Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 121324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
She stroked her finger down the spot between his brows, as if trying to smooth away a line. “I won’t try to comfort or placate you, because I know if the situation was reversed, there wouldn’t be one thing you could say that would make me feel better right now.” She sat up straighter. “I’m guessing it was Saul who hit me with that sphere thing.”
“It was.” And the fact that the blow had killed her confirmed what Cain had already suspected—a single strike from an Aeon could in fact take her out. But not permanently, it would seem. He’d never been more thankful of anything in his very long existence.
“Please tell me he’s dead.”
Cain wished he could. “I badly injured him, but there’s a possibility he’ll recover. He vanished before anyone could land a second blow on him. No one had noticed that he’d come out of hiding until you were hit.”
Her face scrunched up. “That goddamn sphere hurt like hell. Well, at least I now know that an Aeon can’t kill me for real. It was almost worth the pain just to know for sure.”
Cain growled.
“I said ‘almost.’” She rubbed at her head and then grimaced. “I have blood in my hair, don’t I?”
“Not just in your hair.” Blood spatter decorated her clothes and skin. Crimson stains surrounded tears in her clothes. “All your wounds are gone,” he realized.
She shrugged. “I always wake up healed after I die.”
But she wouldn’t have woken at all if she hadn’t been a revenant. He’d have lost her for good. The thought was enough to steal the breath from his lungs.
“I need a shower,” she said. “So do you. You got blood on you, too.”
“I know. But I need to hold you a little longer. Give me that.”
She didn’t object. She settled against him, stroking his chest. He splayed his hand on her throat, needing to feel the beat of her pulse.
It was a while before he felt able to let her go, but he didn’t move far from her side. They showered together in silence, each tending to the other. Watching her blood slide down the drain, Cain felt his jaw tighten. He’d never forget the feel of her lying dead in his arms. Not ever.
Saul had planned his attack well. He’d barely lifted a physical finger, even at the start. He’d hidden behind shades right up until the moment that Wynter appeared.
Cain realized now that Saul had only aimed to keep Cain and Azazel occupied while he waited for her. The Aeon had wanted both her and Cain to be in the line of fire. And then he’d used the shades to keep everyone busy, tire them out, and ensure that Wynter and Cain remained separated.
Then he’d come out of his hidey hole and struck.
Bastard.
Finished in the shower, Cain and Wynter dried themselves off and pulled on some clothes. As he watched her drag a brush through her wet hair, he couldn’t help remembering how it had been damp with blood only minutes before.
“You won’t change me,” she said.
Cain lifted his gaze to hers, realizing she was studying him closely.
“You won’t make me agree to hang back whenever danger comes calling.”
“I know that.” He resented it, to be truthful. “I don’t want you to change. I want you to fucking live.”
She set the brush down on the chest of drawers. “Well, given that I’m a revenant—”
“Every living creature, even revenants, have weaknesses. No one is indestructible. A lone Aeon didn’t manage to end you. But an attack from several at once could possibly do it.”
“Or it might not.”
“Exactly. It’s that unsurety that fucks with my head.” He couldn’t hold her corpse again while fearing she wouldn’t return to him. He just couldn’t. “I’m not going to request that you sit out future battles. It would get me nowhere, and it would be asking you to be someone you’re not. But I need you to meet me in the middle here.”
She eyed him curiously. “Define ‘middle.’”
Cain slowly crossed to her. “I have no clue how it is you walk the Earth. No clue. You don’t follow any of the rules of a normal revenant. Your soul is tied to this realm in a way that I don’t understand. And Kali . . . She could take you from me anytime She pleased. Just like that.” He clicked his fingers. “I have partial rights to your soul, but that’s not enough to hold you to me.”
Wynter stilled. “Where are you going with this?” she asked, but the question rang with a suspiciousness that told him she had an idea of just where this conversation was heading.
“There’s a way I can tether you to this realm. A way I can ensure that Kali could never take you from me.”
Wynter’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Are you suggesting what I think you are?”