Sorren
Eva’s knees go out, and I manage to catch her before she hits the ground. She turns into me and lays her head on my chest. Quiet sobs fill the chamber, and soon tears of my own mix with hers. It’s a strange sensation, but it helps somehow.
“I got you.” I rub her back soothing her until the crying stops. She sniffles and looks up at me.
“Will she be okay down there? What’s going to happen?”
“I’ll talk to Malachi. He’ll help her find Vincent. I suspect he got trapped down there.” My voice catches in the knot forming in my throat. “I can’t imagine anyone choosing to leave this life behind.” A week ago, I wouldn’t have known the truth of these words.
Her chest rises and falls against mine. Eva pulls back to look me in the eye. “You’re the best demon I’ve ever known.” She brushes her lips across mine.
“I’m the only demon you’ve ever known.”
And I’m going to keep it that way.
My veins turn to ice when I think about Mephisto’s threats. I’d never let them hurt Eva, even if that means I have to do it myself.
“Let’s go save the coven.” She stands and holds out her hand to help me up. I take it and heave myself off the ground, but I don’t let go. I’ll hold on as long as I can.
On the trip back to the car and the drive home, words turn to ash in my mouth.
Eva looks so happy and excited to bring the news to her coven.
I can’t bring myself to tell her what I have to do.
Every time she looks at me I force a smile.
Inside I want to scream and fight. To tell the Board to get fucked and let me live out a happy life up here with Eva.
But they’ll never accept that. She would always be in danger.
The time on her car’s dashboard shows we have less than three hours to open the lines and say goodbye.
In the driveway is her mom’s car next to Riley’s. Eva texted and asked them to come over. She wants them all there when she casts the spell to open the lines and bring her world back into balance.
“Should I tell them their father is a demon?” She turns off the engine, but doesn’t move to get out of the truck.
“What do you think?” I have no clue, but I want to hear what she thinks about it.
“I don’t think it’s my story to tell. Maybe Grandma will pop back up and explain herself one of these days.” She smiles, opens the rusty door and eases herself to the ground.
I hang back and let her go into the house without me. From outside I hear, “You will never guess what just happened!”
She explains most of it, luckily leaving out the part when I had my hands down her pants and the details about her grandmother’s love affair with a demon.
“Sorren, are you coming?” she yells, poking her head out of the door frame.
“You go ahead. I need to make sure Malachi finds Iris.”
She beams a smile at me, and it hurts more than any torture Lena could have inflicted. A sinking feeling in my belly makes me sick when I think that might be the last time I see that smile.
I walk around the house to the backyard, taking in all the beauty and life Eva has put into her home, memorizing everything.
I pick up Catrick Swayze from his sunny spot on the porch and carry him into the shed with me.
I’ll miss this little guy, too. He flattens his head out while I scratch under his chin.
With the door closed securely behind me, I snap my fingers lighting the candles and calling Malachi.
“There you are! I’ve been trying to reach you!” He runs his hands over his horns. I used to miss mine, and in a few hours I’ll have them back permanently. But they don’t mean as much as they once did.
“I’ve been busy. Eva is about to open the lines. I’ll be home in an hour.”
“It’s true then. You do care about this witch. It’s not just some creepy love spell she cursed you with.” He might be the only one who can fully understand the sacrifice I’m about to make for the family legacy.
“I do. I love her, and that’s why I’m coming back. I can’t put her in danger just because I want to keep her.”
“Bring her here! You can keep her forever.” Malachi offers the solution I had thought of many times, but I know Eva would be miserable down there. She loves her life here. Her family, the café, and the coven. I couldn’t ask her to leave it all behind.
“It wouldn’t work.”
“Is it really that bad down here in comparison?”
“You have no idea.” I rub my temples, too tired to explain every way it’s better up here. “The reason I called…there should be a new woman there. Her name is Iris. Give her whatever she wants. She’ll be looking for a demon named Vincent. Make sure she finds him.”
“Did you kill someone? Did your witch kill someone?” he asks, his jaw on the floor.
“No. Iris is looking for answers. I believe she’ll find them down there.”
“I’ll go find her now, brother. See you in an hour.” He disappears and leaves me alone in the shed with all the spiders and Catrick Swayze. I hold the purring cat in my lap until he falls asleep. I sit there in silence, unable to move, numb.
I want to go inside and watch Eva blow these leylines wide open.
Her spell work is nothing like anything I’ve ever seen before.
What keeps me rooted to the spot is the look on her face when she thought she had used my magick against my will.
She needs to do this on her own, with no demon around to cast a shadow of doubt on her ability.