My world spins. I lose track of all time as I spin further and further out of control. My thoughts are all fuzzy and most of my words, incoherent. It’s not like I speak much anyway, my voice is too hoarse, painfully hoarse.
When I open my eyes, my bleary, grimy eyes and sit up, I’m sore all over. My legs ache, my neck pinches with each direction I move as little bite marks are tugged open.
I smell food and turn towards the source. I find him waiting to feed me from his hand. Too tired to object, I let him drop fresh grapes into my mouth and spoon-feed me soup. I sigh and turn onto my side. “How long has it been?”
“I don’t know,” he says, pulling me closer. He doesn’t seem exhausted, I don’t know how. I’m tired to the bone and though my pulse still beats in an exhalitarting hum and my fever has not abetted, I’m willing to ignore it all and fall asleep.
“Does it still hurt?” He asks into my hair.
I curl my toes against his warm feet. “No.” His presence surrounds me like a weighted blanket.
Imani. Imani, something isn’t right.
It speaks in the back of my mind. I swat it away.
He lies his head on my chest. I let my fingers roam through his hair. Butterflies swirl in my stomach.
“You’re not tired?”
“Of you?” He moves his mouth over mine. “No, never.”
I don’t know how it happens again. But soon we’re gripped into that tight lock again, skin on skin, silk on silk, and I’m clinging onto him like he is my salvation.
The emotion is raw on his face. “Love you...love you...love you.”
And the world fades back to what it was. A cycle of wearing ourselves to exhaustion before sleeping it off, waking up and eating the food left at the bedside. Who even brought that in and when?
His hands roam, making themselves known on every piece of skin on my body. And the places left alone burn until his hands return.
I’m only humming now. I’m tired, tired, tired. But he’s so close it’s like I’ve pulled him into my soul. And it feels like I’ve touched his soul. It’s explosive. Yes I am, tired, tired, tired. But the sleep will have to wait.
“Perfect.” The word rolls off his lip. “You’re perfect. Do you know that?”
They float past me. I only smile and nod and close my eyes again. He grabs my face and angles it towards him. “Look at me.”
I can’t stand it. Looking him straight in the eye while I touch his soul this way is too personal. That voice in my head tells me not to. Because then this is too intimate. Not just...not just…
I open my eyes and face him as his pink lips capture my mouth.
I’m weak all over.
“You’re perfect,” he says again.
An explosion rocks the room. He lifts his head and for the first time in a long time, they’re blue. Slowly, he unfolds himself from me and I’m hollow. I grab for him. “Where are you going?”
He pushes me back, eyes yellow again. “Stay here. Wait for me.”
Another explosion rocks us again. It’s close, it’s coming from downstairs. “You’re going to leave just in the middle? You’re not going to finish? Or let me finish!”
He runs his hands through his hair, looking conflicted. “Just wait. I’ll be back.” He rolls off the bed and pulls up his pants. “Wait right there for me. Don’t move, don’t even leave that bed. Keep it nice and warm for me.”
I throw my hands up into the air. “No wait.” I think of the one thing that will stop him. It pours out of my mouth. “I love you.”
He hesitates, odd expression on his face before he scowls. “You’re saying that because you’re in pain.” He leaves, closing the door. My head burns as soon as the fresh scent of him is gone. I stand up and stumble to my closet. The vial. Shaking the liquid, I down it all in one gulp and let the potion that clings to the side of the glass drip into my mouth. It’s sugary sweet, like cough syrup and it goes down like honey, sticking to the sides of my throat. Swallowing multiple times, I wait until I get it all down. It’s too much of a risk to go without. I go into the bathroom and wash my face with cold water. This must be it. The twins are here.
I feel like I’m walking through thick, thick, molasses as I put on a change of clothes. As I clean myself up in the bathroom, I avoid my own reflection. Swollen lips, yellow eyes, messy hair. I can already guess what I look like for myself.
