Danica
We bundled Riona into the car, Kyla sitting with her in the back seat. I called ahead, and a team of doctors and nurses met us outside as we pulled up to the ER. Kyla pulled Riona out of the backseat and stalked toward the gurney, laying her down before stepping out of the way.
I glanced at Kyla. Her eyes were so light they were almost white. I jerked my head and she nodded, slipping back outside.
The medical team took off with the gurney, and I jogged behind them. One of the doctors met my eyes as they lifted Riona onto a table.
“What happened to her?”
“She was kidnapped and locked up in a basement. There was a leaky pipe within reach but she’ll be dehydrated, and I’m betting she hasn’t eaten for days. She’s a witch and she held a ward for about the same length of time.”
He nodded and responded to some medical jargon, then turned back to me. “We’ll notify the human police. She has blood under her nails. Might’ve swiped whoever did this to her.”
“God, I hope so. I need to talk to her when she’s ready.”
“That won’t be for a few hours, minimum.”
I nodded and pulled out my phone as I walked out and into the fresh air. I’d called Siobhan on our way here, but I needed to borrow one of Samael’s demons to stay on Riona’s door once they got her up to a room. I couldn’t risk the black witch coming back for her.
Kyla cleared her throat from where she was leaning against the wall. “Uh, sorry about that.”
“Nothing to be sorry for.”
We both turned at the sound of footsteps. Maeve and Siobhan hurried across the parking lot, almost at a run. Maeve’s eyes met mine and her lips trembled before she managed to firm them, throwing her arms around me as she reached us.
“You saved my baby.”
I patted Maeve’s shoulder and she eased herself back, tears streaming down her face.
I glanced at Kyla. “It was a joint effort. The uh, the demons helped too.”
Shock widened Maeve’s eyes but she smiled, taking Kyla’s hand too. “I can’t thank you enough. I don’t have the words.”
“I’m glad we found her in time.”
Siobhan stepped up to us, pulling me into a hug as her mother released my hand. She repeated the gesture with Kyla and blinked back tears.
“I thought she was dead. I wouldn’t admit it. Not to myself and certainly not to Mom. But I thought she was dead. I thought I’d walk down the aisle without her. Have children without her by my side. I thought… I thought…”
“Hush,” Maeve pulled Siobhan into her arms and rocked with her. “You held me together when I couldn’t do it myself. Thank you, my darling.”
They walked into the hospital and we got into the car.
My chest was so tight it felt like I could barely breathe. I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like to have my mom around, but every now and then, the grief, the longing… it reached out and punched me in the throat.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m just tired.”
“You’ve had a hell of a day. Look, Riona’s unlikely to wake up anytime soon. Why don’t you head back to the tower and get some rest?”
I nodded. “We’ll give her the night to sleep and tomorrow to be with her family.”
* * *
Samael
“Evie’s sleeping,” Danica murmured as she shut the door to one of the guest bedrooms in my penthouse. “I left Lia with her. I don’t know what to do for her, Samael.”
