Page 153 of Kick the Candle (Knight Games 2)
"Anything."
"Marry me."
I froze. Warring empires collided within me; fear of commitment battled a love that was ancient, although new to me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the candle flicker. There wasn't time for logic, only feeling, only intuition.
"Yes," I said, breathless. "Yes, I will marry you."
Our eyes locked and a current of magic traveled through me. I wasn't sure what it meant but I suspected my promise was binding. His fingers reached out, knocking one of the skulls aside, breaking the protective ring. I did not hesitate. I threw myself into the candle, snuffing it out and knocking it to the floor. The hot wax splashed over my fingers, burning me, but the candle was out.
I turned back toward Rick but he looked the same, weak, in pain. "Did it work?"
"Yes, mi cielo, it did. But it will take me some time to recover." He held up a hand. "For now, I am...human."
I knew what he meant. From his hair to the way he stretched on the floor, was as mundane as it could be. While the candle burned down over the last day, he had transformed into a normal man, and although I'd stopped the magic in time, it would take just as long for him to transform back. Unless I helped him recover.
Glancing down at myself, I noticed I was covered in blood, mud, and other unidentifiable but grotesque things. I stood, then helped him to his feet, half dragging him into the bathroom, where I situated him on the floor.
"Rest here for a minute."
Eyes already closed, he dipped his chin in response.
"I'm going to give you a bath."
Rick's eyes popped open, and he raised an eyebrow, a smile breaking through the exhausted expression on his face.
I winked at him and started the water to warm it up. While I was waiting, I started peeling off bloody clothes, leaving them in a pile next to the toilet. Thankfully, most of the blood wasn't mine. The last thing I removed was Nightshade. I leaned her against the wall near the cabinets.
"We got our caretaker back," I whispered to her, glancing at Rick, who'd fallen asleep against the wall. The hum that came from her thin bone edge seemed to say she understood.
un Also Rises
My limbs tingled from the cold and numbness of immobility but I forced them to obey my command. I leaped over the fire and reached for my blade. Nightshade's hilt slid into my hand with urgency as if she'd been straining to help me. Underneath her blade, the burlap sack rustled. I untied it and freed Poe. "Help Rick down," I ordered. He nodded once and took to the sky.
A hand landed on my shoulder. I whirled around to face a Mill Wheel vamp. He yanked me into a bear hug. Poor sucker must have been young or stupid. My blade sank into his gut and he exploded into a shower of ash. The other vamps were distracted with the fight, although that wouldn't last forever. Some were already down for the count, the winners joining in the tussle between Julius and Bathory. It didn't matter who won that fight. If either were left standing, I'd lose.
What I needed was to get out of there, but I couldn't leave Rick, Soleil, or the book. Think! I noticed Silas then, sniffing Soleil like a dog whose master comes home smelling of another pooch. The nightmare was still inside her, throwing off her scent. "Smart doggy." I smiled and sprang into action.
Rounding the skirmish, I shuffled to her side. I pressed Nightshade into Soleil's chest. At the site of the knife, Silas growled at me menacingly. I wondered how much of himself Silas had left when he shifted. "Don't worry. I won't hurt her."
"What are you doing?" the tenor voice asked through Soleil's mouth.
"Banishing you." Nightshade glowed ever brighter.
The nightmare growled and squirmed against Soleil's bindings.
"I sentence you to an eternity in hell." I felt rather than saw the immediate results of my sentence. My blade suctioned to her chest and then slowly, like a worm being drawn from the dirt, the nightmare wrapped around the blade, inch by inch from her chest. Tighter it squeezed until it poofed into nothingness. Soleil took charge of herself.
"Ew. I need a shower," she said, shivering.
"Just what I had in mind." I cut her free and pushed her down in the snow.
"Hey!"
"The mud, Soleil! Get it off." I turned my back to her and faced the brawling vampires. One by one, they noticed me, turning fanged faces in my direction. Even Bathory and Julius recognized the threat, pausing their war and fixing deadly eyes on me. I raised Nightshade. "Any time, Soleil. Could really use some help here."
"Almost there." I glanced back to see her rubbing herself with snow, steam filling the space around her.
Glancing back was a big mistake. Bathory barreled into me, thrusting Nightshade above my head. In no time, I was at the bottom of a very large heap of vampires. Fangs ripped into my flesh. I heard Soleil scream and knew she was in the same predicament.
