Chapter 81 Eighty One

Chapter 81 Eighty One
  DANIKA
           Kaziel exhales slowly, looking utterly devastated. My heart aches for him. I understand that Vanya might have been in love with someone else, but she was sabotaging other people's lives.
   "She killed people," I whisper. "For this?"
   Flo's eyes well up with tears.
   "Yes."
   She presses a fist to her mouth, steadying herself.
   "And I still miss him," she says, her voice breaking. "Every day. He was my brother. He was kind. He hated violence. He hated what she became."
   She looks directly at Kaziel now.
   "He would never want to live in someone else's body," Flo says fiercely. "Never. Not after all the lives she took trying to make it happen."
   Her voice trembles, but she doesn't look away.
   "He wouldn't want your life. Your pain. Your memories. He wouldn't want to wake up wearing another man's face while knowing how much blood paid for it."
   Tears slide down her cheeks.
   "She tells herself she's doing it for love," Flo whispers. "But my brother would call it what it is."
   She inhales shakily. “Desecration."
   I feel Kaziel's arm tighten around me.
   "She's not resurrecting love," Flo finishes. "She's trying to own death."
   I press my forehead briefly to Kaziel's shoulder, grounding myself.
   "She won't succeed," I utter softly, and she nods, reaching into her bag with utter concentration.
   She takes out a dark green bracelet, sniffling. "If my hunch is right, she'll begin the soul call soon. This should help with the discomfort. I wish you good luck."
   Flo hands the bracelet over to Kaziel, and he accepts it, staring down at it with a blank look on his face.
   "You're human. How did you get this information? And how did you get Danika's number?" He asks, and I stiffen because he's right. I'd found it odd that she's wearing glasses. I just didn't know she was human.
   "I did a lot of research. A lot. If you want me to show you, I can take you to my basement. It's been years. It was hard at first, but knowing that my brother has been dead for years, yet she still won't bury him, hurts me," she replies, her voice shaky.
   Kaziel eyes her warily as she wipes the tears off her face.
   "It's okay to not trust me. But I really do want to put an end to Vanya's schemes. I never liked her in the first place," Flo says, and my chest tightens with sympathy.
   Looking at her now, she looks so young.
   "How long has he been dead?" I manage to ask, and she sighs.
   "Seven years."
   Kaziel sucks in a sharp breath, a muscle ticking in his jaw.
   "She's been magically keeping his body from degrading," Flo adds.
   Bile threatens to push up my throat. How is Vanya even doing this?
   "You should go home. It's not safe for you out here. Vanya might be anywhere. Trust me, no matter how strong you are, you'll be powerless in front of her. She already has a seal on your core," she tells Kaziel, and he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.
   As soon as we rise to our feet, Kaziel's arm tightens around me suddenly, his weight shifting unevenly.
   "Kaz?" I whisper, turning fully towards him.
   His face has gone pale again, a thin sheen of sweat breaking at his temple. One hand lifts slowly, almost reluctantly, and presses flat over his sternum.
   "Kaz?" I whisper.
   "I—" His voice cracks. He swallows. "Just... give me a second."
   My heart lurches, pounding faster.
   I'm already moving, sliding an arm around his waist, guiding his weight into me. He's too warm now, feverish heat bleeding through his coat.
   "Breathe," I murmur. "Slow. In through your nose. Out through your mouth. You're okay. I've got you."
   His breathing comes out rough and strained.
   Flo reacts instantly. She swings her bag over her shoulder and steps around the table, her fingers moving quickly as she takes the bracelet from Kaziel's loose grip. Her hands are shaking, but she doesn't hesitate. She slips it over his wrist.
   Kaziel gasps softly, his palm flattening over his chest.
   "That's it," I coax, rubbing slow circles into his back. "Stay with me. You're alright."
   Flo watches him with wet eyes.
   "You remind me of my brother," Flo says suddenly, her voice thick. "The way you hold yourself when you're hurting. Like you don't want anyone to see it."
   Kaziel's lashes flutter. "I'm... sorry."
   She shakes her head. "Don't be."
   My throat tightens.
   Kaziel shivers, a tremor running through his frame. I pull him closer, rubbing warmth into him through my coat.
   "Thank you," I tell her softly. "For everything. Please... stay safe."
   She nods, her lips pressed together.
   "You too," she whispers. "Both of you."
   Together, we move slowly out of the café. A shiver runs through me the same second my mate shivers.
   "I'm okay," he murmurs automatically.
   I rub his back harder. "I know. I know."
   We reach the car. He insists on the driver's seat, lowering himself into it carefully. I sit beside him, watching his hands tremble as they rest on the steering wheel.
   "Kaz," I say gently. "Are you sure you can drive?"
   He opens his mouth to answer but is interrupted by the sound of a thunderous BANG.
   Someone screams, and my blood ices over in my veins.
