Chapter 32
She slept like the dead.
I spent the entire night watching her—listening to the steady cadence of her heart, playing with her long white hair.
At one point I got hard again and nearly forgot myself and took her while she slept. But we haven’t had that conversation yet. What her limits are, that is. The last thing I want is to draw a line she isn’t ready to cross or stir up memories of her time in Thornegate.
When she finally stirred, I quickly shut my eyes, feigning sleep. I think she looked at me for a moment, but I held the act, letting her have that quiet curiosity. I like that she wants to look, because, let’s be honest, she’s right. I am full of myself.
I broke the act when she got close enough for me to kiss. After that, I lost any restraint I had about keeping my hands to myself. We ended up fucking for another hour before her stomach started growling.
We showered, got dressed, and left the hotel.
The bed was covered in blood because, once again, I fed on her this morning.
It looked like a damn crime scene. She told me to leave a note, but I didn’t; what fun is that?
Instead, I left a hundred on the side table.
It’ll give the staff of this boring little town something to gossip about.
Now we’re back on the road, her stomach full of crappy fast food, and her body curled right up against me. I didn’t even have to ask, she just slid into the middle seat beside me.
The past several hours have been filled with me telling her about my upbringing, and some of my early years as a Vampire. She shared a little about her parents and a bit about her siblings, but said the wound of their deaths is still hard to talk about. So we moved on.
Now, though, we are getting into a bit more interesting topics—if I do say so myself.
“You said something last night I wanted to… ask you about.”
“Sure, ask away.” I drag my fingers along her bare arm. It’s not normal for her to have any skin showing, but I practically demanded she wear something where I had the ability to touch her skin, not her clothes during the drive.
I’m fucking needy, I know.
She didn’t have anything that fit the requirement, but she compromised. She took her sweater off and has been sitting in just her bra and a high-waisted skirt.
“You said…” She clears her throat. “That Luce and I would taste good together.”
The bond hums, nervousness threading through it, distinct and undeniable as it ripples across the connection. It’s one of four emotions she can’t hide from me, no matter how hard she tries.
“What did you mean by that?”
I move my hand to her jaw and cup it, my thumb brushing from her cheek to her lips.
“Gods, you’re adorable. Do you want me to tell you exactly what I was imagining, or…?”
Her heart skips, but a sharp inhale through her nose steadies it again.
“In the moment.”
“After he was done fucking you, I’d suck his and your cum from inside you. To taste what’s mine. Together.”
A high pitched eep sound escapes her. When I look down, her legs are pressed tightly together, and the scent of her excitement fills the truck.
“I’m not even going to ask if you’d like that.”
She grabs the fabric of her skirt, fidgeting with it. “Alright, well… thank you for answering that for me.”
“Mhm… go on.”
She’s not done. I can taste the need for more pouring out of her through the bond.
“What if… you get to him, and he isn’t interested in getting back together with you?”
I let out a long sigh. “I’ve thought about it, briefly.”
Truthfully, I haven’t put much stock into the idea of him telling me no or sending me away.
If I tell her he doesn’t have a choice, she might think that’s…
unhinged. Even though it’s true. He doesn’t.
Lucifer doesn’t have a choice. He will be coming back with me, and we will have a civil discussion.
Heh, civil.
“He’ll come around.”
She pulls back slightly and looks up at me. “And—”
“Luce will like you. Don’t worry.”
I glance at her from the corner of my eye and catch her frown.
“I’m not concerned about me, Kayn. I was going to ask: and if you’re wrong? You’ll leave him there?”
I swallow, press my lips together, and focus on the road ahead.
Once we reach the central and eastern regions of Achien, traffic will thin out, and fifty or so miles into Demour we’ll hardly see another soul.
The trip will last another five days, and two more to cross the state as a straight shot with no stops.
Her elbow nudges me gently.
“Don’t worry, little slayer.” I smile down at her. “I’ll be leaving the Beyond with him.”
She’s trying hard not to push, I can tell, even as I turn my eyes back to the highway.
“Alright.” She rests her head against my chest. “What is he, anyway? You said he wasn’t dead, right? Remember… I can’t bring people back to life, and I refuse to turn anyone into a Necroth.”
I chuckle. “No. He’s not dead. And what he is… is in trouble. You’ll find out when I drag him out.”
“Remember, I’m going in with you.”
My entire body tenses. That’s right, I totally forgot.
“Right… and you’re sure you’ll be fine?”
“Should be.”
“‘Should’ and ‘will be’ are two different things. No. I’ll go in and come out quickly.”
“Actually, you won’t.”
Her hand glides up my chest, slipping under my shirt, her warm fingers tracing across my pecs. “They say time works differently down there. Seconds there are hours here. It’s actually more dangerous for me to wait outside than to go in with you.”
“And what if you’re obliterated on entry, Amarah? No. That’s too risky.”
This girl actually pinches my nipple.
“That’s not how that works for me. It would just push me back out.”
She cups my chest like it’s a tit, and my brows pinch.
“What are you doing?”
“How’re you so big?”
I roll my eyes. “You’re making something big, that’s for sure.”
She gasps. “Oh my Gods, Kayn, I am literally pinching your nipple—why is your cock hard?”
“My nipples like stimulation, but I’ve been stiff anyway. Now we’re getting sidetracked. Not that I think you’ll ever meet my friend, Kairhyse, but… don’t ever mention he could go through the gates and not get obliterated.”
