Just like I did with Heidi's room earlier when Kaenon let me know a random ghost had wandered in, I salted this room's perimeter to keep restless spirits out, just in case. I'm sure some people get it up for supernatural exhibitionism, but not me.
She has a conveniently giant-ass bed in here, and the others are already asleep in it. Heidi is sleeping in the middle of the bed, wrapped in silky sheets and nothing else, the rosy glow lingering on her beautiful, bare face making it obvious that they were up to more hanky-panky.
It's hard not to smile, seeing her look so blissfully satisfied.
One boyfriend, my ass.
This is where she belongs—surrounded by people who adore her.
Kaenon is spooning her naked, his face nuzzled close to her neck. Zak is on the other side of Kaenon and is clearly the type of person who flops around like a fish in his sleep, because oneof the nude half-demon's arms is thrown haphazardly over the ancient warrior, while one of his legs is almost off the bed. Ian is exactly the opposite on Heidi's other side, perfectly still as he sleeps while holding one of her hands. Apparently, he's the only one who managed to get back into his underwear before crashing.
As silently as I can, I take off my boots and lie down on Ian's other side, yawning before turning over to get some rest. When I drift off, I sleep better than I have in what feels like months, knowing Dev is back—and knowing that the most gorgeous woman I've ever seen is resting so peacefully nearby.
That all shatters when the screaming begins.
I jolt awake, my heart pounding and head already splitting from the noise. Ian is screaming and clawing at his head beside me, Zak's screams cut off into choking as he falls off the bed, and Kaenon is thrashing and jolting as if he's being electrocuted, crying out.
But it's Heidi's quiet sobbing that rips through me the hardest.
"Heidi? Heidi!" I shout, reaching over Ian to try to wake her.
"He's lying…n—no… that's…stop,"she's weeping, locked in some nightmare.
I shake her gently, touching her face and calling her name, but her sleep doesn't budge.
Kaenon's scream changes abruptly into a snarl. I glance at him—and then immediately remove Heidi from the bed when I see that Kaenon is shifting. Rearranging discarded pillows and blankets on the thick rug, I carefully lay her down. Then I heave Ian off the bed and set him beside her so that the lethal claws now sprouting from Kaenon's hands and tearing at the sheets don't get him, either.
When Kaenon finishes shifting, he's…a fucking sabre-toothed tiger. He's still trapped in sleep, though, snarling and hissing and clawing like he's fighting for his life.
Their screaming isn't stopping. My head throbs, and my left ear starts ringing.
Heidi's sobs are still wracking through me to rip at my heart—not even a magical rousing spell I usually use on knocked-out comrades wakes her up. The others are in no better shape. Frustrated and pissed that I feel so helpless, I look between the four of them, desperate for a solution.
An incubus. That's what this has to be. Thanks to Arati's blessing on my back, I've never had an incubus inside my head, but I know they can make it impossible to wake up as they weave dreams and nightmares.
Kaenon writhes again on the bed, but the sound of his snarl changes. I have to do a double-take because he's suddenly a giant wolf now instead of a sabre-toothed tiger.
What the fucking hell? I've never heard of someone shifting into two different animals.
Unable to stomach another second of their screaming and sobbing, I decide to take a shot in the dark and trysomething, anything. First, I grab Zak from where he's fallen to the ground. He's thrashing in his sleep, too, making my life harder for the hell of it until I can finally put him beside Heidi and Ian.
I want to try this with Kaenon, too, but I don't want to get my face clawed off, so it'll have to wait.
Wrapping my arms around Heidi, Ian, and Zak as best as I can, I try to focus through the migraine that's starting to pulse painfully through my head to summon my holy magic armor once again.
Power thrums through me as Arati's blessing jumps into action. Faint white light glows around me before it quickly spreads to them.
Ian's screaming stops as he jolts awake, no longer tearing at his own hair. Heidi does, too, with a soft gasp as tears continue to drip off her face.
Zak wakes with a pained cry and immediately turns onto his side to throw up. When he's done, he looks weak, visibly shaking as he glares at me and chokes, "Don't you fucking ever—ever—use that holy shit on me again."
Right. For a second, I completely forgot he's a half-demon. Holy magic is painful for infernal beings.
"Asher?" Heidi's whispers, her voice unsteady.
Thank gods.
Ignoring the slight exhaustion from using that particular spell, I scoop Heidi up and adjust to sit, holding her naked body close. Kissing her birthmark gently, I study her worryingly pale face.
