Page 27 of Loving Amari

The answer terrifies me. Because I already know. I won’t survive losing her. Not again. Not permanently.

9

AMARI

Damon steps forward while everyone goes quiet. I take Carla’s hand and pull it to my lips, kissing the back of it. Her skin is warm beneath my mouth. I’m terrified. This is going to take Carla away from me, and I don’t know how long.

Selene watches proudly as Damon begins, her hand resting on the knife at her hip. He’s a former soldier of one of the largest armies in history. The Roman Empire. It shows in the way he commands the room.

“It appears we have a new threat, much more powerful than Aya.” He looks to Aya’s ghostly form. “No offense.”

“None taken, you asshole.”

Amir snickers at that, the sound breaking some of the tension. His mouth quirks slightly.

Damon looks to Carla, his green eyes serious. “You’ll need to help with patrols in limbo, and you’ll need to take most of your children.”

I suck in a sharp breath. I hate that idea, but I know it’s the best option. Most of her children. Most of our children. Fighting an army of lost souls in the darkness.

He looks at me, reading the fear I’m trying to hide. “I need you to break into the Brookstone and Blackburn files and get as much information you can about Henry’s connection to them and what they’re doing with Aya’s magic.”

“I’ve already broke the code to their security files. I just need to go through them.” I pull out my phone, the screen lighting up my face. My fingers move quickly across the keyboard, texting Bobby. Need you at the coven. Tonight. Urgent.

The response comes immediately. On my way.

Damon looks to King Amir and Queen Anora. His expression softens slightly when he addresses them. “Solomon is a target, so we’ll need to keep him as guarded as possible. Don’t let him out of your sight.”

Anora and Amir look to each other, sharing a worried look. Anora’s hand moves to her stomach, protective even though Solomon isn’t there. Amir’s jaw clenches, the muscle jumping beneath his skin.

“Go. I’ll find you if anything comes up.”

Amir nods to Damon, respect clear in the gesture. “Thank you.”

He teleports Anora away.

Damon turns to Angie, his posture still military straight. “The academy isn’t safe either. We will need to be on guard as much as possible.”

Selene steps forward and stands beside him, her body brushing against his. “I’ll help with patrols.”

Damon grins at her, and for a moment, the hardened soldier disappears. Just a man looking at his mate with pride and love.

“And after that? What then?” Aya’s ghostly form flickers. “Listen, we need to figure out how to siphon that magic back out of him. There’s no telling what he’s planning in limbo right now.”

Damon looks at Aya, his expression unreadable. “Well, you’re the queen of distractions. So distract him.”

He looks to Kade and Leah.

“You already know I’m not going to let anything happen to the children of Wintermoon. I’m helping Selene with extra security.”

Damon smiles at his sister, genuine affection warming his features.

Leah walks over to Angie. “I can read the spell books. I’ll help you comb through them until we can find a way to stop Nathaniel.”

“I’ll try to find as much information as I can about Nathaniel and Henry.” I look around the room at each face. “They are of my culture, so there’s got to be something in my old journals that I was able to recover.”

Damon nods to me. “We’ve faced threats before and we’ve never let anyone take us down. This is just another, and there’ll be many more.”

Angie opens a portal back to their cabin at House of Zorah. Blue and gold light spills into the room, bright enough to make me squint. The edges shimmer and ripple. Before she steps through, Damon stops her with a hand on her shoulder.