It was ten minutes until the forecast said the sun would start setting, and Raven sat in one of those uncomfortable booths at the fast-food place, Gabriel’s. The seat had that specific type of vinyl that continuously stuck to her thighs, and she uncomfortably shifted in her seat.
Malachi was currently all the way across the room at the order counter, staring at the menu for almost an hour; mainly because the worker wasn’t there to take the order yet.
Since Raven was suffering boredom, she decided to pull out her cell phone and dial Jaelyn’s number to keep her occupied.
She hadn’t seen her in a while anyway, and she also didn’t have much time to go to her hotel room and hang out.
Raven wasn’t sure if she really was comfortable with hanging out there anyway; because it was Clay’s hotel room, and she had to ask herself if she’d be okay with Jae hanging out at Malachi’s townhome with him leaning against a wall and watching their every move.
Because he always did that.
After clicking the call button, she pressed the phone to her ear and impatiently tapped her shoes while it rang.
The line clicked, something loud screaming through the line and Raven winced and pulled away the phone for a moment before shaking her head clear.
“Yello?” Jae said, voice muffled from the loud noises on her line.
“Jae?” Raven questioned, feeling like she had to raise her voice. “Where the hell are you? And what’s that noise?”
“Oh, hey!” Jae said. “I’m hanging with Clay and Archer right now. They wanted to take me to this weird place.”
Raven froze. “Hold on… did I hear you correctly?”
“What?” she said.
“You’re with Archer?” Raven clarified, slightly trembling.
“Yeah,” Jaelyn responded, “I honestly don’t know what went on between you two, but he said he meant you no harm. He seems like a nice guy, honestly.”
That’s because she didn’t know he smashed a bottle across Raven’s head.
“Clay allowed you to hang out with him?” Raven said slowly, heart pounding.
“Not really,” Jae answered. “Archie kind of just showed up.”
“Where are you?” Raven said sternly, looking up to see Malachi still occupied at the counter.
“Some club,” Jae said, clearly not hearing the concern in her tone because of the noise in the background.
“The one downtown?” she questioned.
“Yeah.”
That would explain the deafening noise.
“Look, I gotta go, babe,” Jae said, sounding slightly concerned about something. “Clay went to get drinks twenty minutes ago and isn’t back yet. Bye!”
“No!” Raven said, “Wai—”
The line clicked.
Goddamn it…
That’s how Archer got in… If Clay wasn’t involved.
He probably knocked him out or something… but why did he want Jaelyn? Why her? To get to Raven or to lure her somewhere?
She looked up to Malachi who was still occupied at the counter.
He wouldn’t let her leave. Especially if he suspected this was a trap.
But she had no choice.
Raven stood up, grabbed Malachi’s keys off the table, and walked quietly out the exit door that was at the back of the restaurant, so hopefully Malachi wouldn’t catch her.
I’m sorry, Mal, she thought. But I can’t let you stop me.
She unlocked his car, got in the driver’s seat, and drove off without looking back.
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*****
Raven got to the forty-minute away club in twenty minutes because she was going a hundred-miles-an-hour in a forty.
She honestly was surprised she wasn’t pulled over, but she didn’t really care because her best friend’s life was in danger.
She broke in the middle of the parking lot and didn’t waste a second, she got out of the car and darted straight inside.
The familiar booming music filled her ears, though she could barely register it through her burning veins.
She went up to the security guard at the door. “Have you seen a girl with red hair? Her name is Jaelyn. She’d be here with a man with black hair or another with white hair.”
“There are a lot of kids with black hair, white hair, and red hair,” he responded, slightly annoyed at her stupid question. “And there’s like a million Jaelyn’s. A last name wouldn’t even help. You have to go look for her.”
“Seriously,” Raven said, sweat sliding down her temples as her lungs clamped, “she could be in danger.”
“That’s what they all say for me to leave my post. And they bring in fourteen-year-olds. There’s a reason why this club is sixteen and up, Sweetheart. Go look for her yourself.”
Raven brushed past him without a second thought, running straight into the crowd.
“Sorry,” she muttered, weaving through the millions of people. “Excuse me. Sorry. Coming through.”
