A Demon Made Me Do It(80)

“Liora, don’t move. Do not be afraid. You’re safe. I have you.” Kieron tightens his grip around me.

Without thinking, I scream.

“Shhh…shhhh…don’t be frightened. I promise; everything will be okay. Just don’t panic.” Kieron places his hands gently over my mouth. Instantly, I bite down on his fingers and he grimaces, then reluctantly pulls back.

“Liora…”

“Get it off me! Get it off me!” I scream and try to squirm away, but I’m trapped by the heavy weight.

This is a nightmare and I need to wake up.

“It’s Bones,” Kieron says softly. “He’s been badly injured. We need to help him.”

I feel like I’ve just been slapped across the face with a million tiny daggers. Slowly, I look down at the bulk in my lap. As comprehension forces its way into my head, I turn to face Kieron.

The sound oozes out of my mouth. “You…” My one word accusation speaks volumes.

He dips his head and sighs. “Yes. But please, whatever you are feeling toward me right now, Bones is your friend, and he needs our help.”

I can’t catch my breath; I know air is entering my lungs, yet somehow it isn’t doing any good.

“Liora, calm down…you’re going to hyperventilate…” The soothing quality of his voice is totally lost on me.

“You…you…this whole time…”

He lowers his head. “Liora, we must get Bones to transform back so he can drink this,” he says holding up a green flask. “He was badly hurt, and without it he might die.” His eyes flash azure, and I realize for the first time how deep they are. Like they could hide the truth behind their beauty.

“So, I don’t care. Let him die,” I whimper, leaning my body away from the beast’s head.

“Liora, you don’t mean that. Bones is your friend—”

“No, he’s not. He’s her friend.” I look away. I can’t stand to meet his eyes. The eyes that lied to me.

He dips his head trying to look at my face. “He’s very special to her. She cares for him deeply. Tonight he was injured, mainly to protect her, I suspect,” he adds under his breath.

“So, I don’t care. Get him off of me.” I push at the dead weight on my lap but can’t budge it.

But my voice doesn’t carry the same conviction as before. I gaze down on the wounded animal, and my chest aches.

Of course I know Bones, and yes, at one point he was my friend. A dear friend. But he’s one of them…and they’re all the same. Just look at what they get themselves into.

“Where are we?”

“The far side of Dryndara, near Valkis River. Have…have you ever been here before?”

I survey the unfamiliar landscape and shake my head.

“But, obviously, you’ve been to Dryndara…”

Slowly I nod. “It-it’s been awhile. Years.” I look up at the sky. I know the shining yellow disc I’m seeing isn’t the sun, but the trinity-moons overlapping as one. It’s daylight at home, yet nighttime here. Forever, eternally night.

Thiberoux—a place crawling with monsters and evil. A place that rips my soul out time and time again. A place I’d hoped and prayed I’d never again see with my human eyes. Yet here I am.

But it’s also my home. My true home. The first home I ever had, and the first one I remember. And in my lap is Bones, the first friend I ever made. I met him long before I met Michael and Kayla, but he always kept his distance…like a protective older brother.

He’d told me when I was older we’d be better friends, but since I was still young, I needed to play with children my own age. I remember him giving me rides on his back through the woods as I grasped tightly around his neck. I remember him speaking to me with his soft, silky voice, explaining the ways of Dryndara and the specialness of Thiberoux. I remember him giving me a shiny black diamond when I was five—the first time I wandered into the forest by my cabin, looking, searching...seeking something that I knew was out there somewhere, just waiting for me to discover it. I remember how he’d appeared from behind a tree and presented me with the special diamond…the one that even now rests at the base of my neck, binding my cloak shut. I remember how magnificent I thought he was. How powerful, proud, and beautiful.

Now, as I gaze down on his broken and bloodied body, my heart suddenly breaks.

“What can I do?” I whisper.

Kieron hands me the flask and helps me prop up Bones’ head. “Here, try to get some of this down his mouth…at least enough so he can transform and drink the rest.”