Page 105 of Taming the Alpha's Daughter

She glances at me, eerie eyes fixed on me, but says nothing.

“You’re not Temperance, are you?” I ask, dread settling in.

“No, I’m Shadow.” Everything about her, from her eyes, one pink and one blue, to her words, chill me to the bone. She turns her face back to the stairs, peering up at the third floor. I edge closer, wondering if I should call out to Eziah when I spot Lucas on the third floor by the altar door. Relief flooded through my veins.Thank god, he’s ok.I gasp when Shadow speaks behind me.

“Sometimes the dead don't want to stay dead. However, sometimes in order to live we must let go of the dead, even when it hurts to do so,” she says, her words seem to echo in the air.

I swallow, and Shadow wanders off back into the darkness of the hallway leading to Eziah's room. Reaching Lucas, I can see Kaif through a gap in the door sitting in the pentagram, his legs crossed looking at space. “Lucas, you shouldn't be up here,” I whisper.

Lucas looks up at me, only then do I realize he is crying. Kneeling next to him, I rub his arms. “What's wrong, baby?” I ask, wiping his face with my hands.

“I don't want him to go! He's my brother,” he whispers. Swallowing guiltily, I smile sadly.

“It's not safe,” I remind him, and he looks back through the door. Standing up, I try to steer him away when Lucas shakes out of my grip.

“No! He should be able to say goodbye properly,” Lucas tells me and my brows furrow at what he means when I see the shadows seep across his arms down to his hands, the tendrils so dark they're obsidian.

“Lucas!” I gasp, and he peers up at me, his eyes filled with tears.

“Please, Momma?” he begs, and my lip quivers seeing him so heartbroken when I spot movement down the hall. Dominic is standing further down, leaning against the wall with his arms folded, he nods to me and I peer down at my son. However, Lucas lifts his hand, the shadows engulfing it.

“Anail,” Lucas whispers, the tendrils spread across his body. Suddenly, he faints, crumpling in my arms.

I whimper, so worried about my baby. I want to shake him awake but know I shouldn’t. Dominic moves toward me when I peer in at Kaif to find a boy standing before him. Kaif clasps his face in his hands and sobs rips out of him.

Kaif's tear covered face is suddenly replaced by his normal face. His face pales, his eyes widen, and his mouth gapes. “How? I can feel you!” Kaif breaks, clutching the boy, his body wracked with sobs. The boy is as old as Lucas, his hair a similar color. His eyes are just the same too, his face is Lucas' except for small smile dimples.

“I just wanted to play with him,” the boy Thomas tells Kaif.

“I know, I know, but it isn't safe for Lucas down there. He is alive and you are not. I'm so sorry, son,” Kaif tells him.

The little boy cries, hanging onto Kaif, and I can tell Kaif doesn't want to let him go.

“I'm sorry I couldn't save you,” Kaif says, his voice cracking. “But I can save Lucas,” Kaif tells him. The boy pulls away and nods, wiping his tears.

“But I wanna be your son too,” the little boy says, and Kaif nods.

“And you always will be. But it is Lucas’s turn now,” Kaif tells him.

The little boy nods when suddenly, his clothing turns to rags, his body is wet, his lips are blue and his fingertips are covered in blood. Then suddenly the smell of rotting apples and chilled water fills the air.

Kaif breaks down when the boy suddenly runs his fingers through his hair. “It's okay, Papa, don't cry,” he says, and Kaif sniffles looking up at him.

“No!” He shakes his head. “None of this is okay! But I'll see you again,” Kaif tells him and waves his hand in the air, speaking something in a foreign tongue when light explodes in the room before falling dark.

All I can hear is Kaif wailing when Dominic touches my shoulder. I look up at him through tear filled eyes when Jonah runs up the stairs.

He stops, seeing Lucas in my arms, and then looks at the door behind me.

“No!” Jonah chokes, and I nod, my lips trembling. I can't even bring myself to say it. Jonah rushes into the room to check on Kaif, and Dominic takes Lucas from my arms.

“Your mate needs you,” he says softly, and my eyes burn as I step into the altar room to find Kaif absolutely crushed with having to banish his son. I feel his pain vibrate through me like a physical weight in the room. Kaif's eyes are red and swollen, his body shaking with sobs. I move towards him, placing my hand gently on his back. He flinches at first, but then leans into me, burying his face in the crook of my neck.

“I'm sorry,” he whispers, his voice breaking.

“There's nothing to be sorry about!” I tell him softly, gently rubbing his back.

“He was just a child,” Kaif says, his voice filled with agony. “He deserved to live!”

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