A dark laugh from Ehrun had them both turning to the dhemon and snapping in unison, “Shutup.”
Another groan from Azriel had them refocusing on the tasks at hand. One to pour more potion down his throat. One to stop it from happening.
“I won’t let you give him any more.”
Silence stretched between them before Phulan pursed her lips and took his hand in hers. She placed the vial and key necklace in his palm and curled his fingers around them as she said, “He’s your brother. Butyouare responsible for keeping him quiet until the right time.”
With that, the mage turned and slipped back into the circle around the fire, settling in beside the older lycan, Zeke. Madan stared after her for a long time before a whimper from Azriel had him tucking the vial into his pocket, stringing the key to the collar around his neck, and returning to his brother’s side.
This is what you deserve.
Strange. The warmth that enveloped Azriel didn’t feel dry, nor did it smell of jasmine and citrus. Rather, it was humid and sticky and smelled of sulfur. Not grainy sand, but damp scratchy blades.
I hate you more than you hate yourself.
Was he in Valenul? At the Caldwell Manor?
Maybe he’d tripped trying to follow Ariadne out the front door and knocked his head. She was still pulling down the drive, angry at his lies and deception. Despite all he’d done to try to keep her safe, she still hated him and left. Slammed the door, leaving him kneeling in the foyer with naught but a hollow ache.
Azriel rolled to push himself up, head spinning as his spine straightened into a vertical line. Then he doubled over to brace his palms on the ground and screwed his eyes shut in a desperate attempt to make the world feel stable once more.
Words registered, though he couldn’t make out their meaning. A pair of hands held his shoulders steady.
He tensed, preparing for the hand to force his mouth open and that wretched blood being poured down his throat. At first, he shook them off with a growl. No. No. He had to follow Ariadne, to find where she went and keep her safe. They were out there somewhere, hunting. Seeking. Willing to drag her back to—
“Rholki.”
The endearing word felt tainted to his ears. Why?
A lake at sunrise. An arm around his neck. A glass tapping on the tips of his sharp teeth. A vile taste on his tongue. A darkness that held him prisoner in his own mind.
I’m sorry, Rholki.
“No.” The single syllable left his heavy tongue like a garbled mess of consonant and vowel.
“You’re safe.” Again, that voice grated on his consciousness until another, like a massive dark cloud, slipped through his mind and steadied him with reassurance. “She’s safe. We’ll get her back soon.”
Her.
Azriel calmed. Pushing away from the ground, he tried to sit just for those arms to wrap around him when he swayed. A warm body, smaller than his own, pressed against his back. Only then, a soft, familiar melody wove its way through the darkness to cradle him, easing the tension from his muscles.
The song brought back memories he hadn’t recalled in quite some time. A woman with black hair and green eyes, her face half-obscured by time and reconstructed through centuries-old paintings. She held him close, her mouth curving into a sad smile before she pressed her cheek against his. The lyrics she sang, while clear in his mind, weren’t in her soft voice. No matter how hard he tried to recall the tone and pitch of her song, both were lost to him.
“Ysja,” he breathed with an ache in his heart.
Mother.
“Soht,rholkija,” said the one holding him. The pressure changed on his back as their head bobbed in confirmation. “Ysja alhin lhon.”
Yes, my brother. Mother loves you.
Loves, not loved. Present, not past.
Madan. Madan sang to him, recalling the words Azriel had once repeated to soothe his little brother after watching their mother be butchered by Markus Harlow. He’d held the small vampire boy amidst the dhemons atAuhlaand whisper-sang as they cried together.
Whatever Madan had tried to distract him from, it worked. Azriel sank back like a child, letting his brother adjust his hold. Only then did Madan press his cheek against Azriel’s, somehow finding the room between his horns and humming the melody again.
Azriel relaxed, his eyes shuttering out the strange silhouettes that faded into the darkness around him. He sucked in a deep breath, one he hadn’t realized he needed.