It had been almost an hour until Raven searched every inch of the crowd and found no signs of Archer, Jae, or Clay.
Heat flowed through her like waves from all the people in the room clouding the area in burning fire.
Raven was gasping when she stumbled to a booth, collapsing down onto it and trying to take deep breaths to calm her quivering muscles.
She put her face in her hands so she couldn’t see, hoping to drown out the noise of the room so she’d calm down.
No… Archer wouldn’t kill Jae. He wouldn’t. He wanted Raven.
Not Jae.
She still had time to find her… and if he hunted Jae down to lure Raven to them, then he would probably give her a sign or something as to where they were.
She still had time… she just had to wait even though it was so hard to even sit here without thinking about what was going to happen.
Raven went through every scenario in her head and found solutions to them, and taking a deep breath, she looked up into the crowd.
She stilled when a sudden popping sound echoed behind her, like sizzling bacon.
Then a voice filled her ears:
“You want some soda, Angel?” Malachi said.
She spun around to find him holding a can of cola, leaning against the booth casually, though he didn’t seem particularly happy.
How did he…?
She drove, didn’t she? Then how did he get here let alone… find here?
“Walk out with me,” he ordered.
She looked him in the eyes, watching the black burn with something indescribable, but she still said the testing words, “Or what?”
He smiled, though his eyes grew cold. “Or I’ll carry you out, screaming.”
Raven shook her head. “People will stop you.”
He looked her over for a moment. “Not if I manipulate their minds so they won’t see us.”
She looked down to the floor, blood boiling at this horrible timing.
“Raven,” he warned.
“I have things to do,” she said vaguely.
“You can do them later.”
She was silent, just pinched the bridge of her nose.
“Get up,” he demanded somehow with a calm tone. “In the next ten seconds. Or I’ll carry you out. You’re choice.”
She stood then, clenching her fist until she felt her nails piece her palm, but walked toward the front door with her teeth practically grinding, though she knew Malachi was following behind her.
She couldn’t get herself out of this one.
She couldn’t run… he’d only catch her.
Before they met the walkway to the front door, Malachi seized her arm and dragged her to the right, taking her off guard.
She stumbled as he pulled her down some odd staircase and to the left of the dimly lit room until they met a door, and he pulled her in.
It only took Raven a second before realizing they were in a girl’s bathroom.
She spun around, watching Malachi lean against the door, looking down at her with his eyes showing every sign of wanting to throttle her.
She looked around the room before back at him, feeling her veins heat with anger. “I want to go.”
He stood up from the door and locked the bolt, stepping over to her while she took steps back.
Her hips met the counter of the sink, and Malachi was in front of her, leaning a hand on one side of her head, fingers sprawled across the mirror as he tipped his weight toward her.
His breath warmed her cheeks, the familiar smell of toothpaste filling her senses.
She looked away even though he could clearly tell she wanted him close. “Stop crowding me. It’s not helping.”
He tilted his head to the side, though didn’t move. “It’s not really supposed to.”
She took one look at him before regretting it.
His eyes shifted color when he saw the fire blazing in hers, though it wasn’t anger.
It was something less innocent.
“The door’s locked,” he noted aloud, knowing where her mind was heading. “No one’s going to come in here.”
He watched her neck and face flush. “Not here…” she said softly. “Not now.”
“Tell me what you really want to say.”
“I…” she took a breath, though the burning inside her wasn’t subsiding. “Just not now.”
“Why not now?” he wondered curiously.
She blinked.
She felt like she was supposed to do something important… but she couldn’t remember what. And with him close like this, it was really hard to focus.
Raven wanted what he was hinting to happen… but she was afraid of something that was happening currently.
What was it…?
“No one will catch us,” Malachi said, voice low. “If that’s what you’re worried about.”
She looked at him then, amber eyes blazing with desire.
Oh, what the hell.
She practically tackled him, almost taking him off guard.
He caught her waist when she jumped onto him, clasping their lips together.
Malachi turned her around and pressed her against the bathroom wall, trailing kisses down her throat.