“Why?”
I groan. “His girlfriend might kill a Fallen.”
“A Fallen?! You’ve met a Fallen?!”
“Unfortunately.”
She giggles slightly. “Let me reiterate something. I said that’s not how it works for me. I won’t get obliterated.”
Humming, I shrug my shoulders. “Moot point, I think… Anyway—the timing thing. I forgot time works differently down there. And if you’re certain you won’t be immediately killed if it doesn’t let you through, then we can try.”
I tighten my grip on her and drag her into my lap. She yelps but thankfully doesn’t squirm. The truck is big enough for this, but with her hips, she’s barely an inch from the steering wheel.
“That’s better. You were still too far.”
“Ugh, this is so dangerous.”
I shift my hold, keeping her tucked against me with my left arm while steering with the other.
“Nah. I’ve been driving for forever… literally.”
She relaxes her head on my shoulder, and as she sighs, I ask, “Why do you regulate your heartbeat so much? You’re actually really good at it. It’s kind of scary.”
There’s a beat of hesitation, and I give her the moment to think about how to answer. Hopefully it’s the truth, but if it’s not, I’ll choose to believe she has her reasons.
“It’s a tactic my dad taught me. He used to say that people in this world can be evil and will use whatever hurts you against you. Fear. Anxiety. Pain. Sadness.” She pauses, then adds with a small, nervous laugh, “I think the one I’m struggling with right now is… how you make me feel.”
“And you wonder why my dick’s hard.”
She swats my chest gently and shakes her head. “Kayn, please.”
I brush a kiss against her head, and take an unneeded breath of her in.
A sigh slips out of her lips. “Though, little good it did in Thornegate. It just pissed them off that they couldn’t get a reaction out of me once I got used to what was coming.”
I remember the first words I ever heard her speak: “Today is my day off.”
And now that I know exactly what she was “off” from… that sentence hits in a completely different way.
“When things are done,” I mutter, “I’m blowing up that pile of rocks down to the sea floor.”
My hand tightens around the steering wheel, metal groaning as it bends slightly. She places her palm over mine, threading her fingers between my own, and I relax my grip enough to make room for her.
“How they treated me was… terrible. But there are people who merit being in there.” She hesitates, then quietly adds, “Dare I say, some who deserve what was done to me.”
“Shooting down my dreams here, little slayer.”
She laughs—soft and slightly guilty. “Sorry.”
I kiss her forehead as she settles into me and try to let go of the tension in my shoulders.
“Your dick’s not going down…” she mumbles.
“And it won’t. Get used to it.”
We don’t stop for three days, other than to top up on gas and shower at a truck stop.
There hadn’t been any rush—until we got a call from Atlas saying three gates opened simultaneously, and making both of us nervous.
Again, there’s no clear connection to what we’re doing…
maybe. He also said someone by the name of Auralock has been showing up and closing them.
No description of who, or what, they are.
But if they’re shutting gates, that means they’re either a Fallen, a Demon…
or another Witch. I’m worried about the frequency of them, and feel like they’re following us somehow.
We’re ten miles out from Demour, and I can feel the subtle shift in the air. Death approaches: or rather, we approach it.
Everhaven shifts from beautiful, lush green country to a desolate wasteland the farther east you go. The moment you enter Demour, you can feel it. Like stepping into the Beyond. The land is dry, the mountains barren, not a single tree to catch the high winds rolling in from the sea.
From this distance, the towering border wall that separates Demour comes into view. It stretches as far as the eye can see, forged from metal that’s constantly maintained so it won’t deteriorate over time.
I pull us over and we climb out. Amarah circles around to my side and crosses her arms over her chest. She’s wearing pants—extremely unlike her—but it’s cold, and I insisted.
Paired with an oversized sweater, she looks casually adorable.
I keep thinking about her in just the top, curled on a couch between Lucifer and me, watching those drama movies he loved so much.
It’s a beautiful thought. One I’m worried about holding onto too tightly.
Her question from the other day keeps echoing in my head. The one about what happens if Luce decides not to come back with me.
I don’t want to give him a choice… but am I willing to take his away?
Can I strip his will just so he’ll stay with me?
I hate even thinking about it.
Suddenly, Amarah’s arm slips around my waist.
“You can talk out loud to me about how you’re feeling,” she says, looking up at me with a soft smile pulling at the corner of her lips.
“Thanks. We can talk about it later. First, let’s figure out what we’re doing here.”
She looks away, down the road toward the border. “I don’t think crossing the patrolled point is a good idea.”
“I agree. Whether they’re looking for me or not, I’ve got no identification, and they’ll ask too many questions about why we’re entering Demour.”
I drape my arm over her shoulder, tapping my index finger lightly against her arm. “I’ll run the wall, see if there’s any opening, and we can slip in that way. If you approve.”
“What? No jumping it? No dramatic scaling?” She laughs. “Such a non-Kayn way.”
I swat her ass and vanish from her side. She’s left with her mouth hanging open, staring at me from a few feet away.
“Get back in the car, little slayer, and lock it. I’ll be back shortly.”
She rolls her eyes and says, “Such a brute.”
“I prefer dom, but we’ll get there.”
Then I’m gone—rushing toward the border to find us a safe passage into, quite literally, the Beyond of the Earth.