30. Amethyst
Thirty
Amethyst
W rapped in a towel, I sit at the foot of my bed exhaling a sigh of relief. For the first time since coming home I don’t feel the constant worry in the pit of my stomach or the need to look over my shoulder. The nightmare is truly over.
Skyler leans against my dresser, clothed in a spare uniform he had in the trunk of his car.
He studies me with his arms crossed over his chest. I pat the bed next to me.
Eagerly accepting the invitation, he glides over to sit beside me.
With a hand on my thigh, his gaze searches mine for permission. I pull his lips to mine.
This kiss is messy, frantic. Our hands glide over our bodies desperately.
As if we could somehow stitch ourselves together tightly enough to never be apart again.
Pulling back briefly to catch my breath, Skyler threads his fingers through my hair.
“I love you, Amethyst. You are magnificent. Your strength is admirable, your beauty incomparable. I... I can’t fathom losing you. ”
I pull him into a tight hug, burying my face in his chest. “I love you, Skyler. You are my gravity, being caught in your pull is my salvation.” His arms tighten around me. Suddenly his breath hitches. “Your wrist...”
I lift my head, glancing at the hand I rested on his arm. The markings from the ropes are... fading. “You didn’t shift, yet you’re healing anyway.” He muses aloud. Sage’s words resurface in my mind; this will heal when you shift.
And yet, my wounds have always healed. Even when I was still in Angel’s Rest. “Is that unusual for a shifter or a witch?” Skyler cradles my wrist in his palm. “Not just unusual. It’s unheard of.”
With a bewildered gaze, he keeps thinking aloud, “A witch would have to cast a spell to heal. A shifter needs to change forms. Something more must flow in your blood.” Words try to come out, but they don’t make it past my lips as shock freezes my face.
“Genes pass in interesting ways between species,” Skyler continues. “Sadly, my father and his kin only cared for pure wolves. My family tree is nothing but wolves as far back as I can track it. But yours — yours must vary.”
“Well, that’s very possible. I don’t know my father.
Or who or what he came from. My grandparents on my mom’s side have both passed.
I’ve never looked into my ancestry.” I pat his chest and move to grab some clothes.
“Maybe Mom knows!” I pull a moss-colored sweater over my head and Skyler presses a kiss atop my hair. “Surely she can tell us something.”
Returning to the living room, everything is back to normal. Sage certainly delivered on the cleanup. Standing here alone though, I feel just as empty as the room itself. I roll my shoulders, skipping to the kitchen. Sage and Skyler are at the counter along with my ice-cold pizza.
“I was really looking forward to that pizza,” I sigh. “We can get you a new one, love.” Skyler’s eyes light up as they catch on me. We fall into a charged silence, every fiber of my being urging me toward him. The warmth in my chest longing for his touch.
“Well,” Sage breaks the tranquility, “that’s my cue.” She clasps her hands together as she moves toward the front door. “You pups enjoy yourselves under this fine full moon.” She waggles her eyebrows, dipping outside, and gently closing the door behind her.
Skyler lifts my chin, and I catch that hazel gaze. Falling into the depths of greens and browns. His scent wraps around me, inviting and comforting. His lips brush mine just as I hear the door opening again. “Amethyst!” Eyes wide, my gaze darts over my shoulder to Mom panting in the doorway.
Skyler dips his head to her, stepping back to give us room.
Mom wraps me in a tight embrace, a hand brushing through my hair.
“I saw a police car leaving your driveway as I was pulling into mine. Oh, thank the Mother — all the creators.” I clear my throat, debating how to break the news of my attack to her.
“Enzo, the vampire. He was here.” She pulls back, her eyes hot with anger.
“Heavy on the was,” I continue, glancing Skyler’s direction.
His chest brushes my shoulder as he reclaims his spot beside me.
“He is a threat to Amethyst no longer.” He assures her.
Mom smiles at him, relief washing over her.
“Thank you.” She rests her hand on his shoulder. “Skyler, I take it?” He levels a mischievous grin at me. “You’ve told her about me?” Playfully jabbing his side, we chuckle as he offers Mom a hand.
“Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” she says, accepting.
“Mom, is there any other species I could’ve inherited traits from besides shifters and witches?
” A flash of pain contorts her face, but she quickly schools her expression.
“Well, Maddox, your father, he and his family took keeping the bloodlines pure very seriously. You’d only have had shifter lineage from him. My side is a bit different.”
“I’m sorry, did you say Maddox?” Skyler interjects. “As in Maddox Windsor?” Mom’s breath hitches. She raises her eyes to Skyler as if he’s turned into a ghost. “You... know him?” Skyler runs a hand across the back of his neck, rocking uneasily on his feet.
“I know of him. He was supposed to be the alpha of the pack that resides here in Tarot Lake,” he pauses, searching for words. “Word got out that he was mated to a different species, and when the time came for him to claim his position, he was challenged.
“The challenger ruled that the only way Maddox could yield and flee with his life would be to give up the name of his mate. He refused to tell them. He knew if he did, the pack would kill her. He sacrificed himself.”
A tear glides down Mom’s cheek, her gaze falling to the floor. “Sacrificed himself…” her voice shakes. I reach out to steady her, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“We were to leave together,” she whispers, clutching my hand.
“I had just told him about Amethyst.” She looks at me.
“He left your necklace that night and told me we’d be safer elsewhere.
When the time came, he didn’t show. I never saw him again.
I assumed he didn’t want to be a father... I feel a fucking fool.”
Instinctively, my hand reaches for my necklace, brushing the bare space where it should be instead. I make note to grab it off my nightstand; it feels infinitely more precious now.
My heart breaks for Mom. Skyler takes her hand in his, surprising me.
“You couldn’t have known, you can’t blame yourself.
His secrecy and his sacrifice kept you and Amethyst alive.
Safe. You have my sincere condolences, and my utmost respect.
You rose to the occasion, gifting the world with this beautiful, brilliant woman. ”
He pulls me closer, and Mom offers him a single nod, swiping a tear from her cheek. “Take care of her.” His grip tightens on my hip as he assures her, “With my life.”
With a grin, she returns to answering my earlier question. She holds herself together shockingly well, but she must be falling apart from this new revelation of my father. She clears her throat.
“Bee, my grandmother used to tell me stories about how allegedly our family descended from angels. Next to nothing is known about them, and this would have been hundreds, if not thousands of years ago. But if it does run in our family, it’s possible you could have inherited some properties.”
Fog still clouds my mind from my encounter with Enzo. Something he said breaks through to the forefront. I never believed it. That an angel’s blood could add centuries to a vampire’s life span.
“Of course,” Skyler’s voice is giddy, “I remember being taught about angels. I was schooled within the pack. Our history is a bit more intense. One of the few things known about them is their unique eye colors, said to hold small essences of light itself.” Admiration shines in his eyes, “Rather fitting I think, Sunlight.” I thread my fingers through his familiar warmth blooming in my chest.
“Enzo. He mentioned angel’s blood adding centuries to a vampire’s life span.
Is that why he hunted me? Does it explain my ability to heal without shifting?
” Skyler and Mom nod in unison. “It must,” Skyler answers.
I run a hand through my hair, pushing it behind my ear.
“I have entirely too much to study now. Please don’t let me have any other species in my blood… ”
With a chuckle, Mom excuses herself. “See you tomorrow, Amethyst. I can rest easy now knowing you’re safe. My bed is calling my name. I love you. And again, it’s nice to meet you.”
Skyler tilts his head to her, and I wave as she pops out the door. My heart hurts for her. I need to be there for her now more than ever.
“Night, Mom, love you too.”