Page 61 of Kiss of Light

He lay Tala on the bed, removing her boots and trying to make her comfortable. He thanked the gods when he found the bathroom had running water. It wasn’t warm but it was clean and fresh. He took his shirt off and soaked it.

Then he tenderly wiped the dirt from the demon’s face and neck.

“Tala, can you hear me?” he said softly. She didn’t stir, didn’t make a sound. Her breathing was still shallow, but he thought it might be a little more regular now. Or maybe he was just grasping at straws.

A wave of tiredness rolled over him and he cursed his Vetali biology. He needed to prepare for sunrise. The bedroom did at least have a blind over its solitary postage-stamp window, but it wasn’t a thick blackout one. He couldn’t take any chances.

He peered underneath the bed. There were boxes and old suitcases stored beneath the frame. He hooked them out, throwing them into the living room. Then he cleared the dust and dirt as best he could using a broom and a dust-pan he found in one of the kitchen cupboards.

There was linen in one of the suitcases that had managed to stay dust free. He spread a sheet beneath the bed and grabbed a pillow off the mattress. Then he cradled Tala in his arms and crawled into the space, pulling them both into the dark.

He settled Tala so that she lay comfortably in his arms. He could have left her on the bed, but he didn’t want her waking up in a strange place not knowing where she was and thinking he’d abandoned her.

He stroked the hair back from her face.

“Come back to me, Tala,” he murmured.

Fatigue washed over him and he knew sunrise was imminent. He fought to keep his eyes open, not wanting to sleep while she was so helpless. Wanting to be able to protect her.

But he was powerless against nature.

She was still asleep when he woke eleven hours later. But her skin had returned to its usual ivory rose complexion and the dark shadows beneath her lashes had faded.

He watched her breathe for a while. Her heartbeat was slow and regular, as it normally was. He tucked a flyaway strand of hair behind her ear and her eyes opened. He carefully hid the wave of relief that washed through him.

“Hi,” he smiled.

“Hi.”

“How do you feel?”

“Like I’ve been run over by a bus. Where are we?”

“An hour from Dolores. I didn’t know exactly where we were headed and dawn was coming so I stopped here. I’m sorry. I know Ravij is on our trail but…”

“He’s not following us anymore. He knows where we’re going, he’ll be waiting for us.”

“That’s comforting.”

“It’s annoying. We’ve lost the element of surprise. But he’s on his own now, he can’t cover all the approaches to the Gate by himself. If we’re careful, we can slip right by him.”

“So we’re basically hoping for a big streak of luck.”

“That’s about the size of it.” She raised her head to look at him and hit it against the bottom of the bed. Her smile faded. Her hand shot up to feel the wooden frame around them. “What is this? Are we in a box? I can’t stay here. I can’t…”

There was an edge of panic in her voice.

“Tala, it’s okay. We’re under a bed. See? Not a box. You can get out anytime. I just needed somewhere with no light.”

She looked round, reassuring herself, then let herself relax. She sank back down, laying her head in the crook of his arm.

“Sorry. Old habits.”

“I’m just glad to see you awake. I was worried about you.”

“Worried? You had an emotion other than annoyed or pissed off?”

“I’m serious. You can’t use the light-bringer again. I thought it had killed you.”

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