In response, she wrapped her legs around his waist, tangling his locks in her hand as she grasped the back of his head, pulling him back to her lips and holding him closer.
He still had the same smells… the same taste… So earthy, minty, and manly… She never grew old of it…
And she… she still had his mint body wash lingering on her skin, and he ended up kissing her slightly harder because he wanted to smell it more.
So sweet… yet so tangy…
His fingers lightly caught on the hem of her blouse, knuckles lightly brushing her navel.
Something behind her skin burned like fire and spiraled lower.
But her phone came to life, making them break off, gasping.
Raven watched him with bright eyes as they stared at each other in surprise.
Malachi looked down to her phone then. “Don’t answer it.”
Raven shook her head.
She had something important to do but couldn’t remember it.
An instinct was telling her to answer it.
So, she untangled herself from him and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Sorry.”
And she answered it, pressing the phone to her ear.
“H— hello?” she questioned; voice slightly shaken from the previous moment. She was still trying to comprehend what just happened.
“Hey, babe,” a woman’s voice said, sounding vaguely familiar.
Raven pressed a hand to her ear to cancel out the noise from upstairs. “Who is this?”
“Jae,” she responded, “who else?”
Oh, right.
“Where are you?” Raven questioned, realization slapping her across the face.
“Archer and I decided to play hide and seek in the passageway,” Jae said, sounding strangely giddy.
“Hold on…” Raven said, “what?”
Malachi seemed to notice the concern in her tone. “What’s going on?”
“Oh!” Jae said. “Archey wants to talk to you.”
Her heart pounded wildly against her chest when some kind of shuffling echoed from the other line.
“Hey, there, Ray,” Archer said.
“What do you want?” Raven questioned angrily.
“Raven,” Malachi said, starting to her, “what the hell is—”
She pressed her finger to her mouth, silently communicating, Shut up.
His eyes raked her head-to-toe before he leaned against a wall, listening.
She stared back at the wall. “Leave her alone. She’s not supposed to be with you. Let alone you. How did you escape the guards?”
“I have my ways,” Archer said. “But that’s not why I had Jae call you.”
Sweat slid down her temples.
“Did you learn in history class what people did to witches in the witch trials?” Archer wondered curiously.
She was silent, but her body grew cold.
“They drowned them in the lake or river,” he answered. “With weights tied to their legs.”
She clutched the phone with her other hand to hopefully stop her from shaking. “What… do you want?”
“Come to Eva Wanda River, Raven,” he said. “Or she’s dead.”
The phone clicked and Raven stared off in horror, hand shaking when she pulled the phone away from her ear.
“Raven,” Mal said slowly, “what’s going on?”
She almost dropped her phone, cold sweats breaking out through her entire body. “Archer escaped,” she explained. “I don’t know how, but… he did. He got to Jae when Clay went to get drinks here… and convinced her that he was misunderstood. He asked me just now if I learned about the witch trials… and if I knew they drowned them in the river… I asked him what he wanted. He told me to go to Eva Wanda River or she’s dead.”
Mal never responded, but his eyes grew cold.
“Is… is she a witch…? Is that why he made that connection?” She looked at Malachi then, eyes dark. “Is Jae a witch?”
“No,” Mal responded, “you are.”
Her eyes rounded.
“A very rare race,” he explained. “A fairy. A shadow fairy. A witch can just mean a ‘magic user,’” he explained. “It’s a generalized term.”
“I can use magic…?” she whispered.
“Yes,” he responded.
She just looked down to his feet with wide eyes, unsure of what to think of this.
“You told me earlier that you’ve stopped storms as a child,” Malachi said. “That you thought originally that you could use magic, but when you got older you said it was a mere coincidence.”
“I don’t know how to use magic,” Raven said.
“Do you still have your daggers and knives?” he questioned.
She pulled the hilt of the dagger out of her sweatshirt pocket. “The knives are in my shoes.”
He stepped over to her then, closing her hands tighter around the hilt. “These channel your magic. If you use your magic bare without a weapon, you could lose control. This is why Angels created them.” He caught her wrist then. “Use them when you encounter Archer, alright? Let’s go.” And he pulled her out of the room.
