Chapter 24 #2
“That must have been psychological torture.”
I know Lucien is capable of torturing people in their sleep. I’ve seen it firsthand.
But again. Why Nevan? Nevan apologizes when furniture bumps into him.
I close my eyes for a second and take a deep breath of the incense-filled air.
Whatever Lucien is doing, I don’t think it’s punishment for something Nevan did, because punishment would make sense.
Punishment follows rules and requires a reason.
This feels more deliberate than that. More targeted.
It’s as if Lucien looked at Nevan and saw something useful. Something he could use.
I look toward the hallway where Nevan disappeared and wonder if Lucien chose him not because of something he’d done, but because of who he is.
The man in question wanders back into the living room a minute later, wearing sweatpants and one of his oversized hoodies, looking way too hot for the situation we’re in.
He drops onto the sofa beside me and immediately pulls me under his arm, pressing a kiss to my temple. “Thanks for coming to my rescue.”
My heart softens as I lean against him. “Rule number three.”
Bad days don’t go alone.
I tip up my face and kiss him softly, the good-morning kiss he would have gotten if we’d woken up together in bed, like we were meant to.
The floorboard creaks, and we both turn toward the sound as Seraphine emerges from what I assume is her bedroom. Her silver hair hangs loose around her shoulders, and a pale robe is tied around her waist. She looks half asleep until she sees us sitting close, and a soft smile touches her lips.
Then her gaze moves to Jasper and the coffee table, then the scrap of paper on top of it, and her smile vanishes.
It doesn’t fade.
Vanishes.
Every hair on my arm rises.
“What’s that?” she asks sharper than I’ve ever heard her speak.
“Apparently, Nevan doesn’t remember a promise,” Jasper says carefully. “One he probably made in his sleep.”
Seraphine crosses the room and drops to her knees in front of Nevan, grabbing his face hard.
“What did you promise?”
His eyes go wide. “I don’t…”
“What did you promise, boy?” She gives him a small shake, not enough to hurt but enough to frighten me.
“I don’t know!” Nevan actually sounds panicked now.
“Mom.” Jasper is already moving, but I reach her first.
“Hey.” I curl my fingers around her wrists gently. “Stop. I won’t let you treat him like that, okay?”
She blinks like she’s waking up, and her grip loosens.
“He doesn’t remember.” I keep my voice calm when I pull her hands from his face. “But we’ll figure it out. I promise.”
She turns her head and looks at me. “No.” The word comes out barely above a whisper, then louder she adds, “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” I ask, confused, letting go of her.
“Little dreamer. Words are doors.”
“Doors,” I repeat, my gaze finding Jasper over her shoulder, but he shrugs like he has no idea what she’s saying either.
“Most of them stay shut. Some do not.”
“Okay?”
“Don’t promise things lightly.”
“Why? What is it with these promises?” I ask.
Her smile is sad. “Because dreams cannot tell the difference between a wish, a vow, and a prayer. Never promise anything until you’re certain that your eyes are open. Promises made in dreams are almost as binding as soul contracts.”
Ah, fuck.
“The difference is that a soul contract cannot be broken by just anyone.” Her eyes find Nevan again. “But a promise can.”
Hope flickers briefly in my chest.
“But only by the person you made it to.”
The hope dies instantly.
Well, if that isn’t unfortunate.
Seraphine reaches up and brushes a strand of blond hair away from Nevan’s face. The gesture is strangely gentle after everything else.
“So you would do very well to remember, my earthborn.”
Nevan stares at her. Fuck, we all stare at her, but she turns and picks up Jasper’s scrap of paper, lets a finger glide over the words before she sets it back on the table, then hums a low note to herself. “Would anyone like some tea?”
“No, thank you,” Nevan mutters, but I am too stunned to speak.
Jasper looks at his mom with an expression that I can’t fully read, then Seraphine pats his cheek and walks into the kitchen. The sounds of her moving around in there float through the door.
“Well,” I say eventually. “Fuck.”
“Yeah.” Nevan nods. “Agreed.”
“Okay, that is new information, but new information is good in our case.” Jasper starts rearranging things on the coffee table. He adds another crystal, more incense, then places the scrap of paper with the words on it in the center of everything and steps back to evaluate.
“You think anything about this is good?” Nevan scoffs.
“Yes, but first we’re doing Chakra work.
It’s mostly for energy and memory. I’ve used it in the past for past-life recall, but honestly, if it can surface a past-life from your subconscious, it can surface a suppressed memory you made in there, probably.
” He adjusts something. “Probably. This is new territory.”
Nevan looks seconds from bolting out the door.
“Nev.” I reach out to put a hand on his forearm, and his gray eyes find mine. “Rule number two.”
He huffs a tired laugh. “That is not your hex, Lemon.”
“It would be if I could do that kind of thing.”
“Well, you can’t.”
“I’m invoking it anyway.”
He looks at the ceiling, as if the ceiling might have something useful to offer.
“Fine.” He pulls me in for another kiss before shifting to sit beside the coffee table. “What do you want me to do, Jasp?”
“Lie flat on your back, please.”
He does as he’s told, barely fitting between the coffee table, couches, and pillows all around, looking extremely put-upon and also genuinely brave, a combination I’m starting to understand is just Nevan.
Jasper sits cross-legged on the floor beside him and starts whatever he’s doing, placing crystals along Nevan’s body while the incense makes the room smell like something I don’t have words for.
I sit on the sofa and watch as Jasper murmurs something I can’t quite catch.
The smoke curls, and Nevan puts an arm over his eyes, breathing steadily, making me wonder if he’s fallen asleep.
From the kitchen comes the soft sound of Seraphine making tea, and my mind wanders to what she said.
“But only by the person you made it to.”
Which means Tessa was right. Only Lucien can let her out of it, and if Nevan promised something to him too…
Nevan sits up in one fast motion, as if something had pulled him upright, making Jasper jerk back in surprise. Nevan’s eyes are open, fixed somewhere in the middle distance.
“I remember,” he whispers.
I lean closer, my heart almost beating out of my chest.
“What did you remember?” Jasper asks, also leaning closer again.
Nevan blinks a few times, then swallows. “It was a dream,” he says, slowly. “I was maybe fifteen. This Man was there.” Nevan turns to look at me with wide eyes. “He wanted something.”
“What did he want?” I ask.
“He said if I loved her…”
Another swallow.
“If I really loved her…”
His eyes find mine.
“I had to stay away from her.”
“From whom?” My heart is almost beating out of my chest.
“He made me promise to stay away from my mom.”