the lavender walls. After that, Blaise and Alex start lighting up candles and placing them sparsely about the room—on dressers, nightstands, and they even put a few on the floor.
“Why don’t you guys just use your magic to light them?” I sink down on the king-size, four-poster bed.
Alex flicks a lighter, and it’s the weirdest thing I’ve seen since I discovered I was a reaper.
“The storm shut down all access to magic,” he explains as he positions a candle in front of the lighter. “That’s why the power went out.”
“Wait …” My eyes pop wide. “We can’t use magic at all right now?”
He lights the candle just in time for me to see him shake his head. “Unfortunately, not really. Unless we get some embers and channel the power from that. We do have some out in the garage, but that means going out into the storm.” He sets the candle down on a table beside the door then makes his way over to me. “Don’t worry, baby. We’re safe in this house.” He stops in front of me, leans over me, and places a hand on each of my sides. “Remember, no one else can get in.” He leans in to kiss me, and I let him for a moment. But then I slant back.
“Blaise said that sometimes monsters form in the storm. Can they get in?”
“They shouldn’t be able to,” he says, grabbing a hold of my hand. “You’re okay. I promise. Now, let’s go get you cleaned so we can feed you.” He grabs a candle then steers me in the direction of a doorway that’s in the far back corner of the room. On the other side is the biggest bathroom I’ve ever seen, with mirrors on the walls, a step-in black and white tiled shower with glass doors, and several sinks lining the back wall.
“I hate how codependent I am,” I admit as he places the candle on the counter near the mirrors.
Just enough light trickles through the space that I can see my reflection, and I cringe at the sight of it. My hair is tangled with leaves, my skin has a glittery reddish tint to it, and my dress is burnt worse than I thought.
Alex faces me, reclining against the counter. “What do you mean?”
I tear my attention away from the horrible thing in the mirror. “I mean with feeding. I have to rely on you guys to do it. Plus, I’m completely clueless about everything in this world, so that means I’m reliant on you for knowledge.” I pick a torn piece of lace hanging off my dress. “I miss my independence.”
“Hey.” Alex crosses the room and cups my face between his hands. “You can get that again. It’s just going to take some time. Eventually, you’ll learn all about this world and the way things work, and then you’ll be the one in charge of us.”
I give him a blank stare. “I know that’s not true, not with me having to feed off of you, not with you guys being centuries years old.”
“You think that matters?” His brow quirks upward. “Just because we’ve been around forever doesn’t mean we’ve learned everything. We spent a lot of our lives living recklessly and not giving a shit about much. And where did that lead us? Being banished, which let me tell you isn’t an accomplishment at all. Although, it did bring us you.” He gently traces his thumb along my bottom lip. “And while you don’t realize it yet, eventually, you’ll learn that you’re not tied to us—we’re tied to you.”
“If that’s true, then it just makes me feel worse.”
“Why? If we want to be tied to you, then what does it matter?”
“Why would you want to be tied to me … unless it’s just for my power?”
He considers what I said carefully. “I know we’ve only known each other for a bit, but I assure you, in that short time, a lot has changed. Jaxon rarely spoke, and while he’s still quiet, he has way more spark in him than he used to. And Blaise is way more centered. I mean, you remember when you first met him, right? He was a total asshole.”
“He’s still an asshole,” I point out.
“But not as bad.” He waits for me to disagree, but I can’t.
He’s right. Blaise is way nicer than he used to be.
“And me?” he continues on. “At the risk of sounding dramatic, I’m going to say this, anyway. You saved me, Hadley Harlyton.”
I study him, attempting to see if he’s being serious or not. He sure looks like he is.
“How?” I wonder skeptically.
“Because I was dying inside,” he whispers so delicately that I’m thrown off. “I play it off well—always have to—but the guilt I carry around …” He swallows audibly as he stares off into space, a portrait of misery.
It’s distressing to say the least, this look of miserableness on his usually cheery, flirty face.
“Alex.” I keep my tone as unruffled as can be. “Are you okay?”
He nods, his gaze sliding back to me. “I’m fine.” It almost sounds like he’s trying to convince himself that’s true. “Can I kiss you?”
I nod, because how could I not when he’s looking at me like that?
He doesn’t hesitate, but he does move in painfully slowly, the light slipping away the closer our faces get. I think about what Rhyland briefly told me about the shadows on Alex’s face. I also think about how Alex never mentioned Rhyland changing after he met me. But those thoughts are all soft flickers of candle glow that hastily disperse as Alex’s lips unite with mine.