Page 21 of Loving Amari

A roar of frustration tears from his throat. Primal. Broken.

Aya throws her head back, laughing like this is the most entertaining thing she’s seen in decades.

“Tofi baby.” Amari’s voice drops to something dangerous. Something that makes the hair on my arms stand up. “I need you to do a favor for Daddy. Kill her.”

Tofi doesn’t move.

The silence that follows is deafening. I watch emotions flicker across Amari’s face. Shock. Then confusion. Then something that looks like hurt as he stares at our daughter.

“His jaw works, but no sound comes out at first. When he finally speaks, his voice is low and dangerous. “What did you put in my daughter’s head?”

“Nothing. Nothing at all. For once, this is something you can’t blame on me.” Aya’s smile is all teeth. “It was Mother Fate. Mother Fate gave them the command not to kill me.”

Amari looks at me, and I see it. The moment something inside him cracks. I nod slowly, confirming what Aya’s saying is true.

“What the fuck?” He runs both hands over his face, fingers digging into his skin. His shoulders sag like someone cut his strings.

“You might want to call in the reinforcements. It’s going to take all of us to finally get rid of Nathaniel.”

“Who’s Nathaniel?”

I drop my gaze to the floor. My hands twist together, fingers knotting until my knuckles ache.

“I don’t know much about him myself.” The words scrape out of my throat like glass. “But what I do know is that he’s after Solomon.”

I force myself to look up, to meet Amari’s eyes. “I saw it. I caught him right when he was siphoning magic from my little cousin in his crib.”

A tear slips down my cheek before I can stop it. Then another. The image of Solomon reaching for that man, so small and helpless, plays behind my eyes.

Amari moves. Not with vampire speed this time, but with purpose. He walks around Aya, glaring at her like he wishes looks could kill the already dead. Then he’s in front of me, cupping my face in his hands.

The gentleness of his touch breaks something in me. His thumbs brush away my tears with a tenderness that makes more fall.

He pulls me into his arms. One hand cradles the back of my head while the other strokes up and down my back in slow, soothing motions.

“Yara and Kofi sent me images of Tabatha fighting him.” My voice muffles against his chest. “But what I don’t understand is why they never told me about him.”

“Because he wasn’t a threat until now.” Aya tells us.

Amari’s arms tighten around me at Aya’s words. I feel his heartbeat against my cheek, faster than normal.

He’s terrified.

“Look, if you just get everyone together, I’ll explain everything.”

“Why should I trust you?” Amari’s voice is low enough that I feel it as much as hear it. His hand on my back presses harder, holding me closer.

“Because I’m all you have right now. Nathaniel just siphoned some of Solomon’s power, which makes him even stronger in limbo. Carla may be the queen of the realm now, but if we don’t do something soon, she’s about to get dethroned.”

I pull back enough to look up at Amari. “I found his room of doorways to the living. One of them took me to Brookstone and Blackburn, and the other was to the dorm hallways of the academy.”

“Fuck...” Aya places her hands on her hips. “He’s using my own playbook. He’s going to use the children to build his own army. Find lost souls stuck in limbo and offer them possessionof new bodies. Shifter children. They’re the easiest to possess because of their youth.”

The blood drains from Amari’s face. His jaw clenches so tight I hear his teeth grind. The muscle in his cheek jumps.

“Alright.” He steps back from me, and the loss of his warmth is immediate. “I’ll get in touch with Damon.”

“I’m going to go take a shower.”