Chapter 84 Eighty Four
DANIKA
The warehouse looms ahead of us like a sleeping beast, the eerie silence causing the hair on the back of my neck to rise stiffly. It's two minutes past twelve. Midnight has never felt so scary.
I turn towards Kaziel, my heart already thudding too hard for someone who's supposed to be sitting still. He's...surprisingly very...zen. One hand rests on the steering wheel, the other relaxed on his thigh as if we're parked outside a diner and not the mouth of hell.
"You should wait here," he tells me with a soft voice.
I open my mouth to argue, but he's already turning towards me, lifting a hand to my cheek. His thumb brushes just beneath my eye, tender enough to make my chest ache.
"Trust me," he murmurs. "I'll handle everything."
"You only brought me because I insisted," I point out, pouting despite myself.
A corner of his mouth lifts. "And because you're stubborn."
He leans in and presses a warm kiss to my forehead. My eyes flutter shut on instinct, and I breathe in his dark chocolate scent.
"Are you alright?" I ask softly. Again. I can't help it.
He pulls back just enough to look at me. That's when I see the golden glow surrounding his beautiful blue irises. It shimmers like liquid sunlight. His eyes are more hypnotizing tonight. There's no lethargy, strain or detachment. He's focused and steady now.
"I've never been better," he says.
I squint at him. "You say that like it's supposed to make me feel better."
It doesn't.
He flicks my nose lightly. "Don't be such a worrywart."
Even so, I cross my arms. "Can I come with you?"
He exhales slowly, tipping his head back like he's counting to ten. Then he reaches into the back seat and grabs the bat. My eyes widen as he hands it to me.
"Only if," he says, narrowing his eyes at me, "you stay here until I ask you to come in."
I grip the bat with both hands and nod immediately. "Okay."
He doesn't look convinced.
"I mean it," I add quickly. I lean across the console and kiss him slowly. "I won't risk the life of our baby. I promise."
That gets him. His shoulders sag just a little as he exhales, one hand drifting instinctively to my belly. His palm lingers there.
"After this," he whispers, "we're getting a sonogram."
I grin. "Deal."
He nods once, then shrugs out of his coat and drapes it over my shoulders before I can protest. It smells like him. Home.
I clutch it tighter as he steps out of the car, the door closing softly behind him.
I watch through the windscreen as he straightens, tall and lethal under the glow of the moonlight, then he turns towards the warehouse without looking back.
Power rolls off him in invisible waves. My heart pounds as I whisper to myself and to our baby,
'Come back to us.'
And then Kaziel disappears into the shadows.
I hug his coat tighter around my shoulders, adjusting the bat across my lap like it's a comfort blanket instead of a weapon. My phone vibrates, and I glance down, frowning when I see that there's a new message. From Tyler.
At midnight?
I unlock my phone and read the message.
TYLER: Where are you?
My brows knit together. That's... weird.
I type back quickly.
ME: In Kaziel's bed, sleeping, duh.
I add a sleepy face for effect and hit send, smirking.
A second passes. Then another. My phone vibrates again.
TYLER: No, you're not.
I blink.
ME: Excuse you??? I absolutely am.
TYLER: Cakes. Tell me where you are.
The humour drains a notch.
ME: Why are you texting me at midnight? Are you drunk?
Three dots appear. They disappear and reappear.
My grip tightens on the phone.
TYLER: Just don't go anywhere tonight and tomorrow. Please.
A chill slides down my spine.
ME: Why?
This time, he doesn't reply right away.
When my phone vibrates again, it's not a text. It's a call. I hesitate for half a second, then I answer.
"Ty?"
His breathing is ragged on the other end. It's as if his lungs are struggling to expand and he can't get in enough air. And that's worrying.
"Hey," he says, and then he coughs.
It's not a normal cough. It's deep and gurgling, as though a thick liquid is clogging its way up his throat. I hear him gag, choking hard, and my heart lurches painfully.
"Tyler," I say sharply, sitting forward. "Oh my God—are you okay?"
