Page 54 of Fated In Forever (Nocturne Vampire Clan #4)

RIORDAN

T he tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a blade.

But Blake and I weren’t about to be brushed aside by Malachi, even though he could take our heads with one swipe of those talons.

Malachi crouched over the end of the bed like a—yes, over protective gargoyle—his massive form radiating possessive power as that burning gaze swept between Blake and me. Shadows writhed around him, choking the room with sulfur and ozone—the threat of barely leashed magic.

Evie nestled into the pillows like a princess, her color still too pale, dark circles beneath her beautiful eyes, arms lined with those black veins that, even now, didn’t seem to be fading.

I forced myself to remain calm, even as every instinct screamed at me to get Evie away, and yet…I knew in my heart she was safe. This was Malachi—a massive, demonic, I’ve-been-pumping-iron-for-years Malachi—but he would never hurt her.

However, a crowd grew in the hallway behind us, Nikolai and his sister, an irate Finn Forge backed by his battered contingent of guards. Aisling and a host of other curious vampires I didn’t recognize.

“Everyone is going to want to stay calm.” I straightened, holding Malachi’s stare the entire time. “No sudden moves, no weapons, no fucking magic. He can reduce this castle to dust with a thought, so let’s all just…keep our wits about us.”

I swore the fucker smiled, but it was hard to tell, given the way his lips peeled back from those deadly fangs.

“Malachi, we need to check Evie over, make sure everything is okay. Can we do that?”

“I told you, I’m fine,” she grumbled, even with those dark veins crawling up her neck and over her jawline.

“You are not fine , Silver. You are better, and you are healing, but we need to know what else can be done.” Let us check her over, you ugly fuck, then you can have her to yourself .

I put everything I had into my stare and by some miracle, Malachi’s eyes shifted away first, that rumbling growl quieting.

“Sabine,” I said quietly, not taking my eyes off the demon lord. “Your brother claimed you’re a powerful healer. Check her vitals. Now.”

“You seriously expect me to risk life and limb to…”

“Sabine, check her over and make sure her body is accepting his magic, that the bond between them is stable, or you can go right back to wherever you came from.”

“Oh, well, when you ask so nicely…” The witch slipped past us with surprising grace, her combat boots silent on the stone floor.

For once, her theatrical demeanor was nowhere to be seen as she pressed her fingers to Evie's throat, then placed a palm over Evie's heart. Magic shimmered around her hands—a pale blue power I’d never seen before.

“Her body is healing,” she murmured, her voice professionally detached.

“Restoration of the bond has jumpstarted her system. Whatever residual magic she brought back from the Underworld has stabilized and is no longer cannibalizing her. Her depleted magic reserves will refill as her physical strength returns.”

Sabine narrowed her eyes and my stomach tightened. “Even though you are an asshole, your majesty, I’ll give her a boost of my magic to hurry this along.”

A magic I’d never seen before, blue as ice, glittering like the ley magic, floated over Evie in a cloud, then settled upon her like a misty blanket, sinking into her skin, leaving a trace of that blue-ish glow behind.

The veins in her arms lightened, she sighed, sinking deeper into her pillows, falling asleep as a bloom of color stained her lips. All the dark veins receded, that strange transparency to her skin turned back into a healthy flush of pink.

My body went weak as relief flooded through me, but the reprieve was short-lived. Malachi's growl returned, Sabine reared back to a safe distance, then his deep voice echoed inside my head, filled with primal rage.

You did this. You put her in danger. His amber eyes fixed on me with predatory intensity as he stepped closer, herding Blake and I into a corner. You were supposed to care for her, to protect her, you failed.

His eyes shifted to my friend. Both of you.

Blake tensed up beside me, shadows staining the air, but I snared his wrist to stop him from responding. This required delicate handling. Malachi was operating on pure instinct right now—the protective, possessive instincts of a creature who had almost lost his mate.

I doubted logic and reason would penetrate that thick skull.

And I was grappling with enough guilt of my own that his accusation stung. Malachi wasn’t entirely wrong. We had failed to keep her safe. We’d lost our focus, Evie had suffered and that was something I would have to live with.

And spend the rest of my life making up for, if she’d let me.

“We would never put Evie in danger,” I said firmly, my voice carrying all the authority I'd learned from decades of leadership, the force of telling him the absolute truth. “ Never . She is the most precious thing in the world to us.”