“Hold on…” she said, “you’re letting me fight him?”
He looked at her then. “You want to stay in the car?”
She shook her head.
“Then don’t complain. This is going against my every being.”
She shut up then, following numbly as they made it to the parking lot.
They both got into his car, slamming the doors behind them.
“Keys,” Mal said, holding a hand out to her.
She placed the car keys in his hand, and he shoved it into the ignition, starting the car, and drove off.
“He told me about drowning her…” Raven said.
“That’s Mason’s way to kill,” Malachi answered.
She blinked, but then looked to him. “Mason’s your cousin, right? But this is Archer.”
Malachi shook his head, hands tightening around the steering wheel. “Archer is Mason, Raven.”
Her heart stopped.
“That’s why I never liked him.”
She breathed shallowly for a second. “I thought he looked like you… He had silver hair, not gold.”
“He bleached his hair,” Malachi responded.
Her whole body rattled with tremors, and she started breathing shallowly. “Oh, God.”
Malachi glanced at her, placing his hand on hers. “It’s okay. Everything will be okay.”
She closed her eyes tightly before opening them. “I know.”
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*****
“It’s alright,” Mal promised after they stayed parked on the gravel lotfor almost thirty minutes. “Don’t be scared.”
“I’m not,” Raven said, clutching her sword tighter in her hand.
“Yes, you are,” he said. “Accept it. Embrace it.”
She looked to him then. “What if he already killed her?”
“He didn’t,” Mal said. “He needs her as bait.”
Raven sighed, staring down at her hands. “Alright… I’m ready.”
“You can stay in the car,” Malachi said. “I’ll be fine by myself.”
She shook her head. “No, let’s go. Now. Before I change my mind.”
He let out a defeated sigh. “Alright, but,” he added, looking at her sternly, “stay close, promise?”
A small nod.
“Aright,” he responded, “come on.”
They both threw open their doors and jumped out of the car, Malachi scanning the area for threats before returning his gaze back to Raven.
But her eyes were fixed on the ground in front of her, widened in terror.
Before he could see what she was staring at, she called out something and ran over to the side of the road, collapsing on her knees before the person.
It only took a second before Malachi realized it was Jaelyn… unconscious on the sidewalk.
He darted straight over to Raven, kneeling before her and her friend.
“Is she okay…?” Raven whispered, knowing if she screamed right now it would give out their location.
Malachi pressed his hand to Jae’s neck, sighing in relief seconds later. “She’s alive.”
“How long has she been here for?” Raven questioned softly, voice breaking.
“A while,” he responded.
“We’ve been in the car for thirty minutes!” she half-screamed, half-whispered. “And she’s been here the whole time!”
“It’s okay,” Mal responded, touching her hand gently to assure her another way. “I’ll get her in the car. Stay here.”
Raven nodded numbly when Malachi lifted Jaelyn over his shoulder, carrying her over to his SUV before lightly dropping her in the backseat.
Raven managed to jog over to them, draping her jacket over Jae so she wouldn’t be cold.
Malachi smiled softly, tucking some hair behind Raven’s ear while she stared at her best friend in sorrow.
But a sudden voice echoed through her thoughts like it was coming through the trees:
“Raaaaaaaaven, come out to plaaaaaaay.”
Something inside her switched on, something hot and burning, and all the ice inside her vanished.
Her eyes glazed over with something dark, and she pulled out her dagger, flipping the hilt out while the blade slid out from the white magic.
The sun was setting behind the forest in front of them, drowning the sky in a black poison, though for some reason, her dagger glowed like a magic stone, lighting the area in a fifty-foot radius.
Malachi caught her hand, making her turn to him.
“I know you’re angry…” he said softly. “But we have Jae. We can go.”
Raven shook her head. “He’s the leader of all of them. He’s the one who’s paid all those millions of people to kill me. If we don’t fix this now, Malachi. I’ll never be safe. We’ll never be safe. Is that what you want?”
He looked her over solemnly. “Raven, you have no idea how powerful he is. You need more training.”
“Mal,” she said sharply, “he just hurt my best friend. I’m not letting this go.”