The window breaks and a stream of cold air floods the room. I whip my head around at the noise only to see two figures, dressed in long, dark robes step through. They take off their hoods and scan the room. I run to them, fear dripping away. “Nia! Iris!”
“Imani!”
I wrap my arms around each of them. I could weep, it’s been so long since I’ve seen their faces. “You came.”
Iris takes a hard look at me. “So the heat is as bad as our agent said it was? If not worse.”
“Yeah,” I mumble. “Worse.”
“Come on, let’s get you out of here? Can you walk?”
“A little. It hurts. Not so bad now as it did, but I’m in pain.” Iris prods my side as if to test it and I wince.
They half hoist me up as we run. My legs buckle and threaten to collapse under me as we run but we run. Through the syrupy molasses, through the fog, they carry me forward. Iris pulls out a necklace from her pocket. A fat, purple crystal hands from the silver chain, glittering. What’s that for?
“I’ll show you.” As a guard rounds the corner, magic shoots out of her finger, downing the man on sight.
My eyes widen. “How did you...you make potions!”
“This sort of magic was banned when witches lost the great war to werewolves and came under their command. It made us too powerful.”
“And you’re accessing it now?”
“Of course.”
Nia pulls out a similar amulet from her pocket and shakes it before speaking into it. “Bring the brooms out to our exit. Have it ready for a passenger.” She squeezes my hand. “It’s been a long time.”
We cross through the grandhall where that party was held all those weeks ago. It’s empty now and hollow. In the distance the sound of magical blasts and werewolves’ snarls echo. “A little further. The door is going to be on your left-”
“Leaving so soon Imani? I thought you wanted to finish.”
I whip my head around. My heart beats a thousand times faster. I take a step forward, but Iris puts a hand on my shoulder and pulls me back.
“Think Imani.”
A growl escapes my mouth. “Don’t you know how hard that is?”
Jonah’s eyes are lit with anger and his face covered in a knowing, grim expression. If he expected this to come, why is he so angry? His emotions slam into me. Anger, burning hot, red anger and a slower burning desire. It’s enough to rattle me to core and I stumble, falling forward. He’s been keeping them from me for so long, why let them affect me now?
It hurts, it hurt, it hurts. “Stop!”
“Why are you running? I thought we had something building Imani.”
“I hate it here,” I say between rasping breaths. “Maybe if you hadn’t tried to make me what I’m not…” I pant. “I could’ve done it, but you tried to make me something else and I...I couldn’t. I can’t live like this.”
“Come here.”
“Imani, no.” Nia warns. “Fight him.”
“Imani, come here.” His command is full of unspoken anger. The danger that lies ahead of me if I do come there and the danger that lies ahead if I don’t. This time, his magnetism is my downfall and I’m reminded of what happens to moths drawn to flames. They burn up and die, consumed by the flame’s power.
“Imani, don’t.”
Tears roll down my cheeks. His emotions hurt me. They slice into my skin and tear into my bones. His scent is different. It’s like burning peppers and it stings my throat and eyes.
“Stop.” I crawl forward.
“Imani no!” Magic glitters on Nia’s fingers, but Jonah bears lupine teeth.
“Stop her on her path to me and I’ll tear your throat out. You may have magic but I have the moon goddess on my side. See if she won’t let me.” They keep their amulets in their hands, fingers glowing with touches of magic, ready to strike. But they don’t touch me. Instead, confusion and fear shows on their face. They didn't plan for this.
It must have been pathetic to watch. Me crawling because my legs won’t carry me. I end up at his feet and he kneels to meet my eye level. “It must hurt a lot.”
I nod and he wipes the tears from my face. “You should still be in bed.”
Imani no. But I nod again.
“Why did you do this again Imani? What reason have I given you to run?”
Imani get up. Imani get out.
“I can’t do this. I can’t be this...I’m scared.”
He coos and I feel stupid. Heat rises to my face. “You should’ve sat down with me. You should’ve told me. You can’t run from your problems.” He palms my cheek. “You can’t run from me.”
