Page 47 of The Warlock's Kiss

It happened again, except it camehardthis time. I felt like Iwasdying.

Tears welled in her eyes, and she turned slightly to slip an arm around her brother. “It’s okay. I’m still here. I’m not gone yet.”

“B-But you could have been if M-Merrick hadn’t helped you.”

Her brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

Danny lifted his head, and his pinkened, tear-filled eyes met hers. He’d obviously been crying for a while.

How long was I sleeping?

“What’d Merrick do, Danny?”

Her brother sniffled. “I…I don’t know.” His frown deepened as he glanced at the door. “Do you remember what that…elf-guy did? The golden guy?”

“What about him?”

He scooted closer to her and lowered his voice. “I think Merrick’s the same.”

Adalynn drew back and shook her head. “No, he’s not the same.”

That elf-like man’s eyes had been cold, empty, devoid of warmth and kindness. Devoid ofhumanity. But she’d seen all those things glimmering in Merrick’s eyes, and he’d shown them with his actions.

Danny’s hold on her tightened. “He hasmagic, Addy. Isawit.”

She placed a hand on his cheek. “Shh. It’s okay. Whatever Merrick did, whatever he is, he’snotlike the monsters, Danny. Merrick won’t hurt us. He would have already if he meant to. Whatever he’s doing to me…it helps.”

I think.

“What did you see, Danny?” she asked softly, lowering her hand.

“He was touching you, and there was bluelightningstuff all over his arms, going up from his hands. And there were shadows coming off him…like thick, movingshadows. Liketentacles, Addy. They were moving up and down around his shoulders and in the air over his back—overyou—and everything around them was dark.” He paused, eyebrows falling low. “No, that’s not right. It was almost like…like looking into the night sky. Like I could almost seestarsin the shadows, but my eyes couldn’t quite make them out. Andhiseyes were glowing blue.

“And then you stopped moving. He…stopped your seizure. I think he did it before, that first night we came here, but he was hiding it then. But this time”—Danny shook his head, and his eyes were troubled when they met hers—“he was bleeding from his face. Not just a bloody nose, but everywhere—his eyes, mouth, and ears too.”

Worry sped Adalynn’s heart. “Is he okay?”

“I don’t know. He left and told me to take care of you. He sounded…angry.”

“Stay here.” Adalynn extracted herself from Danny’s embrace and moved to the edge of the bed.

“Where are you going?” The bedding rustled behind her as Danny shifted. “Addy! You should be resting.”

Adalynn stood slowly, testing her balance; when she wasn’t hit by even a hint of dizziness or lightheadedness, she stepped away from the bed. “Stay here, Danny. I’ll be right back. I need to check on him.”

“But what if he—”

She turned to face her brother. “Merrick will not hurt me. Or you. Do you understand?”

He nodded solemnly.

“What he did for me… Danny, he might be suffering because he helped me. I need to check on him, okay?”

“Okay.”

“I’ll be back.”

She grabbed her flashlight from the nightstand and left the room, closing the door behind her. Clicking the flashlight on, Adalynn made her way down the hall toward Merrick’s room. The flickering light visible beneath his door suggested he was within.

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