Page 11 of Devil’s Night (Vinduthi Captured Mates #7)
NICOLE
T he skeletal lizard darted through the shimmering maze walls as if they weren’t there, its whip-like tail disappearing through the solid-seeming surface. I hesitated, hand outstretched to touch the barrier, but Sargon’s low voice spurred me forward.
“Go on, little one. I’m right behind you.”
Bracing myself, I plunged through the rippling wall. The surface parted around me like disturbed water before solidifying at my back. I emerged into an abandoned bedroom, the walls wavering with a faint iridescent glow. Tattered curtains fluttered despite no breeze, and a rocking horse creaked back and forth in an unsettling rhythm.
The lizard scrambled under the dusty bed frame, and I quickly followed, desperate not to linger in that eerie space. Another shimmering wall parted before me, depositing me into what looked like an old study. Sargon’s tall form stepped through behind me, the dim light casting sharp planes across his face.
Our guide skittered across the warped floor, leaving a trail of dust in its wake. It paused at a bookcase, then faded through the shelves into another flickering hallway beyond. I shuddered, the hairs on my nape prickling with unease as I passed through the disorienting portal.
We twisted and turned through a labyrinth of decaying rooms - a conservatory with dead plants, a sitting room choked with cobwebs, a library filled with scattered. Each space felt subtly wrong, off-kilter, like a twisted reflection of reality. I tried not to look too closely at the disturbing details as we followed the lizard’s relentless path.
And then we stepped into the cold light of the sleek laboratory. The skeletal lizard scurried under a counter, and I took a tentative step forward, my boots ringing against the metal floor. This was it – the key to our escape.
On the workbench sat the Temporal Reset whatever it was, looking like nothing so much as a glorified toaster oven.
Sargon moved beside me, his lean muscular form taut with tension.
Wordlessly, he retrieved the ancient release card from his pocket and slid it into the glowing slot.
For a breathless moment, nothing happened. Then a shimmering portal materialized before us, its edges rippling like disturbed water.
I stared at the swirling vortex, my heart in my throat. We had no idea what lay on the other side, what world or time awaited. But one thing was certain – if Sargon stepped through that portal, I would never see him again.
He seemed to sense my thoughts, his angular features softening as he turned to face me. “ “ His voice rumbled with a melancholy I’d never heard before. “You should stay behind.”
I recoiled as if he’d struck me, shock and hurt lancing through me. “What? You don’t want me to come with you?” My voice cracked with vulnerability I couldn’t hide.
In an instant, Sargon was on his knees before me, his powerful hands grasping my shoulders. “Stars, no. I want you more than anything, . More than I’ve ever wanted anything in all my long years.” His crimson gaze burned with an fervor that stole my breath. “But I cannot rip you away from your world, from everything you know. I won’t do that to you.”
I searched his alien features, my mind whirling. What did I truly have waiting for me back in my reality? A dead-end job, a life of chasing the paranormal that had already cost me so much? Hadn’t I always dreamed of exploring the vast mysteries of the universe, of finding something more?
Lifting my chin, I met Sargon’s scorching stare. “There’s only one thing I need to know.” I struggled to keep my voice steady against the torrent of emotions surging through me. “Do you love me, Sargon? Truly?”
His eyes widened fractionally before softening with an achingly tender expression. Reaching up, he cupped my face in his calloused palms, his thumbs brushing across my flushed cheeks.
“With every fiber of my being, Carter. You are my destiny.”
Our lips crashed together in a searing kiss filled with unspoken promises and the bittersweet knowledge that our lives would be forever entwined, two souls hurtling into the unknown. When we finally parted, I felt deliriously giddy and terrified all at once.
Sargon rose fluidly to his feet, gaze shining with a fervent light. Grasping my hand tightly in his, he gave me one last searching look, silently asking if I was certain.
I squeezed his fingers and nodded, my heart overflowing. Together, we turned and stepped through the shimmering portal, surrendering to the cosmic forces that had brought us together.
The vortex closed behind us with a resonant hum, and I had only a fleeting impression of blinding light before the world tilted violently…