Page 9 of As Darkness Fall
It had been the temple itself. There was no other explanation. Once I’d entered this chamber, the call had stopped, and as we’d fought, the energy had arisen, allowing me to defeat Johnathan. But I had nevercalledit into being. And now the pull that led me here was gone as well.
“No,” I told Vir. “Nothing. Not anymore. It was like the barrier to the Direen. It just sort of…happened.”
Vir stiffened at the mention of the impenetrable barrier separating Earth from the Direen, the home of the shifter gods. Once a beautiful place, now a realm of death and decay, rotted by a thousand-year invasion of unknown origin. It had been cut off from Earth for a millennia. Until I’d popped through.
Also, while fighting with Johnathan…
I looked over at him. “Could he be the key?” I asked quietly, looking back at Vir. “Both times I’ve done something like this, it’s been because I was fighting him. Maybe he’s the one…”
“No.” Vir shook his head.
“How can you be so sure of that?” I asked sharply. What did Vir know that I didn’t? Besides everything. ‘Cause, you know, “god” and all that.
“It wasn’t he who wielded the power in here,” Aaron said. “That wasyou,Dani. Even after he fell unconscious, you continued to wield it, attacking me with immense strength. If I…Well, let’s just say, many others would have been hard-pressed to handle that strike.”
I frowned. What had Vir been about to say? If he what? The god-man was full of enigmas, mysteries he didn’t elaborate on, and it was frustrating. I wanted to know what he knew!
From the corner, Johnathan groaned. His body, half-blackened along one side, stirred and slowly rose to a sitting position. Vir and I watched as he scanned the chamber, eventually taking the two of us in.
“Well, shit,” he muttered in a terrifyingly weak voice before slumping back to the ground. “What hit me?”
I didn’t know if he meant me and the violet energy or the blow Vir had dealt him when they crashed together as Johnathan desperately tried to reconnect our Soulbond. I hadn’t seen what Vir did to send my ex flying back across the room, but I’m sure it must have hurt.
Walking over to Johnathan, I crouched over him. He was burned badly. His healing had started to go to work, but it looked awfully slow. I winced as he breathed, the sound ragged and uneven.
“Vir,” I called, bringing the god over to me. “Tell me, is he going to live?”
I wasn’t sure why I cared if Johnathan lived or died. Maybe it was a bit of compassion, or perhaps my absolute lack of feeling for him. Now that the bond between us had been severed, quite literally, I was looking at him through a more neutral lens. I think. After all, hehadtried to kill me.
Because, a part of me said,he was just doing what he was told.
Whether that was true or not, I didn’t know, and truthfully, I’m not sure how much I cared. But I wanted to see him live. I could hide from him now since our Soulbond would no longer guide him to wherever I was.
I was free. Perhaps when his father died, Johnathan could learn what that was like and become a better man.
Vir crouched down next to Johnathan, examining the gravely wounded shifter. He looked up at me, and I knew the answer before he spoke. I could feel it in him.
“I don’t know.”
Chapter Six
“Is there anything you can do?”
Vir looked at me like I was crazy.
“You’re a god, man,” I said, pointing out the obvious. “You must have some kind of powers. Things you can do to heal him, give him a better chance of living. To pull through this, right? That’s something you can do?”
“Dani, this man tried tokillyou,” Vir said, still crouched on the other side of Johnathan, who had slipped back into unconsciousness. “You can’t be serious.”
“I’m well aware of what he tried to do,” I snapped defensively. “I also tried to kill him. The bond was driving us crazy. Don’t forget, I askedyouto kill me. That’s how bad it was.”
Vir frowned, his lips compressing into a thin line. He didn’t like what I was asking of him, but neither was he denying it, which was good to see. It meant hedidhave some power to help.
“I would rather help you,” Vir said, gesturing toward my side, the wounds now hidden by Aaron’s clothing. They were baggy on me because I was smaller than him, but since I was five-ten, at least they didn’t hang overly long on me, which would be helpful when we started having to walk.
“I got beat up, Vir,” I told him sternly. “I’m up, about, breathing, talking, glaring at you. The wounds have stopped bleeding. Sure, I’m tired, weak, and ready to sleep for a month, but I’malive. The same can’t be said for him. I’m not dying, Vir. He is. Help him.”
Truthfully, I wanted to let Vir heal me and give me some energy. I was running on the last dregs of fuel in my body, but the last thing I wanted was for Vir to start growing some sort of attachment to me. I didn’t want to give him any ideas about becoming my knight in shining armor, riding in to rescue me. I could take care of myself.
