Page 131 of Fated In Forever
His smile turned soft, almost vulnerable. “Besides Tyberius, I never had a family. I'm not sure I know how to be part of one.”
“None of us do, not perfectly.” I thought of Angel, of the mistakes I'd made, the fears I still carried. “We’ll figure everything out, Malachi. We’ll make mistakes. But the important thing is we're doing this together.”
“Together,” he repeated, as if testing out the taste of the word on his tongue. “Gods, I like the sound of that.”
“You know what?” I slid him a sideways look and a smile. “So do I.”
We stood in comfortable silence for a while, watching the stars come to life in the darkening sky. There was something deeply satisfying about this moment, about seeing someone I cared about finally free from the chains that had bound them.
Of knowing that we had a real chance at that future we’d only dreamed about up until now.
“Malachi?” Sabine's voice drifted from the darkness behind us, and I turned to see her approach on bare feet, her pale hair gleaming in the rising moon, a flowing purple gown streaming behind her like a train.
“Sabine,” Malachi said warily, tension returning to his shoulders.
She studied him with those all-knowing eyes of hers. “You're looking remarkably... unencumbered this evening.”
“The blood oath broke. I’m free, for the first time as a vampire. The feeling is…indescribable.”
“So I sense.” Her expression grew serious. “I have been summoned home, but I feel compelled to give you a warning before I go. Your time in this realm is limited. The Underworld has claims on you—duties that cannot be abandoned. You understand what I am saying?”
Something cold settled in my stomach. “What sort of claims?”
Sabine's gaze moved between us. “Malachi may be capable of switching between forms at will, but he will forever be bound to the Underworld. He has a task to complete, a role that cannot be abandoned. Eventually, he will need to return to fulfill his sworn obligation.”
“A sworn obligation?” I asked, cold certainty settling on me like a lead weight. “What did you do, Malachi?” Whenhe just pressed his lips together, I turned to Sabine. “When did he swear this oath?”
“Little more than a week ago, Evangeline. A chance to save you, in exchange for the Underworld owning his soul for an eternity. You are saved, and now, his part of the bargain must be fulfilled.”
I looked at Malachi, seeing a shadow cross his face. Without thinking, I reached for his hand, threading our fingers together. His skin was warm, real, and I held on as tightly as I could. “You swore yourself away to save me?” I kept shaking my head, my thoughts turning into a scramble of panic. “That’s…there has to be some way to renegotiate. Some way to compromise.”
Sabine intoned,Take me home to my mate, and I swear, this realm will own me for eternity. Once she is safe, once she is healed, I will return, and resume my duties. I give you my oath.
“How long do I have?” Malachi asked, as if he wasn’t ready to know the answer.
“I cannot answer that, only the magic can decide,” Sabine replied, with her usual evasiveness. “But this separation...does not have to be permanent.” Her gaze softened as she looked between us. “Time, they say, is an illusion and love is infinite.”
“Then we'll make the most of the time we have,” I said firmly. “And when you have to go, we'll be here when you come back.”
His fingers tightened around mine. “You would wait?”
“Family waits,” I told him. “No matter how far apart we are or how long it takes, you'll always have a place here with us. We’ll always keep a chair at the table and a light burning in the window.” I squeezed his hand. “An old human custom, to guide you back home.”
Something profound passed between us in that moment—an understanding that went deeper than words. He brought our joined hands up and pressed a gentle kiss to my knuckles, a gesture so tender it made my breath catch.
“Thank you,” he whispered. “For giving me something to hope for.”
Sabine cleared her throat nervously, her eyes darting between us. “There is something else, related to your task. Souls remember. They remember love and hate, they remember who hurt them, and much like us, they hunger for vengeance. And maybe there are times when that vengeance is due.”
I narrowed my eyes. “So all those souls in the Underworld…they areaware?”
“Let me tell you a story,” she said instead, her fingers closing around my arm, tight enough she had my full attention.
“Of two lovers, meeting over and over again through time. In different lives, in different worlds, long before vampires even existed. They fell in love, many, many times, sharing the same private, tender moments, making the same hushed promises, but in the end, choice...always decided their fates. Duty over love…love over duty…sacrifice over pain, every choice led to disaster.”
Off in the distance, thunder rumbled, even though the night was clear, and Sabine leaned closer, her fingers tightening around my arm as she dropped her voice.
“I have often wondered if, just once, what might happen if they simply chose each other? Would they be happy?Couldthey be happy?” She released a low, hushed laugh.