“He’s going to kill you,” Malachi hissed, tightening his grip around her wrist. “I can’t handle that.”
“Then don’t.” And she vanished.
“Raven.” He looked around in a panic, heart throbbing. “Raven!”
Goddamn it… He shouldn’t have given her that sword… It activated her magic.
Now she was almost as fast as him.
He cursed under his breath, lungs aching.
He took one glance at the locked car before running into the forest after her. “God, you’re such an idiot. You have no idea who he is.”
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*****
Malachi had been running through the forest for God knows how long, searching through the trees, trying to hear her thoughts… but he could only hear the silence of the woods…
Like there was a predator watching his prey.
“Raven!” he called, not caring about being quiet anymore. At this point, Mason probably had her in his hands right now. “RAVEN! COME BACK!”
He had to stop after an agonizing thirty minutes of running, placing his hands on his knees to catch his breath.
But after a couple seconds, a twig snapped to his right, and he spun around, scanning the area for threats.
He couldn’t see anything… though he could hear something strange…
Labored, almost… muffled breathing.
Thank god it was still werewolf day… He probably would’ve still heard it if it was vampire day but with angel day? He was most likely screwed.
“Raven,” he said, stepping toward the sound, “is that you? Answer me.”
He heard whispering, though it was still inaudible.
“Raven.”
A thud echoed from the area, followed by an agonized voice. “Mal! Help! I’m right here! I can’t mov—”
A slap echoed through the area, making him flinch at her cry. “Dumb bitch,” Mason’s familiar voice hissed. “What did I tell you about talking, huh?”
Malachi then rushed to the tree they were clearly hiding behind, finding Raven standing there, legs weakened.
Mason was holding her to him, knife pressed to her throat as he covered her mouth. And it was Raven’s dagger. Did she still have her knives…? Or did he take them, too?
If she did… what was she waiting for?
But Malachi looked down to the hand that covered her mouth.
That was why her breathing was muffled.
Malachi gazed at Mason then, taking a threatening step toward him. “Let her go.”
He smirked. “Or what?”
His eyes flickered with anger. “You really want to play that game?”
He chuckled. “We both know your bark is much worse than your bite, Malachi.” He shoved the knife harder into Raven’s throat when Mal took another step. “And get closer, your girlfriend here’s no good other than dead meat.”
Malachi stopped in his tracks then, eyes shifting to Raven’s.
Hers were glittering with tears, the ones that escaped catching in Mason’s hand.
He knew what the look said, I’m sorry. You were right.
Mason laughed. “Aw, I love these moments. It’s so much fun to see the pain in your eyes. I saw it in Max’s, too. Quite fascinating, really.”
“Why are you enjoying hurting us?” Malachi questioned. “We’re your family.”
“I have no family,” Mason responded, smiling. “I have a job now. And it’s to kill people, to destroy people. And, oh, do I love it.”
Mal… Raven thought, please tell me you can hear me…
His eyes shifted to hers as a response.
Can you? she thought.
He nodded slightly.
The river… she said, the rivers behind that tree next to us… Please, he’s planning on—
Mason slammed his fist across her face, making her cry out. “I can read thoughts, too, missy. Don’t think for a second that you can get away with that.”
Malachi took a protective step to them before realizing the knife was still at her throat and stopped, looking to her, a question in his eyes.
She nodded, letting him know that she was okay.
He watched her for a moment, noticing that her eyes were glazed over with something dark…
But angry.
A second passed, and Raven shoved the heel of her foot into Mason’s knee, making him cry out as a snap echoed through the air.
She broke his knee.
When he loosened his grip just enough, she spun out, sliding a knife out of her shoe and thrusted it straight into his gut.
She didn’t waist a second, she looked straight at Malachi, Mason choking.
“My ankle!” Raven said, pointing to it. “Malachi, please!”
He looked down to find a chain locked around her right ankle, tightened to the point where her skin was turning purple.
Only three seconds passed, and Malachi couldn’t move through any of them.
She started running to him, holding out her hands. “There’s a cinder block in the—”
Mason covered her mouth with a hand, bringing her to him faster than light.
One second.