“But-”
Imani, he conquered everything. Imani, he took your parents. Imani! Imani!
“You’ve done a very bad thing.” His scent becomes more pleasant and his eyes become more gold. “You tried to undo everything I’ve built, everything I’ve worked for. It’s like you hate me1”
I do! I do! “I don’t.”
He wipes another tear from my hot cheek. I shiver with it. “I told you to stay in bed and keep it warm for me. If you hadn’t come out I could’ve finished these rebels off quick and gotten back to you.” He rubs circles into my back. I’m melting….
“Imani!” Who is that, trying to break through me fog? I try and turn my head around when turns me so I’m looking at him and him alone.
Listen to them Imani! Listen!
“Focus,” he says, words compressed into a hiss. “I think you know that, deep down in your heart that you’ll always come back to me. I’ll always come back to you. We’re kindred spirits Imani. We’re meant to be. Yet you betray me like this again and again.” His hands crawl up my back and his fingers tickle my skin.
“Please, I’m sorry.” It’s a half-spoken, half-whined apology.
“Maybe I should lock you up in the dungeon if you’re so insistent upon committing treason all the time.”
I shake my head. “Back upstairs, back to-”
“And reward you for your treason? Maybe you’ll just have to ride this heat out. I might be too angry.”
The words sent a shooting chord of pain up my body. I can’t live like this.
“Imani!” Those voices...they’ve been screaming a lot, trying to chip through my fog…
“Tell me how to right this...tell me how to fix this.”
His lips ghost over mine. “Turn on them.”
“What?”
“Take my hand and let me show you this kingdom I carved for you. Take my hand and stop working with those witches who betrayed us. Stop working with those humans who killed my father.”
Listen! It’s not right,w hat he’s saying. His eyes are golden, but they burn with such a fury...this is why I have to go. This is why he can’t stand. Because he has hatred in his heart. For people like my friends. The human girls I grew up with, the witch girls I’ve come to love.
“You carved this kingdom for yourself.” I stifle a scream as I stand.
He mouth curves into a frown as I take a few sliding steps backward. I avoid his eyes. They’ll kill me.
His face is calm. Not a hint of betrayal or regret. He knows something I don’t. What is it that he knows that I don’t? It’s going to kill me until I find out. “So this your choice? You said you loved me.”
I hug my arms to my body. “It doesn’t matter what I feel for you. You’re not who you used to be. I was wicked at times, but now you’re just….”
His mouth twitches. “Say it.”
“A monster. Now you’re just a monster Jonah. You can’t be allowed to continue.” I hug myself harder. “And you must be taken down.”
I look around us and my eyes go wide. Witches. Witches at every side, witches pointing their magic fisted fingers at us. I look at Nia and Iris. Iris shrugs. “What can I say? Witches have been treating wolves in heat for centuries. We know how it is.” Her eyes twinkle. “Thank you, for distracting him.”
Strands of colored light stream into the air, lighting fires wherever they land. Before I can see if they kill him or not, Nia grabs my arm.
“But if you two don’t fight, won’t he-”
“He’s not going to die anyway. This is not the final battle, he’s too strong here.”
Iris shoots enemies down around us as we run. I sprint as best I can through pins and needles. Iris stops, makes a sharp turns and joins a pack of witches fighting on the front stairs. “Will she meet us?” I ask, climbing onto the broomstick behind her.
“Yes, she’ll disappear right from right in front of his eyes and join us mid flight.”
My heart stops in my chest. We’re flying. On a broomstick. “What if I fall?”
“You won’t fall, just hold on and relax.”
Soon, the wind is blowing in my face and my eyes are watering. And we are soaring away from the castle. “We’re going to take this broom until we’re out of the danger zone,” she yells above the roar of the wind “And then we’re going to drive.”
“And if we’re stopped at a checkpoint?”
“Then we’ll fight our way out of it. You’re going to be free of him once and for all. We’re all going to be free of him.”
Still, his face lingers in my mind. What is it that he knows that I don’t?
End Part One