Page 70 of Fated In Forever
We stole it from your librarian’s personal office, somehow didn’t seem like the right answer.
“Why? Do you know what this is?” I asked, trying to look innocent. Where were Blake and Riordan and why was he standing in my way? Ihadto see them, because if I’d really been gone eight days, they had to be losing their minds.
“You look like you could use something to eat and drink, and perhaps a bath.” He said, instead.
“Wow, you don’t mince words, do you?”
“Aisling tells me the same thing. I am working on toning down my…directness,” he answered, ushering me inside. “From what I hear, I need to put in more effort. But your king and your mate will be relieved to have you back.” His eyes skated over me, pausing on my arm, and I tugged my sleeve down to hide those dark veins.
I paused in front of the doorway, suddenly uncertain. How would Blake and Riordan react to what I had become? The thought of their reaction made my chest tight, but I couldn't stand here all day, paralyzed by uncertainty. My world needed saving, the rift needed sealing,and after that, I was going back to the Underworld and getting Malachi.
I took a last breath of the salt-sweet Irish air, feeling the dark veins pulse beneath my skin in response, and stepped into the castle. The Book seemed to sigh, as if it recognized home, and I hugged the relic tighter.
From the way Nikolai watched me, he knew what this thing was, and since it was my only way to bring Malachi back, I wasn’t letting it out of my sight.
“Your mate and your king will have many questions.” Nikolai murmured. “And so will someone else. I would advise you to stick to the truth. Finn Forge can see lies as clearly as I can, and he lacks my infinite patience.”
Great. I survived the Underworld, only to face an interrogation by the grumpy commander.
“Just so you know, stealing The Book was Malachi’s idea,” I sniped, perfectly willing to throw him under the bus, since he wasn’t here. “But try and take it from me, and I’ll fight you with everything I have.”
“I have no desire to take The Book, Evangeline,” he pinned me with a sharp look. “But know this, some wishes should never be made.”
“That’s the most unhelpful piece of advice I’ve ever heard.”
All he did was give me one of those strange, sad smiles, and I didn’t say anything else as I followed him down the hallway.
I was no longer the same person who had left this place only a week ago.
The new me meant to ensure Malachi didn’t spend an eternity somewhere he didn’t want to be, and also make sure he had a realm to come back to, which meant Ravok had to die.
31
EVANGELINE
The stone walls were the same, and so was the familiar warmth. Yet everything felt different now—the very air seemed to be filled with phantom shadows, and the golden light streaming through the tall windows couldn't quite penetrate the darkness.
“Evangeline.” Blake's voice cracked as he raced toward me, his boots pounding down the hallway, “I thought I felt you, but this asshole told me I was imagining things.” Behind him, Riordan's broad frame filled the corridor, his green eyes wide with relief and something else I couldn't quite place as his gaze skimmed over me.
Once. Twice.
Three times, then his shoulders fell, body shuddering.
My hair was tangled around my face, but Blake pushed it away, peering into my eyes as Rohr came to a stop beside us, his fingers skating across my shoulder, down my arm, as if checking to make sure I was real. I saw the exact moment they noticed the changes—how their breath caught, how their eyes widened as they took in the streaks of black that now threaded through my blond hair like veins of night.
“It's still me,” I whispered, the words feeling hollow as I set The Book down on the closest table and threw myself againstthem. “I'm still me.”
Riordan stepped closer, carefully cataloguing every detail, including the dark veins visible beneath my pale skin, like ink spreading through water. When our eyes met, I knew he could see the flecks of darkness that now danced in my irises—fragments of the Underworld I’d carried back with me.
“We saw you go through.” Rohr’s voice caught in his throat, then he shook his head. “We saw you dive through that portal, Evie. Just one more second, and we would have been there to…”
“What is this?” Blake interrupted, lifting my hand, running his finger along the biggest vein, emotion turning every word rough. “This looks like…it can’t be, can it?”
I knew what he meant, because I’d spent the past ten minutes debating with myself over the very possibility. The Darkening, the way a vampire’s blood turned black, given time and sins and a myriad of bad deeds. Never did I think it would happen to me, but here was the proof.
“This started before, but it got worse in the Underworld,” I said simply, “Time moves differently there, so what was a few days here was…a month there,” I shrugged. “I guess all that darkness affected me.”
“Tell us everything.” Blake tugged me over to a chair and sat, pulling me into his lap, countering Riordan’s growl of protest with a gruff—you’ll get your turn soon enough.