Her eyes widened.
Two seconds.
Malachi watched in horror when a blade pierced her through her entire body from behind, the tip red when it came through her stomach.
She cried out, arching her back.
Three seconds.
She was gasping, clutching her stomach when Mason pulled it out, a single tear slipping down her cheek.
“Mal…” she choked as he watched her, entire body frozen.
“Shhh…” Mason cooed darkly, “catch your breath. You’re going to need it.”
And she was sent airborne, screaming Malachi’s name when she went through the tree on his right, the branches breaking outward.
The moment she clashed with the cold, icy water of the deep stream, a cinder block came flying out of the broken tree, breaking through the river behind her.
Oh, God... It was attached to her foot. That was what the chain was for.
A sudden instinct burst inside Mal, and he ran after her, not even giving Mason a second glance.
He jumped off the shore with inhuman strength, diving straight in the middle of the river where Raven vanished.
The water was cold, bitter, frost… Like the ocean in winter, but Malachi just swam in deeper, trying to find her white tank top or her green shorts.
His heart was pounding, shattering. His body was freezing, and his eyes were burning with tears.
“RAVEN!” he called in the water despite it drowning his voice out.
His lungs seized, and he knew he needed air.
So, he broke through the water, gasping.
After he scanned the area to see if she came up, his breathing became heavy when there were no signs of her, so he went back down, wading down further.
Where are you? Don’t leave me, please. Come back.
“RAVEN!” he cried, lungs seizing.
She was down there… She was DOWN THERE!
Water filling her lungs… coughing under water…
And this river… was miles deep…
Was she already at the bottom? Stuck there? Sinking lower?
He couldn’t bear this any longer… his heart was bursting, and it hurt so much.
Come back! he thought, tears boiling his eyes. Come back to me! Don’t go! Come back!
“COME BACK!” he screamed. “RAVEN, PLEASE! PLEASE!”
Oh, God… he couldn’t breathe… He needed air.
No… no…
He had to find her… He HAD to find her.
But he pierced through the water again, scanning the waves for her, but there was no sign.
He went back under and just swam.
Deeper… deeper…
It was so dark... He couldn’t see anything...
But there was a sudden white flash… like an angelic light…
He stared down at the light, eyes burning with tears.
It came closer, and closer, coming though the darkness until it formed a body.
Malachi almost gasped and waded deeper, heart piecing together when he caught her arms, holding her to him while kicking his legs.
Oh, god… the top was so far.
He could tell she was struggling… feeling her chest colliding hard against his.
We’re almost there, he thought. Hold on a little longer, Sweetheart. Almost.
Until they broke through the river, Raven coughing rapidly while water spit out of her lungs, clutching onto Malachi as he held them both up.
She couldn’t swim... but she was able to kick to the top...
Oh, thank God.
She clawed at his shoulders, only making him hold her tighter. “I got you. I got you. It’s okay.”
She took long, choked gasps when he pulled her to him, holding her tightly when she started calming down, catching the cold air in her lungs.
He pulled away then, still holding her to him when she tried to rub her eyes with her wet hands, but didn’t succeed, so she pulled them away.
“How did you…?” he whispered, lightly rubbing her ankle with his toes to make sure the chain wasn’t still there.
It wasn’t.
She brought a small knife above the water to show him, smiling weakly. “Not only does it work for killing people. It works to cut chains when you’re drowning.”
“I’m so glad I gave you two,” he said, pulling in for another hug.
But she coughed again, making him draw back when blood splattered on his shirt.
And that’s when he felt something warm, but sticky bleed into his skin under water.
His heart stopped.
He forgot that Mason stabbed her…
Malachi wrapped her arm around his neck. “Hold onto me.”
She nodded in response, eyes dulling with pain.
But he still waded back to shore, holding onto her wrist in case she couldn’t hold on herself.
But they made it closer to shore, and when Mal could touch the bottom of the river, he pulled her in front of him so she could grip onto him better and walked to the sand.
She was shivering when they made it out of the water, though he couldn’t tell if she was going through sepsis or if she was cold…
It was probably both.
Malachi gently laid her down onto the soft sand, and she cried out when her cuts folded.
