Page 93 of Marked By Night

“Don’t you dare feel bad!” I say vehemently. “Tyler was amped up from the Elders power. I’m so glad you are all right.”

As much as I want to lay here all night and hold my familiar, I know I can’t.

“I need to go check on Vin. Will you be okay?”

“Yeah, give me a second. Your healing magic is still doing the trick.”

With a nod, I scramble over to Vin’s too still body, ignoring the twinge of protest my body makes. His arm is getting worse with every passing second. His veins are black and it’s already spreading up his neck and down his chest. His shirt is soaked with blood and he’s barely breathing. I drop to the ground next to him, placing my palms over his chest, praying to the Night Goddess to heal him like Hemsworth.

As soon as my skin makes contact with his, my magic starts to leave me in waves, making me dizzy from overuse, but I don’t care.Please, heal him.I repeat over and over again in my mind like a mantra.

After some time, he gasps, and his eyes snap open. I lean back to allow him to sit up, but I don’t take my hands off his chest. When Vin’s eyes find mine, he looks bewildered, but the corner of his lips turns up. Which only serves to make my heart swell.

“Thank you for healing me,” he says softly, looking down at his receding wounds.

Although, the blackness crawling up his arm isn’t going away yet. Hopefully, Kaos will be able to help him more when we get back. Considering I have no idea what I’m doing. I swallow down the lump in my throat, forcing my feelings down and locking them up tight.

“Come on. We need to get out of here.”

After the longest—and most painful—walk of my life, the three of us finally pass through the ward into safety. That’s when I spot Dante and Kaos pacing inside the ward.

“Thank the Night Goddess! We’ve been trapped inside. Someone has been messing with the ward and we couldn’t leave.” Dante holds dual orbs of his orangey-blue fire magic in both hands. While Kaos holds twin karambits. The curved blades glint in the sunlight, making them seem even more deadly. Overall, my mates look dangerous as fuck.

Most women would likely be intimidated, but not me. The sight of them makes my blood sing and I smile viciously at them. A swirl of black curls up my arm, startling me. Now that I’m no longer in imminent danger and I’m paying attention, I realize the darkness around me is actually the shadows swirling together as they leave the forest floor to gather around me.

Dante’s eyes dart around me in amazement, taking in the shadows that surround me protectively. Same with Kaos. He takes in the whole scene with rapt interest.

Shaking off his amazement Kaos takes a step toward me. “Are you hurt? What the hell happened?” he asks softly.

“Tyler is what happened,” I seethe. Which makes the shadows whip around me harder as they feed off my energy and emotions. Distantly, I know the shadows can’t move the way they are, as if they’re a real being, yet they are.

“That fucking bastard! Is he dead?”

I nod.

Kaos pulls me in for a quick hug, nuzzling the side of my head. “I was going fucking insane with worry, my Little Flame. I’m so proud of you for killing him. He deserves much worse.”

“Something tells me they’re going to have fun with him in the afterlife,” I respond cryptically.

Taking a few deep breaths, I close my eyes and to try and calm my whirring mind. Eventually, the shadows slink back into the environment around us. When I’m finished and back to normal, Dante and Kaos open their arms and I’m wrapped in their calming embrace. My side twinges and I let loose a grunt. Kaos pulls back, running his glowing black hands down my arm.

“It’s my side,” I tell him. “The fucker tackled me into a tree.”

“Why didn’t you say something about your pain sooner?” he questions, pushing his healing magic into me until the pain dissipates.

“I’m a tough broad, I guess.” I shrug. “So, uh, someone will need to go back to get my car and the groceries.” My heart sinks thinking about my precious car, but material things can always be replaced.

I’m lucky to be walking away with my life.

“And to dispose of the bodies. Tyler and the other Weavers are dead. I killed them. I don’t think they were the Elites though. I didn’t get the same lethal vibes from these guys.”

My Sworn look over at me in wonder, with wide eyes and open mouths. They both nod and spring into action, helping me toward the house. My exhaustion overrides my independence.

Vin makes a noise and I glance over at him. Sweat rolls down his forehead and he’s shaking. Honestly, I’m shocked he’s still standing.

“The first thing we need to do is heal Vin. He took a nasty orb to the arm that was aimed at my chest and my magic isn’t touching it for some reason.”

My statement makes Dante and Kaos look at Vin appreciatively. They give him a slight head nod which is probably the best thing I could ask for them to do. That’s their version of a bro hug.

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