Page 118 of Dark Angel

Blinking himself awake, the infirmary is quieter than he anticipated. Charles groans groggily, moving to sit up, but the stabbing pain flourishes in his side once more.

Grunting, Charles lies back down, his hand shielding his eyes from the bright lamps overhead, burning his pupils.

“Charles, you’re awake.” He hears his father’s concerned voice.

Moving his hand out of the way, he sees his father with Percy and Clarence beside him. All of them look down at him with unease.

“You’re all right. We extracted the demon poison from your blood. And you’re healing quickly now.” Percy assures him.

His hands touch the dressing wrapped around Charles’ exposed midsection, checking the wound, which is no longer gaping and bleeding out.

Charles flinches involuntarily under his touch. “Daisy.” His voice croaks out, his throat still burning.

“What about her?” Clarence rushes out, his face looking even more terrified now.

“She was there. It was Daisy. I saw her face. But it also wasn’t her.” Clarence and Percy exchange a look before Charles continues. “Her eyes were entirely black.”

“Like an Infernal?”

Charles nods, wincing slightly in pain. His head is throbbing.

Clarence runs a hand down his face. “She’s possessed.” Exhaling gently as the realisation hits him. Her mind is being controlled.

“Possessed?”

“I saw her in the evening. She was acting so different. Strange. I thought maybe she was ill with a fever, but what if she is possessed?”

Percy shakes his head. “Why would you say possessed? And by whom?”

Clarence stays silent for a moment, staring down at Charles’ side where the blade was protruding from his flesh before he found him lying in the snow. Scarlet blood pouring out and staining the frost underneath.

“Colton.”

Robert pulls his head back. “Why Daisy though?”

Clarence exhales, closing his eyes for a moment, inhaling all the courage he needs at this moment. “She’s been having these visions of a man calling to her. It’s been happening for weeks now. What started off as a nightmare has turned into her envisioning him. I tried to stop it, but it didn’t work. What if he’s possessed her, and has her doing his work for him?”

“You think Colton is behind this?”

“Yes. I think Charles here was his next sacrifice, and I got to him just in time.”

Charles’ head falls back into the pillow as he takes in everything. Daisy wanted to murder him as a sacrifice for Colton, who is meant to be dead but is somehow still alive. His mind swirls like stormy water, alcohol still lingering in its depths.

“We should go see if this is true. Charles might have thought he saw Daisy’s face, but maybe he just imagined it, as you do when you’re panicked and not sober.” Clarence suggests.

“All right. You two shouldgo speak with Thomas at the Edevane manor. I will make sure Charles keeps healing.” Robert looks at Percy and Clarence.

They nod in understanding.

Clarence’s arm is then on Charles’s, squeezing it gently. “I am glad you’re all right.” He says before leaving with Percy.

Robert looks down at his son lying groggily in the bed. His eyes gazing over him. “What were you doing out of the house that late and on your own? That was incredibly foolish, Charles.”

He swallows down what little saliva he has in his mouth. “I needed to get out.” His voice rasps.

Robert steps away, rubbing his hands through his greying hair, trying to control his temper. “If it wasn't for Clarence, you could have been brought in carved and mutilated.”

“But I wasn’t.”

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