“Shhh…” he soothed, “I got you. It’s okay.”
Straddling her knees, he made sure he didn’t put his weight on her, leaning over her form and pressing his forehead to hers.
“Mal…” she whispered, voice breaking with pain as she clutched her wound through the shirt, “i— it’s too fatal. I won’t make it back.”
“Yes, you will,” he stated a little too confidently.
She looked to him then, confused.
“It wasn’t the nurse, Ellie who healed you that night, Raven,” he stated, making her brows draw together. “It was me.”
Her eyes rounded.
But he only looked down to her stomach. “Show me the wound, before it’s too late.”
“Mal—”
He pried her hand away, making her cry out, but he only pressed his lips to her stomach, catching her hand when she tried to pull him away.
“That hurts!” she sobbed. “Please! It hurts!”
He pulled away then. “I know, Angel. I know.”
She gasped then, feeling something warm emanate from the wound, but when she tried to sit up, Malachi pushed her back down.
“Don’t,” he said.
Her blood tingled on her skin like it was evaporating into the thin air, and her wound felt like it was knitting itself back together, though it didn’t hurt…
It felt so warm and soft… like she was lying on roses petals and daisies…
Malachi brushed her hair away from her face while his magic healed her, seeing her eyes glaze over.
But a second later, her head fell to the side, eyes closed, and he knew she passed out.
“Yeah…” he said, chuckling, “sadly, that’s a side effect.”
A moment later, he lifted her up, cradling her to him, and stepped into the forest, both of them covered in blood.
He was about to start heading back to the car, but his eyes caught on Mason lying on the ground, looking up at them both with a twisted smile, though he was clearly bleeding out.
“She dead?” he wondered curiously. “I’m surprised she even made it up.”
“You’ll never find out,” Malachi answered.
“You look angry,” Mason said then. “She’s dead, isn’t she? You just don’t want to give me the satisfaction.”
Malachi started to the car again, making Mason exhale a choked laugh. “I’m your cousin. You’re going to let me die?”
He stopped then. “You know what? I think you’re right.”
“Thought so,” Mason said. “You’ve gotten soft.”
“Not soft enough apparently,” Mal responded, turning to him. “I think you deserve to be treated the same.”
Mason eyed him suspiciously. “Don’t go falling in love with me now.”
Mal smiled, a sick, twisted, sadistic smile. “I know better.”
And he went over to Mason, caught his arm while holding Raven with the other, and started dragging him to the shore of the river.
“What are you doing?” Mason questioned, clearly too weak to grab his arm. “Let me go. Just take me to a goddamn hospital.”
Mal dragged him to the riverbed. “You’re clearly too weak to swim,” he noted aloud. “You can’t even get up.”
Mason’s eyes widened at his words, and he clearly tried to squirm, but failed.
“Don’t do this,” he said then, catching on. “I’m your cousin.”
Malachi’s eyes darkened. “I’ve never loved you as family, Mason. You were always the cruel, sadistic, serial killer. I’ve known since I was four. And now since you’ve hurt the only woman I can love. I’ll hurt you. And let me tell you this,” he leaned down, whispering, “no one will miss you.”
Mason screamed when Malachi caught his arm tighter, swinging him toward the water and let go.
Mason clawed his hand but never caught it, clashing with the waves seconds later.
When Malachi walked up to a tiny hill next to the riverbed, he watched Mason try to pry his way toward the top of the water, but failed and sank into the darkness.
Just like Raven did.
He honestly liked watching him struggle to get to the top, coughing and inhaling water.
But when he went still and started sinking, Malachi knew for a fact that he was dead.
It was easier to kill someone who was already dying anyway, though at least Raven had a little fight left in her. That wouldn’t have ended well otherwise.
He held her tighter at the thought, whispering to her in her dreams, “Immortal means ageless, but it doesn’t mean you can’t die. Remember that.”
And he carried her back to the car—once again—cradling her to his chest.
After walking what felt like miles through the forest, Malachi got to the car to find Jae smacking the windows from the inside like some child.
She did know that she could unlock the doors from the inside… right?
