He starts tapping away on a small tablet.
—What the fuck are you playing at, pulu—
—I’m seeing Wes—
“Alright, you’re cleared, but next time bring the official form.”
“Yes, sir.”
Happily, there isn’t a healer inside the room. But if there had been?
Maybe I’d have spelled them. I’m getting pretty good at all that casting shit.
Standing beside Wes’s bed, something inside of me wants to break, but I won’t let it. Wes is mine and I’m not giving up on him.
Surely I can afford just a little expenditure of my Lumina. Just a drop or two?
—Wes?—I take his hand. —Hey, my love—
For a while, I just stand there, allowing the heat from my palm to warm his hand. A small trickle of Lumina passes between us.
—Everything is coming to a head, Wes…and there are so many ways for this to end in disaster…but if you’re in there listening to me…know that I’ll always love you—
Nothing.
—And if I don’t make it back to you…you’ve still got to fight. Fight for Donovan. If he loses both of us, he won’t survive—
Suddenly, Wes’s hand convulses, clamps like a vice on mine.
And a sharp, twisting sensation tugs at my arm, my chest, my core. It’s dark and cold, and fuck…
My Lumina. It’s being sucked into Wes, but not in a good way. The dragging feeling pulls and tugs, dredging the sparkles that flow through my body.
—Wes, no. You have to stop—
It’s like the darkness in him is trying to swallow me whole. Fuck. NO.
Why can’t I pull my hand free?
—WES!—
Something slams into me, sending me flying across the tiled floor. I raise my stunned head. Cosmo Drakeward looks down at me, face like thunder.
“What the fuck, Theodora?”
I groan, flopping back onto the flooring. I feel like I’ve gone ten rounds with Dwayne Johnson. Cosmo appears at eye level, squatting next to my head. “Are you OK?” he asks in a softer tone.
“No.” I can only croak out one word.
Gods, what if I’ve lost most of my Lumina?
Shit. If I tell the guys, they’re going to freak.
And pull the plug on the whole plan. I’m such an idiot.
“You seem like you’re in pain. What’s wrong? Did I hurt you? Wes?”
“No,” I say again. Apparently that’s the extent of my vocabulary right now. I feel sick and dizzy.
