Page 66 of Visions of You

Jaron lingered a moment longer, watching the steady rise and fall of Keegan's chest. The vampire looked so peaceful in sleep, the lines of worry and exhaustion smoothed from his face. Jaron exhaled a breath of relief, feeling something warm in his chest. He'd been rushing from one place to the next all day, always worrying about one thing or another.

At least he'd managed to do something about his worry for his workaholic mate.

And he'd even gotten a task so he could do something more for him. He picked up the drawing from Keegan's desk and eyed it curiously, treasuring the amount of trust that Keegan had put in him.

Quietly he slipped out of the room and made his way to the library. The musty smell of old books greeted him as he entered. That was the problem with underground vampire abodes. Terrible ventilation.

Jaron wrinkled his nose. They should get a fresh-air spell for that.

Stepping up to the shelves, he scanned them until he found the tome Keegan had mentioned: "Weaving Fate." It was a heavy, leather-bound volume with gilt-edged pages.

Jaron carried it over to a nearby table and carefully opened it. The pages were filled with dense text and intricate illustrations. He flipped through until he found the drawing that matched the one on Keegan's desk.

What was it about?

Jaron's eyes flew over the text that accompanied the drawing. It described a ritual to sever the bond between fated mates and harvest the energy released. Jaron's stomach turned as he read the details.

'Sever the bond.'

That had to involve killing people. How else would you de-couple a fated pairing?

He read a little more, trying to understand why anyone would want to do this.

To alter the course of fate.

Wait, wasn't that what Keegan wanted to do for them? Were these the sacrifices he'd talked about before?

He'd hoped Keegan had let that go.

He had to know Jaron would never agree to this, not in a million lifetimes. If this was the only way for him and Keegan to live happily ever after, if the foundation of their joy had to be built on the misery of others… He didn't want it.

He swallowed hard, bile rising in his throat as he snapped the book shut.

He wanted to go and yell at Keegan, except that he didn't want to wake the vampire now that he'd finally gotten him to close his eyes and sleep.

Jaron left the library, unable to quiet the urge to do something, anything, to distract himself from the growing sense of unease in his gut.

He climbed the stairs to the club area. Maybe some fresh air would help—or a drink.

As he stepped into the club, though, he spotted Mordyn pacing in front of the exit, clearly waiting for the sun to go down so he could go out and search for his missing mate.

Jaron froze, unsure what to say to the vampire. Guilt twisted in his chest, a heavy weight that made it difficult to speak.

This was Apollo's mate.

And it was Jaron's fault that Apollo had been kidnapped. If he hadn't left work early, if he hadn't abandoned his duty…

Mordyn turned around, and for a brief moment, Jaron caught a flash of raw pain in the vampire's features before his expression smoothed over into a mask of calm. "You feel guilty," Mordyn observed, a hint of a question in his voice.

Empath.

Right.

Mordyn could probably sense the turmoil raging inside him. "It should have been me," Jaron said, the words spilling out before he could stop them. "Keegan saw something bad happen to me, so he told me to leave work. That's the only reason Apollo left the office, to cover for me."

Mordyn's eyes narrowed, and Jaron thought he saw a flicker of anger in their depths. But then the vampire's shoulders slumped, and he let out a heavy sigh. "I don't blame you," he said, his voice tired. "And I don't think Apollo would either. He made his own choice to go out there and try to protect that mortal."

Jaron shook his head, the guilt still gnawing at him. "But if I had just stayed at work, if I hadn't listened to Keegan?—"