Malachi unlocked the car, opening the backseat and Jae nearly collapsed on the ground.
She stood up then, though clearly couldn’t hold herself up because she caught the car, and she looked at Raven, eyes rounding but they looked glazed over with pain.
“B— blood!” she said, slurring her words. “What— happened?”
“Where did he hit your head?” Mal said suddenly.
She looked to him then. “Why?”
He sighed. “Just tell me.”
She pointed above her right ear. “H— here.”
Mal lightly touched the wound, making her pull back in pain but he already finished because her reaction time was delayed.
“There, better?”
She nodded, eyes going back to their usual color and the bruises scattered along her head went back to her usual black skin. “Healing powers?”
He nodded. “Don’t pass out on me.”
She looked down to Raven then—ignoring him—eyes glittering with tears. “Is she okay? There’s a lot of blood on her shirt.” She looked up at Malachi. “And yours.”
“Yeah,” he responded. “She’s alright… It’s a long story, and I don’t really want to talk about it right now.” He nodded to the front passenger seat. “You get in there; I’m going to lay her down.”
Jae moved to the side so he could lie Raven down on the backseat.
“Archer….”
“Is dead,” he responded.
She blinked. “Really?”
He nodded. “Yeah.”
“Why are you both soaked?” she questioned then.
“Why do you ask so many questions?” he mocked. “I said I don’t really want to talk about it, okay?”
She shut up then. “Is she okay, though?”
“Physically? Yes, now she is. Emotionally?” He brushed her hair to the side while whispering, “I don’t know, but I’m going to try to make her better.”
“I’m sorry…” Jae said then, looking down. “This is all my fault.”
Malachi patted her head gently. “It’s not your fault, Jae. It’s Archer’s. He’s a really good manipulator.”
“The blood…” she said, hesitating. “Is it hers?”
Malachi sighed, gazing down at Raven sympathetically. “Yes, but I healed her. She’s okay now.” His eyes burned slightly. “He stabbed her.”
Jae covered her mouth, gasping. “Oh, my… I’m….”
He shook his head. “It’s not your fault, okay? I get it. He’s my cousin. He’s convinced me to do pretty bad things, too.”
She took a step back then, nodding softly.
“Where’s Clay?” Malachi said then.
Jaelyn wrapped her arms around herself. “I don’t know. He went to get drinks at the club we were at and didn’t come back. I don’t honestly know where he is, and I don’t know why I trusted Archer either… I felt kind of high for some reason and followed him out here.” She rubbed her face. “God, I’m an idiot.”
“You’re not,” Malachi said. “I know those symptoms. He was manipulating your mind. I think he’s been doing that to Raven for the last couple of days. She’s been on edge.”
That would explain all the “are we safe” questions.
He looked at Jae’s confused expression. “Don’t worry about it, okay?”
She nodded.
“Get in the car,” Mal instructed. “I’m going to call him.”
“Can I stay with her… you know… back here?”
He nodded. “Yeah, just don’t try to wake her.”
Jae slipped in the backseat then, grabbing the jacket she left crumpled on the ground and draped it over Raven, sitting on the car’s floor and staring at her softly.
Malachi made sure to leave the door open when he dialed Clay’s number, pressing the phone to his ear.
“Mal!” he said, alarmed. “I’ve been calling you for hours! Jae’s gone missing and—”
“Clay—Clay—Clay,” Mal said. “Chill. She’s fine.”
“Oh, God…” he said, sounding relieved. “You found her?”
“Yeah,” Mal said, looking back to her and Raven.
“Is she okay? You sound kind of depressed.”
“Archer’s my cousin Mason… He tried to drown Raven… Long story,” Mal responded. “I’ll take Jae and Raven back to the townhome. I’ll be there in an hour. Meet me there and I’ll explain.”
“Okay,” Clay responded.
“Clay…” Malachi said then.
“Yeah?”
“Can you tell me… how I can help Raven?” He glanced back at the car. “I know she’s been through a lot… But do you think she’ll survive this?”
“Yes,” he responded. “She has you by her side. And she should know by now that you’re not going anywhere.”
Mal smiled. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
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