Then explain how she almost died on your watch. Even inside my head, the accusation was a rough snarl, and his claws extended, sinking into the bed on either side of Evie.

I took a measured step forward, ignoring the way his muscles bunched. “The bond between you, the one you blocked so she wouldn’t feel your separation…caused issues, once she arrived back in our world. She carried back a fair amount of darkness from the Underworld, which she couldn’t control.”

His head tilted, confusion flickering across his monstrous features.

“She tried to practice, to learn control, but she couldn’t manage such a foreign magic on her own,” I continued, keeping my voice calm and steady.

“Not without your connection. So we removed the block, not knowing the end result.

Evie's magic is powerful. Powerful enough to seal the rift shut.

But somehow…between fighting Ravok and stabilizing the rift…

her mortal body couldn't handle the strain of being exposed to so much dark power over such a long period of time.”

Understanding began to dawn, followed quickly by an expression of horror.

I was killing her?

“No, not you, and not us, the magic,” Blake explained quietly, finally finding his voice. “You saved her life, by sending her back to us. But the bond between you... it's too strong now. She can't exist without you anymore.”

The words hung in the air between us. Evie stirred on the bed, and all three of us turned toward her with identical expressions of concern.

“She's trapped,” Malachi said, his voice breaking with anguish. “I've trapped her.”

“No.” I moved closer, close enough that I could have reached out and touched his massive arm. I didn’t, but I could have. “You're connected to her, just like we are.” Then I switched into mind to mind, since I had no wish for Evie to hear what I was about to say.

She is ours to take care of. We have to figure out how.

We live in two different realms , he said slowly. Two incompatible realms.

I’m well aware. So it’s a good thing Sabine here, I cast my eyes at Nikolai’s sister, is an expert on realms, and magic, and crossing over. I have a feeling she’s here for a purpose, and we should make use of her expertise while we can.

He looked at me, and for the first time since he'd burst through that door, I saw the male beneath the monster. The one who loved Evie so completely he had somehow pried a portal open between realms with his bare hands, and bore the marks like a badge of honor.

Evie is ours , I continued, tamping down a fresh wave of jealousy. Because I was jealous. But Malachi was Evangeline’s choice, which meant I had to make my peace with this.

She chose you, knowing the risks, just like she chose Blake and I. And now we—all of us—must protect her. Ravok is still out there, stronger than ever. This world is in danger, and we are running out of time to save it.

Blake stepped forward so we stood side by side, like we always had, and said, Evie is all that matters. Every decision, everything we do is in her service, for her protection. The three of us are a family, so I guess that makes you family too, whether we like it or not.

Something shifted in the air around Malachi. The shadows began to settle, and the sulfurous scent faded. His massive frame shrank just a fraction, though he was still intimidatingly large.

I've spent centuries protecting her , he said quietly. The idea of trusting others with her safety...is not an easy thing.

“Just so you know, I am right the fuck here and I don’t appreciate you three talking behind my back.” Evie grumbled, awake again, arms crossed over her chest. Sabine was propping more pillows behind her head, and her color was already better, that death pallor fading.

“We’re working things out between us,” I told her. “I didn’t think you’d especially want to know how.”

“ I want to know,” Sabine looked raptly between us.

“You really do not,” I muttered.

“Probably with grunts and hand signals,” Evie wrinkled her nose. “Though I’m not sure how that works, mind to mind. Still, it’s rude to not include me.”

Fine then, we’ve decided you are our single most important priority and the three of us are going to dedicate our lives to making you happy. How is that?

Color flooded her cheeks, and damn if it wasn’t the prettiest thing I’d ever seen.

Well, okay. I think I can live with that.

Beside her, Malachi made a sound that might have been laughter and we all looked at Evie—this extraordinary female who looked so tiny in that bed, but would rule this world—hell, two worlds, once she got back on her feet.

“So,” Sabine said, her fingers twitching as she surveyed Malachi, “Can I touch your horns? ”

“Over my dead body,” Evangeline growled, “And who the hell are you, anyway?”

“Oh, you and I are going to have so much fun.” Sabine clapped her hands together. “I’ve been waiting forever to meet you two,” her pale gaze swung between them, something like recognition in her eyes. “And neither of you disappoint.”