“Thank you. I came to help you, and yet you seem to be doing more to save me. I promise I’ll return the favor.”
“Look, just get changed and back to your former glory so you can kill the prick that came after me. If you can do that, then I’d say we can call it quits.”
“I will certainly try.” He stripped off his shirt and shoved on the jumper she provided.
“I’m going to get us something hot to drink. I’ll be back in a minute.”
She left the room as he changed into the baggy jeans that had belonged to her father. He rubbed his arms and finally managed to get some warmth back into them. Then, he pulled on some socks and old boots that were too big for his feet. Evie had not only saved him but even had to provide him with clean clothing. A moment later, she returned with a tray of steaming hot chocolate and cake. She had removed the towel from her head and pulled her wavy hair back in a ponytail.
“Sorry I don’t have anything stronger.”
He sipped on the drink and stared her in the face, knowing they needed to talk. He had failed her, so he should start. She needed to know what was going on.
“I’m sorry for what happened this evening. My kind is supposed to prevent humans from being aware of our presence.”
“What exactly happened? For me, it all seems mad, but even you looked baffled. And I’ll tell you the truth, the fact you’re confused scares the hell out of me.” She sat there and bit her lower lip again.
“I was supposed to be able to make contact with a place where I could get you a guardian. Something attacked me, and I would think it was the same thing that stopped me from making contact.”
Evie glanced back up at him. “Has that ever happened before?”
“No.” Heath wished he had something more comforting to say to her.
“So it’s me then, isn’t it? Look, I can see you’ve been trying to do your best, but it’s not working. Please tell me you’ve got some more friends like you who can help?”
“Yes, I’ve been trying to contact them telepathically, but something is blocking me. I tried calling them again when we got here, but no one is answering. I’ve sent them your coordinates and they should be here soon. Let me use your phone too. I need to get you to my home. My people and I will be able to protect you there. In my current state, I can’t do anything if we are attacked again.”
She drank her chocolate in silence and then glanced around the room. This was her home, and she had brought him here because she assumed it was safe.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course. Anything, Evie.”
“Who is Elizabeth? You called me that when I was trying to get you into my car. Then you yelled her name again while I was driving.”
He held his breath, unsure of how to answer. He had thought it had been a trick of his imagination, but he would not lie to her. “Elizabeth was someone I knew a long time ago.”
“Did she die because you couldn’t save her?”
“Why do you ask that?” It wasn’t Evie’s fault, but his blood ran cold and made him shiver at the memory of Elizabeth’s death and that she would ask such a question.
“You kept saying you were sorry.”
“I did fail her, but I’ll not make the same mistake again.”
Evie smiled at him, but then screwed up her face as if she could smell something bad. He had considered it would not take long for Charles to do a search and find this place. In fact, if he wasn’t mistaken, it was too late already. Heath sniffed and sighed.
“What the heck is that stink? It’s like someone just poured honey all over the place. For the record, I hate honey.”
“It means we have visitors, and not my friends.”
Evie put down her drink and cradled her arms about herself and started to rock.
“Shit. Well you still look awful. What do I have to do to keep him away? I’ve got mace in my bag over there, but I’ve a feeling that’s not going to be any good, is it?”
“The truth is, there’s nothing you can do against him. Unfortunately, I can’t stop them physically in my current state, and he won’t be on his own this time.”
“You just said you wouldn’t fail someone again, so what’s your plan? Because I’m assuming you have one other than sitting on my couch and hoping.” Evie stared at him and then the door. He could tell he wasn’t filling her with confidence.
“There is a way I can stop him from touching or hurting you.” Heath rubbed his temple as he considered what he was contemplating.
“Why do I have a feeling I’m not going to like this?”
“A friend of mine stopped a woman from being taken by Demonics. They did it by bonding with each other.”
“Bonding? You’re not expecting me to have sex with you when we have people about to break down the door? I’ve had a few one night stands, but I can’t say almost being killed has ever worked as foreplay for me.”
There was a loud bang which was probably the front door being broken. Evie jumped and wrapped her arms back around her waist and moved closer. Not that he could offer much protection.
“I can assure you, it does not involve sex. It means they can’t touch you. Then I can try to take you back to Pergor to get a guardian. I’ll need you to move closer to me and unzip your jacket.” She skeptically raised an eyebrow but sat next to him anyway. He couldn’t blame her for her reaction, considering what had happened with his erection when they were flying. Heath knew he was probably being a fool to do this, but he could not see any other way out of their situation. Once back with his group, he would get one of them to take her to Pergor while he got a healer to help him repair his body.
He hesitated for a moment as he held the palm of his hand in front of her chest. He had seen Ridge fall hard for Nicole after the bonding. He had also seen the desperation Ridge had shown when he thought he had lost her. He looked into Evie’s eyes that were full of keenness as she nodded. She thought he was the better option than Charles. Wasn’t he? He had been making up for letting his beloved down for two hundred years, and now he was giving this woman false hope. He might save her tonight, but it was likely she would be dead in a month. She grabbed his hand and held it against her chest.
“Whatever the hell you’re meant to do, get on with it,” she whispered. “You’re bloody scary, but that creep is worse. I may be mad, but I trust you and believe you’ll do what you think is right.”
Raised voices could be heard from the front of the house as doors slammed. They would find them soon enough. Before he could change his mind, Heath said the words of bonding. Words he had never had the chance to say to Elizabeth. Now he was saying them to a stranger.
His hand glowed with a blue light that illuminated both their faces giving them a ghostly appearance.
“That’s different. I was expecting something a bit more spectacular, like I might have gotten superpowers. I could do with some enhanced strength with those guys banging on the door and . . .”
Evie didn’t get the next word out. She started to scream and clutch her chest. His calming blue light was now replaced with a black fog forming around her chest. Heath placed his hands on either side of her face to try and send calming thoughts to her. They connected instantly, but her face was so cold. He didn’t think the bond would be so quick, and yet he was in her mind. There were words she was screaming in her mind as he tried to get her to slow her breathing down to match his. Help. It’s going to kill me.
Their minds were joined, and he tried to take the agony from her. Let me in, Evie. We are one now. Tears streamed down her face as she stared into his eyes, pleading for relief. He concentrated on where the pain was emanating from. There was a dark space around her heart, but he could see it tracked like a dark link to her brain. There was an area that had been overtaken by some sinister force. Malice emanated from it, as if it saw him as a threat. He had a feeling he would have to remove it, or else it would destroy them both.
Heath closed his eyes and sent his thoughts into the darkness within her. He knew instantly this was the same entity that had attacked him when he had tried to cross over to Pergor. The evil was coming from Evie, but she wasn’t the one controlling it. He would not let that stop him. It just made him more determined to support her. But then the pain hit. The darkness was trying to attack and debilitate him from the inside out. How Evie had lived with this chilled him. Before he could stop it, whatever was within her leached into his body. One thing he was sure of as he clutched Evie: this creature within her was incredibly powerful and would use both of them to get what it wanted.
Chapter 3
Annoying Bond
Charles was unimpressed when they had pulled up outside of Evie’s home. It was a boring little suburban house in a new estate on the outskirts of Bristol. He had hoped for something a bit more grand and unusual, considering she was a female without a guardian. He still wondered how she had managed to slip under everyone’s detection until her father’s death. Maybe her father’s Angelic could be spoken to, to see if it had an explanation.