“It’s me, Mom. Jewel.” Jewel was torn between the urge to embrace the woman and the desire to step away.
The woman smiled, revealing razor-sharp teeth. Jewel covered her mouth with her hand as a squeak escaped. “This isn’t my mom.” The healer stepped back and looked at Celise.
The sprite shrugged. “Sure it is. I never said she’d be exactly as she was before. Death is hard on a person. What were you expecting?”
Jewel motioned to the other sprites. “Why do they look normal?”
Celise’s smile turned cruel. “Because they matter.” She laughed. “This is just a shadow of your mother’s soul. A shell.”
Jewel’s mom—or her shell, whatever it was—stepped toward her again. There was so much pain in her dark eyes. “I shouldn’t be here,” she told Jewel. “This isn’t right. I can feel that you were important, but I don’t belong here. This … hurts.”
Tears streamed down Jewel’s face. “I’m sorry, Mom. I just… I miss you. I miss you so damn much.”
Her mom’s hand touched her face. It was gentle, but not the touch she remembered. “You have to let me go.”
“Enough,” Celise snapped. “Jewel, catch.”
Jewel turned just in time to catch the phone Celise had thrown at her. “Call that mate of yours. Let him hear that you’re alive and unhurt. Then give me the phone.”
“What are you going to do?” Dread built inside Jewel. Her mom moved to her side, a hand still on Jewel’s arm.
“That’s not your concern. Make the damn call.” The harshness of the words was like a slap across the face.
Before she tried to make the call, Jewel pulled on her magic, hoping to flash herself out of there, but no such luck.
“Good try at whatever you just attempted,” Celise laughed. “Did you honestly think I wouldn’t bind your magic?”
It was worth a try. Her hands shook while she looked up Dalton’s number. She hesitated briefly before hitting the call button. The selfish part of her wanted to hear his voice, even if it was just one last time.
“Jewel?”
She closed her eyes as his voice washed over her. She could practically feel it in her veins, the warmth of the bond she’d let slip open a bit. “Please don’t hate me.” Jewel shivered and her voice trembled.
“I could never hate you,” Dalton said softly. “Never.”
“Whatever she tells you to do, promise me you won’t do it.” Her voice grew stronger. She needed to know that no one would come to harm because of her foolish choices.
“I can’t do that, Little Dove. You know I can’t.”
“Dammit, Dalton. I fucked up,” she snapped. Jewel never cussed, not like that, but she needed him to understand how serious the situation was. “Nothing is worth what Celise will do. Not even me.”
“Give me the phone,” Celise demanded.
“Jew—” She heard Dalton’s voice as the phone flew from her hand straight into Celise’s.
A hand wrapped around Jewel’s, and she looked down. The ghostly, zombie-like figure of her mom was still there, trying to comfort her.
“You have to let me go,” her mom repeated.
“I don’t know what that means,” Jewel gritted out. “You’re my mother. I can never let you go.”
“Listen carefully, Dalton Black,” Celise said, drawing Jewel’s attention. “You will do exactly as I say, and you will do it in the timeframe I give you. For every minute you’re late, I will cut your precious Jewel. She will bleed out slowly for every minute of your hesitation. Starting now.”
Jewel wasn’t prepared for the slash across her cheek, and she let out a sharp hiss.
“You haven’t even told me what you wanted,” Jewel heard Dalton bellow through the phone.
Celise cackled, and the insanity of the sound terrified Jewel. “But now you know I’m serious.”