   No.
   No, it can't be Flo, right?
   "Kaz—" I gasp, already moving.
   I'm out of the car before I register my own decision.
   People are shouting. Someone drops a cup. Someone is screaming.
   Then I see her.
   Flo is lying on her back in the snow, blood blooming against the white. A single, brutal bullet hole sits in the centre of her forehead. Her glasses are crooked, one lens shattered. Her eyes are wide open, staring at nothing.
   "No," I whisper. "No, no, no—"
   My knees hit the ground beside her.
   She's gone.
   Someone is crying and someone else is yelling for help that's already too late.
   A shadow falls over me, and I turn to look at him. It's Kaziel. He looks devastated.
   I can feel his shock, his grief, and his rage. Vanya didn't just silence a witness. She sent a message. And it's loud enough to echo straight through my bones.
   ...
   My eyes are still swollen from all the crying I did when I saw Flo's body. It could have been me or Kaz. What was I thinking? I sit beside Kaziel, who's lying in bed with Doctor Callen checking his blood pressure. Kaziel holds my hand with his free one, rubbing his thumb over the back of my palm to comfort me.
   I watch as Callen takes out the thermometer from Kaziel's mouth, his eyes widening.
   "Is it bad?" Kaz breathes, his chest heaving.
   "110°F. You're boiling," Callen says, a worried look on his face. My heart sinks.
   "Is it his core? Is it making him sick?" I ask, and he sighs.
   "I'm not sure. The variables are too many. It might be the Hollow resurfacing now since his system is weakened from flatlining. It might be his core. And it can also be an aftereffect of unlocking the blocked memory."
   I run my fingers over Kaziel's flushed cheeks, watching his eyelids flutter closed.
   "So, how do we know which one it is?" I ask, a lump forming in my throat.
   "Kira will be here soon. She'll be able to figure it out. For now, I'll give him fever reducers and—"
   "Callen," Kaziel suddenly utters, his voice gravelly.
   "Y-yes, Alpha?"
   "Please leave."
   His eyes go wide. "But—"
   "Don't speak. Just leave. Hurry up," Kaz croaks, and I blink, startled. Callen nods, shutting his toolbox. Then he hurries out of the room. Only then does Kaziel exhale.
   "What's wrong? Why did you send him out?" I ask, bewildered.
   He sighs, pushing himself up with a grunt, sweat glistening on his forehead. "It's embarrassing."
   I let out a laugh, bewildered. "What are you talking about?"
   He holds a hand to his eyes, a weak smile tugging at his lips. "Lift the blanket and see for yourself."
   My eyes go wide. Why does that sound ominous? Surely, he didn't pee on himself, did he?
   Hesitantly, I reach for the blanket and lift it up. My eyes go wide when my gaze drops on the tent in his sweatpants. He seems to be swelling by the minute.
   What the—
   "You're...hard?"
   He chuckles, still covering his eyes. "It's called rut, sweetheart. I can't believe I forgot about that."
   I freeze, my hand still clutching the blanket.
   Rut.
   The word lands heavy in my chest, sinking deeper the more I look at him.
   Kaziel is flushed now, sweat dampening his hairline, his chest rising too fast.
   "Oh," I whisper. "Is that... bad?"
   He swallows hard. “Yes."
   "Why didn't you say anything?" I ask softly.
   "Because I didn't realize until now," he admits, shame thick in his voice. "And because I don't want you thinking this is—" He cuts himself off, breathing hard. "—want."
   I reach for his face gently.
   "Kaz," I say. "Look at me."
   It takes effort, but he does. His pupils are dilated, dark with instinct.
   "This doesn't scare me," I tell him. "But I need to understand."
   His hands curl into the sheets, his knuckles whitening.
   "Rut doesn't just make me want you," he says hoarsely. "It makes my body think it needs you. Your blood. Your heat. Your core. And with the fever..." His voice breaks. "I can't trust myself not to take too much."
   A chill slides down my spine.
   "Okay," I say. "Then we don't let you spiral."
   His head snaps up. "Dani—"
   "No," I cut in gently. "You're not pushing me away. Not when you're like this."
   I move closer, holding him.
   "But we do this safely," I continue. "No feeding unless you're fully conscious. No marking me either. And if you feel the Hollow—"
   "I tell you," he finishes immediately.
   "Good."
   I press my forehead to his.
   "You're not a monster for this," I murmur. "You're only unwell."
   He lets out a shaky breath.
   "You should tie me down," he whispers. "Or leave."
   I cup his face, forcing him to meet my gaze.
   "I'm not leaving you in a rut and a fever," I say quietly. "And I'm not treating you like a threat."
   I press a kiss to his jaw. “If you start to lose yourself, I'll stop you. Do you trust me?"
   His eyes shimmer, a golden ring surrounding his pupils.
   "Yes."