Page 68 of Premonition of Peace

“Hey,” I whispered, turning to my side. “When did you wake up?”

“About an hour ago.”

“Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“I wanted to watch you sleep.”

“How do you feel?” I asked, brushing a tendril of hair away from his face.

“Alive.” He smiled. “What happened?”

I sat up, letting the sheets pool around my waist as I scrubbed my hands down my face. “August found you on thefloor. I guess Estrid was getting shouty at your door, and she doesn’t usually do that. Tipped him off something was wrong.”

He laid back, crossing his hands under his head. “So I have a cat to thank for saving my life. That’s interesting.”

I huffed a small laugh. “You have a lot of people to thank, actually. Estrid tipped off August, he brought you to Señora Rosara’s and then called me . . .”

He glanced at me, waiting for me to finish. I hadn’t thought about how to tell him everything. He shouldn’t care. He was alive, and that was the outcome we wanted. Still, everything I did, I did without his consent.

“That sounds like two people,” he said, breaking the silence. “Well, one person and his cat—and honestly, Estrid is significantly better company.”

I picked at my nails. “You’re immortal now,” I blurted out, ripping off the band-aid instead of finding a smoother way to go about it.

He sat up. “Come again?”

“I, uh, I used someone else’s power to change . . . you.”

“Change me?” He blinked, trying to process what I had said. He ran his tongue over his teeth, looking for fangs. “What the hell am I?”

“You’re still the same, actually,” I began, taking a deep breath before dropping the big reveal. “I had to bond you to an immortal to keep you on this plane. You’re the first of your kind, actually. An immortal warlock.”

“Gods, I’m not bonded to August, am I?” A crease formed between his brows as he scrunched his face at the possibility.

“No—”

“Thank fuck. That would be the worst.”

My lips parted as I tried to speak, but I closed them and cringed. “Um . . .”

“Nathalie, who am I bonded to?

“Lucifer.”

His mouth fell open. “What? The devil? I’m bonded to the fucking devil? Why him, of all people?”

“Look, the moment was a little tense, okay? You were trying to die, I couldn’t tie you to me, and he offered. I didn’t think too much about whether or not you’d like it, but I figured you would likenotdying, so I used the objects of fate to detach you from mortality and bound you to him.” I crossed my arms, holding my chin out.

He pinched the bridge of his nose as though he were fighting off a headache. “I think I’d prefer August. Or the cat.”

“Well, you were on the cusp on death, so I didn’t have time to ask your thoughts on the matter, and either way, Estrid wasn’t available, I’m afraid,” I said defensively. “And you’re welcome, by the way, since you have yet to say thank you, you asshole.”

“I . . .” He sighed and his face fell as he realized how he was acting. “You’re right. It’s just a lot to take in at the moment. The last thing I remember was feeling cold. I got up to get a blanket, and then I must have passed out. I woke up feeling healthy, and not knowing what happened. I’m alive because of you—and others—so for that, thank you.”

I softened, knowing my defensiveness wasn’t warranted. It was a lot to process. I knew it would be. Finding out you’re alive and immortal is one thing. It’s another thing entirely to learn you’re bound to the devil for eternity.

“The death magic is still in you, though. We still haven’t found a way to stop it. The only difference is your body will be able to fight against it since you can’t die now. I think you’ll experience some symptoms still, like needing more rest, but I don’t know. This is all so new, so no one knows. It makes sense in my head. Piper is an immortal badass, but twins on an opposite sleep schedule still exhausts her. I would think it works the same here. The body can still get tired.”

“What about you?” he asked, running his fingers through my hair.

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