He coughs again. I hear him spit, swallow and breathe.
"I'm fine," he lies weakly.
"You are not fine," I snap. "Your sickness is getting worse. Isn't there a way your mum can help you?
He says nothing at first. Then he lets out a shaky exhale.
"She can't heal me," he finally says.
My jaw tightens. "Why not? She's the one who poisoned you. If anyone can fix this, it's your mother."
A bitter laugh crackles through the line.
"She can," he admits. "But the cure isn't with her."
My stomach sinks.
"It's with the cult leader."
I close my eyes. Fuck.
"And?" I press.
"And she has to impress him to get it."
My fingers curl into Kaziel's coat. "Impress him how?"
"She doesn't want to," Tyler says. "She wants power. Enough to kill him and take the cure for herself."
My mind races, pieces snapping together with a horrifying clarity.
"So," I say slowly, dread stirring in my gut, "she's trying to kidnap me... to save you."
Tyler exhales heavily on the other end.
"That's only her secondary goal."
My chest tightens. "Ty..."
"She wants to take over the cult," he finishes. "You're leverage. Whatever the hell she thinks you are."
I stare through the windscreen, my reflection pale and tense against the dark.
"And that's why you told me not to go anywhere tonight," I whisper.
"Yeah," he says softly. "Because once she finds you... nothing's going to stop her."
My heart slams hard against my ribs.
Kaziel is inside that warehouse. And now, apparently, I might be in trouble.
"Can you come over to Kaziel's tomorrow? Maybe I can help with—"
"No, Dani. Don't do that. Please. I do want to see you tomorrow, though. But, you can't offer to use your power on me. I won't accept it."
I let out a sigh, my chest sinking. He must be so lonely.
"Fine, I'll see you tomorrow," I tell him.
"Stay safe, Cakes."
The line goes dead, and I tighten my grip on the bat, glancing in the direction Kaziel had headed. He probably wouldn't give me the green light to go to him. But I really need him to be safe.
'Maybe we should go to him,' a familiar voice rumbles in my head. I recognize it right away as Amber's voice. My wolf.
She has a point. And I'm too anxious not to take the suggestion. So, I reach for the door and pause.
Damnit, I promised him.
Biting my lower lip, I hold a hand to my belly. Just then, I notice a pair of red eyes watching me from the shadows. My breathing quickens. This is not good. From the darkness, more red eyes begin to glow.
'Kaziel, I think I'm being watched right now,' I say out loud, my pulse racing.
'Stay in the car.'
His response startles me. I didn't think he would hear me. This is a lovely surprise.
'What's going on?' I ask, breathless.
'Vanya isn't here yet. I'm waiting for her to show up.'
Right. She sets a meeting and comes late. Such a bitch. I roll my eyes, suddenly hit by the urge to bash her skull in.
From the corner of my eye, I notice more and more vampires stepping out. Wait...are they really watching me, or are they waiting for someone's arrival? Someone like the despicable wench I was just thinking about.
As if on cue, I finally see her. She's wearing an ankle-length sleeveless white dress, her hair flowing down her back. Two vampires flank her on both sides.
“No! No, please! Don’t do this!” The sound of a girl crying reaches my ears, and I squint past the warehouse to see a vampire dragging a young girl with him. She’s thrashing and fighting hard, digging her heels into the ground.
“I can’t help you! I don’t even know how to use my magic! Please, I’m begging you!” She screams, and Vanya walks up to her and slaps her across her face.
Now that they’re under the moonlight glow, I can see her face. She looks so young. At most sixteen. Her blue eyes are swollen and bloodshot, overflowing with tears.
“You are alive because of me, you disgusting piece of shit! Tonight, you will conduct this ritual! Or you’ll die!” Vanya yells.
“No, please. Doctor Kaziel saved my mum’s life. You can’t ask me to do this to him! I’d rather die!” The girl cries.
Anger burns in my chest when Vanya hits her again. That’s it! I’m done.
Vanya drags the girl into the warehouse, and a growl rises in my chest. I’m so fucking done. That bitch dies tonight!