And I had another suspicion that started to take root. I owed it all to Ava. To her keen sense of observation.
The only way to know for sure is to go with him. And to put my trust in someone who wants to destroy me.
Ava
Peter and I are the first at my house.
“Was it a good idea to bring him here, here?” We're in the backyard, out of view of the windows, but you can still see the glow from the lamp in my room. I'd forgotten to turn it off.
“He would find it anyway.” I wobble a bit, and he lets me lean on him. “Sh.” His voice is sharp. The opposite of the word.
And then they are there. I don't hear them as quick as Peter, but I do hear them before they get there. I prepare myself by stepping away from Peter. I wish I could kiss him goodbye. Or perhaps forever. But it is not viable now. I'm supposed to be mad at him. So I step away and affix a glare to my face, hoping it's convincing and knowing it's probably not.
Cal is still in his noctalis form, and I try not to look at places I don't want to see. Because honestly, he's all human from the waist down, minus the fur. Instead, I look for Tex. Viktor puts her down and she reaches for my hand. I try to get her an eye message, but she looks so scared she's not going to listen to anything, even if it was said out loud. Viktor blinks at me. I hope that means that he's watching out for us. He and Peter share a glance and I hope they're doing that thing where they share their thoughts. That would be good right about now.
“I will be back.”
“Fine, whatever.” I love you, I love you, I love you. I turn my back to him, and I can already feel the pain building in my chest at the thought of him leaving. I really didn't think he'd actually go through it, but here we are. God this sucks so much I can barely stand. Everything in me, all that I am screams at me to go to him. But this is his plan, and I have to trust it. A warm nudge on our connection makes me feel a tiny bit better. But that feeling dissolves like sugar in a glass of iced tea when he takes to the sky.
“Oh god,” I say, falling to the ground. I don't even hear Cal leave. Tex tries to hold me up, but I fall like a boulder into a pond.
“What's wrong with her?”
“It is the Claim. It makes them impossible to be apart.”
“Then why did he leave? And why is he such a douche all of a sudden?”
“He had to.” Viktor doesn't answer the second question.
“That's crazy! What are we supposed to do?”
“Get her inside.”
“How? Seriously, how? Her parents are sleeping.”
“I will take her in and come back for you.” Viktor picks my body up somehow. I've curled into the fetal position, because it's all I can do. Wind wooshes by me and I'm being lifted and carried. Without a sound, Viktor opens the door to the house and carries me up to my room.
“I will return.” I fold myself on the bed. It's bad. Really bad. I'd cry, but I can't remember how. The pain is a blazing knife that rested inside a forge that has since been sunk into my chest, slowly and carefully. Twisting, burning, stabbing. It is so excruciating, I can't even keep my eyes open.
A warm body is thrown on top of me.
“Oh my god, you're burning up. What do we do?”
“Go and soak some cloths in cool water.” There's a rustle as Tex tries to go as quiet as she can. Viktor knees down next to me.
“Ava. I am going to leave you for a few minutes. There are things I need to take care of, but I will leave you here with Tex. You will be fine. I will not let anything harm you.” With that, he's gone. Something cold touches my face and drips into my hair.
“Tell me what to do. I'm so bad at this. You're always the one who takes care of me when I'm drunk and I just don't know what to do.” Her voice is bordering on hysterical as water drips down my neck.
“Shut up,” I manage to say through my teeth. “Just shush.” I crack my eyes open and she's flapping her hands over me. Even though I'm in so much pain, I see that she's scared out of her mind. Tex almost never gets scared like that. She's never faced anything to make her look like that.
She opens her mouth again and then shuts it. I close my eyes and wait to die.
It could be hours or minutes later that two people enter the room.
“Hello, lovely,” a surprisingly gentle voice says in my ear. The accent is British, but the words are so kind that it can't be Ivan. “You have gotten yourself into a fix, I'd say.” My head is lifted and a glass of water pressed to my lips. I try to swallow, but it is not easy.
“We're going to give you something to help you sleep.” I try to say no, but talking hurts to much. I barely feel the stick of the needle in my arm. Someone tucks me under my covers and pushes my hair away from my face. The hand is cool, and soft.
The pain dulls a little and my eyes are impossible to open. As I fade off, I hear Tex asking what they did to me, and Viktor saying he's taking her home. The last thing I hear is Ivan promising to take care of me.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Peter
It took several tries before I was able to fly very high. The line that tied me to Ava yanked me backward. As did the pain. It was hot this time. A fire lit within that wanted to consume me. I pulled at the connection, trying to do what I need to do to save her. Ivan will protect her. So will Viktor.
I swerve drunkenly, not flying with my usual speed. I dip low, keeping Cal in my sights. He moves fast, but not faster than I can fly. Still, at this rate it will take us hours to get there. I cannot take too much time. I must get back to her. But first, I need to see what Cal is up to.
We travel about seventy miles and I have to stop. I swoop down to where Cal waits for me in the middle of a clearing next to a small pond. We are going South along the highway.
“It is painful, yes?”
“It can be.” I do not want him to see that I can barely stand.
“It was a rash decision.”
“I would say so. You are not one for rash decisions.”
“Usually.” He doesn't ask me for the reason for the rash decision.
“Shall we go?”
“Yes.” A pang sends me to my knees.
“Can you fly?”
“Perhaps not. I will run.” My wings take a long time to dissolve into my back. All of my abilities are dulled. I am at my best when I am with her.
I stand and use my legs to propel me forward. Cal drops, and uses his hands and legs to run with me. We are going slow, I can tell. Soon, it is all I can do to move at all. I stop again. We are nearly one hundred miles from her and I am not sure how much farther I can go. If I will hit a wall and not be able to go on.