Page 48 of Salem’s Fall (Dark Seasons Thriller #3)
Maddie slips out of the car behind me, her face pale and exhausted.
Before she can say a word, Lucky jumps out of my arms and darts toward her, stopping just short of her feet.
His tail flicks, ears flattening like he’s debating whether or not he actually cares.
But then, after a long pause, he lets out a soft, rumbling purr.
Maddie lets loose a shaky laugh, blinking down at him in surprise before gathering him into her arms.
“Ugh, you little menace,” she mutters, pressing her face into his fur. “I swear if I had died, you wouldn’t even notice.”
Lucky tolerates the affection for exactly three seconds before letting out an indignant meow and squirming free. He lands gracefully, giving her shin a single approving headbutt, then struts off like the whole thing never happened.
The butler from earlier—Edward—appears at the front door then, his expression calm and composed. It’s almost jarring to see someone so serene after everything that’s happened in the past few hours.
“If you’ll follow me, Miss Madison, I’ll escort you to your room,” he says to my sister in that smooth, courteous tone, as if he’s been expecting her.
Who knows, maybe he has?
This was probably Damien’s plan from the start—to bring Maddie home safe and sound tonight. If only I hadn’t shown up and ruined everything.
Maddie hesitates, glancing at me, searching my face for reassurance that it’s okay to go inside the house with this strange new man. I step closer, brushing a few stray strands of hair from her face, my chest tightening at how small and fragile she looks.
“It’s alright, Mads,” I tell her. “We’ll be safe here.”
Her lower lip wobbles, and before I can react, she flings her arms around me, squeezing so tight, it knocks the breath out of me. “I was so afraid, Jamie,” she says. “I thought—I thought I was gonna die.”
I swallow hard, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Not a chance. You’re stuck with me for the long haul, kiddo.”
She sniffles, then pulls back just enough to look at me, her brows knitting together. “Are you okay? You’re shaking.”
“I’m fine. I was just really worried about you.”
“I love you, big sis.”
“Right back at ya,” I murmur, a little choked up. “Now go get some rest, okay? I’ll check on you soon.”
“How about some fresh clothes and a nice warm meal, Miss Madison?” Edward asks Maddie, escorting her inside.
Maddie perks up with almost comical enthusiasm, like someone just flipped a switch. “Do you have cheeseburgers here?” she asks brightly. “And fries! Oh, and a chocolate milkshake!”
A laugh bubbles out of me despite everything, warmth settling in my chest. Yep. That’s my Maddie.
“Whatever you desire, Miss Madison.” Edward’s lips twitch like he’s trying to hide a smile. He turns to my cat next, addressing him as if he’s a human. “And we’ve got fresh salmon in today for Mr. Lucky as well.”
Lucky darts to Edward’s side, his tail flicking like he understands every word. And honestly, after everything I’ve seen these past few weeks, I wouldn’t be surprised if he does.
I laugh as I watch my sister and my cat vanish into Blackthorn Manor, both following Edward and his promises of delicious food like he’s the Pied Piper, and they’re powerless to resist.
And then, it’s just me and Damien.
He watches me with an intensity that sends a thrill down my spine. There’s a softness in his eyes, something vulnerable and longing, that I haven’t seen before.
“You know I meant what I said back there, right? That I’d die for you,” he says, stepping closer, his gaze holding mine. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you. I would’ve bled for you. Burned for you. Without you, I’m already dead.”
He looks down, his composure cracking for just a moment. “Believe me, I know how that sounds. I know we haven’t known each other that long, and I never thought I’d feel this way about someone so fast. But it’s true.”
His hand lingers on my cheek, warm and steady. Everything else fades. The Veil. The danger. The darkness lurking just beyond these walls. All I can feel is him, his presence wrapping around me like a promise, binding us in a way that feels deeper, older, than anything I’ve known.
His arms wrap around me, pulling me close, and for a split second, we just hover there, caught in the space between hesitation and surrender. Then his lips find mine.
The first touch is soft, almost careful, but there’s a fire beneath it—something restrained, aching, waiting.
And then, all at once, the restraint snaps.
His fingers tangle in my hair, his grip tightening around my waist as he deepens the kiss, pouring into it everything we’ve left unsaid.
It’s desperate and consuming, a kiss that feels like a confession, like an unraveling of everything we’ve been holding back for so long.
The world blurs at the edges, melting away into nothing. There is no danger, no Veil, no past, no future. Only this.
Only us.
When we finally break apart, my breath is uneven, my heart racing. His forehead rests against mine for a lingering moment, like he’s grounding himself, like neither of us are quite ready to let go.
“Um, I should probably… lie down.” I gulp, my legs wobbly, my brain all fuzzy from that kiss and struggling to catch up. “Maybe sleep. Like Maddie. That sounds… smart.”
There’s a heat in his eyes that makes me feel breathless.
“Sleep? No, I don’t think so.”
He takes my hand, leading me up the stairs and through the grand hallways, their twists and turns like a maze, until we reach a heavy door at the corridor’s end. He turns the knob and steers me toward the threshold, but it’s not the bedroom I stayed in when I was last here at Blackthorn Manor.
It’s his .
A sharp, dizzying heat rushes through me as he ushers me inside, every nerve in my body on fire. The scent of cedar and woodsmoke lingers in the air, wrapping around me like something tangible, something inescapable.
The room is enormous, its sheer scale making me feel small.
Tall, arched windows let in slivers of starlight, casting long silver shadows across the dark wood floors.
Heavy bookcases line the walls, their shelves filled with worn leather volumes, artifacts, and things I can’t quite make sense of in the dim glow. And at the center of it all—his bed.
It’s the biggest bed I’ve ever seen, draped in dark, decadent fabrics that look soft enough to float away on.
I turn to face him, my heart pounding. There’s a vulnerability in his expression that makes my chest ache, a softness that I didn’t think he was capable of.
He reaches out, his fingers brushing my chin, tilting my face up to meet his gaze.
“You don’t have to be afraid anymore, James,” he whispers. “You’re mine now. And I don’t let anyone touch what’s mine.”
His mouth claims mine in another kiss, this one deep, possessive, and fierce—like he’s branding me, sealing something unspoken and unbreakable between us.
One hand fists in my hair, the other wrapping firmly around my waist as he draws me against him, bodies aligning like a puzzle only we can solve.
He walks me backward, slowly, deliberately, until the backs of my knees hit the edge of the bed.
His mouth never leaves mine—hungry, reverent, like he’s trying to memorize the taste of me.
He lifts me without warning, his hands gripping the backs of my thighs as he hoists me up against him.
I gasp, arms circling his shoulders, legs instinctively wrapping around his waist. His strength is effortless, commanding—and for one breathless second, I feel completely and utterly possessed.
Then he tosses me onto the bed, not rough, but with a dark sort of hunger, his body following mine a heartbeat later. His mouth finds mine again, deeper this time, and the weight of him above me steals every thought but one—him. All of him.
The world outside fades, swallowed by the shadows of Blackthorn Manor, until there is nothing left but him.
Us .
In this moment, I don’t care if the Veil still lingers in the dark, waiting. I don’t care what Lucien wants or what unfinished dangers may still hunt us. I don’t even care about Damien’s secrets, no matter how deep, how dark, how terrible they may be.
Because whatever comes next, whatever horrors still lie ahead, I know I won’t be facing them alone anymore.