Page 85 of A Devil Doesn't Bargain
Kaian is quiet on the other end, then he sighs heavily. “Matt is coming. He has some details on what she was working on, but none of it sounds good.”
“How bad?”
“The worst of the worst.”
Vivian’s hand on my arm draws my attention to her face. She glances at the phone and then back at me and mouths, “Ask him.”
I grimace, but then ask, “Morally grey or morally corrupt.”
“More like morally vacant.”
“On my way.”
Ending the call, I whirl around, walking the way we came in before stopping short since I don’t know where the exit is. Vivian joins me, takes my hand and then walks us back in the other direction. The room shifts suddenly, that same dip in my stomach throwing me off as I find us back in my living room.
Then she’s moving, grabbing her sword, and strapping it on. She has her leather jacket half on while I’m still standing there, staring after her. “What are you doing?”
“Given the morally vacant forecast,” she responds almost flippantly. “I’m better equipped for this kind of search.”
Glowering, I remain silent for a moment. I want to argue. I want to tell her to sit down and let me handle it—not because I think she’s wrong or I don’t believe she’s capable, but because it’s always been my job, and letting go is terrifying.
She must sense my inner turmoil because she caresses my cheek with her fingertips, her gaze warm and understanding. “If you don’t want me to go, I won’t.”
“Really?” I reply with no small amount of disbelief. “It’s that easy?”
She shakes her head. “I didn’t say it would be easy, I just said I would follow your lead on it. She’s your person, so it’s your call.”
She means it. I can see in her eyes, now black and bottomless as the night sky. I lean in, brushing my nose along her cheek and then pressing my lips against hers fleetingly before straightening.
“Go,” I respond firmly, a smile forming on my lips as the light fires in her eyes. “Seek out the Dark.”
And in a blink, she’s gone.
The End...?
