Curse of Night

by Emily Goodwin

  “It’s our friends,” I tell her and suck in a breath. “Time to blow everyone’s fucking minds.”

  Chapter 39

  “Hey, guys,” I say, opening the door. Kristy, Evander, Tabatha, Ruby, and the twins all arrived together, and I step back, welcoming them into the house.

  “Wow.” Ruby stops short in the foyer, looking at the large chandelier above us. “This place is amazing.”

  “Why don’t you live here?” Evander laughs. “I would.”

  “Thorne Hill is home.” I close the door behind them and give Tabatha a hug.

  “It’s been too long,” she says, hugging me tight. I close my eyes, comforted by the smell of lavender and sage.

  “It has.” The last time I saw her was when she came over to help heal Lucas. “Come in,” I say to everyone. “There are appetizers out, and once Abby gets here, we can eat.”

  I pretend like I don’t see everyone exchanging glances and avoid eye contact with Kristy. I’ve never kept a secret from her since we became friends all those years ago.

  “Hello.” Julian appears in the hall, popping in from upstairs.

  “What’s going on?” Evander asks, pointing to Julian. “Are you in trouble, Callie?”

  “Not any more than usual,” I say, waving my hand in the air. “Julian just wanted to visit.”

  “They can just visit now?” Evander stares at me dubiously and then looks at Kristy, thinking she knows more than she’s letting on. She actually does, and I don’t want to put her in an awkward situation.

  “This is Julian,” I tell Ruby, who’s the only one in the bunch who hasn’t met him. “He’s a cousin. From my father’s side.”

  Ruby stares at me for a few seconds and then looks at Julian, jaw dropping. “He’s…he’s an angel?”

  “I am an angel of the Lord,” Julian says.

  “Julian, this is Ruby. She’s a witch. We go way back. She used to hate me,” I ramble. Fuck, I wish I could drink. The doorbell rings again, and I let Abby in. Lucas and Eliza come downstairs, joining us in the kitchen as we fill up plates and go into the formal dining room.

  “This is the first time this room has been used,” Lucas says, lips pulling up into a half smile. “You always sat at the counter to eat.”

  “I kinda forgot it was here,” I admit, setting my plate down. Lucas takes a seat next to me, resting his hand on my thigh. “It’s a pretty room.”

  I’m feeling a little sick again and push my food around on my plate, hoping the sick feeling in my stomach will go away once I start eating.

  “All right, sister,” Evander starts. “Why are we all here? What did you do?”

  Evander and I started referring to each other as brother and sister after my fourth year of living with them. He felt like my brother, and it was easier to act as if I was his adopted sister than try to explain to people my real family sold me like cattle and his mother busted me out of a privately funded torture chamber.

  “It has to be something serious to gather us all,” he goes on. “And for an angel to be dining with us, though he’s not eating.”

  “I don’t need to eat,” Julian tells them. “Or sleep.”

  “That’s so interesting,” Ruby says, hardly able to take her eyes off him.

  I reach for my water, slowly exhaling as the bit of mashed potatoes I just ate threatens to come back up. “Julian is here for a reason. Ruth was trying to summon Bael and pull him from the prison. We think she was trying to make an alliance, and Bael was using her as a way to get out. Julian sealed the rift and kept Bael from further escaping.”

  I take a little sip of water. “Bael knows I’m a nephilim, but we’re not sure if Ruth has figured that out yet or not. We think he heard rumors about me, and that’s why he projected himself here and conjured the root-monsters. He was testing me.”

  “Rumors?” Tabatha echoes.

  “Since the day Callie was born, rumors have circulated both Heaven and Hell,” Julian takes over. “There have always been several demons who didn’t believe the nephilim child was vanquished as she was supposed to be. I have spent the last several weeks trying to eliminate any demon who utters the word nephilim, which is how I ended up tracking Bael.”

  “If the demon knows who you are, wouldn’t Ruth?” Naomi asks.

  “We’re not sure,” I go on. “But we don’t think Bael would have told her. He would want me to himself.”

  “Why?” Nicole asks.

  “The demons want Callie to be their queen.”

  “Queen?” Nicole and Naomi question at the same time.

  “There are certain rules put into place,” Julian goes on. “Demons cannot sit on the throne of Hell. But Callie, daughter of Michael, can.”

  “Whoa,” Ruby says, holding up a hand. “Michael is your father. The archangel Michael.”

  “Right.” I shake my head. “I forgot you didn’t know. Yeah. He’s my dad. And yes,” I go on, “that makes Lucifer my uncle.”

  “Holy shit.”

  “It’s a lot to take in,” I say gently. “Trust me.”

  Tabatha picks up her wine glass and takes a drink. She rarely ever drinks, and if this is making her drink, just wait until I drop the second bomb.

  “What do the demons plan on doing with Lucifer?” she asks, somehow maintaining her calm composure.

  “I’m not certain they’ve thought that far ahead,” Julian tells her. “As long as there have been demons in Hell, there have been plans to overthrow it. But it wasn’t possible until now…until a nephilim with archangel blood was born.”

  “Holy shit,” Ruby repeats and leans back in her chair.

  “Have some wine,” I tell her and look at Abby, who hasn’t uttered a word since we all sat down together. She’s the only non at table filled with witches, vampires, and an angel. I hope she doesn’t feel too out of place.

  “Did you forget your wine?” Kristy asks, realizing that I don’t have a wine glass in front of me.

  “No,” I say and look at Lucas. He takes my hand in his and gives me a little nod.

  “That’s actually why we invited you to dinner,” he says and squeezes my hand.

  “Remember how Lucas was cursed a few weeks ago?” I start. “And how parts of him were coming alive?” I swallow the lump rising in my throat. Now is not the time to get hit with a wave of norming sickness. “Well…certain parts that hadn’t worked in a really long time started working again.”

  “It always worked,” Lucas presses.

  “What are you talking about?” Nicole asks, giving me a confused look.

  I open my mouth, inhale, and look at Lucas. “I’m pregnant.”

  Chapter 40

  “Good one,” Evander laughs and raises his wine glass before taking a drink.

  “It’s true,” Julian says. “Callie is with child.”

  Evander chokes on his wine. “That’s not possible. Unless…no, you wouldn’t.”

  “I didn’t cheat on Lucas,” I snap. I’m too far away to kick him so I telekinetically flick him on the nose.

  “Ow.” Evander narrows his eyes but doesn’t magically pinch me back like we used to do when we were kids.

  “Are you sure?” Tabatha asks, brown eyes widening.

  “I’ve been really nauseous, tired, and emotional for a good week now,” I start. “I thought it was from stress, but then I remembered Lucas’s heart was beating. He drank water. He was coming alive yet dying at the same time.”

  “I’ll say,” Naomi snickers and shakes her head.

  “I took a pregnancy test just to convince myself it wasn’t possible,” I continue. “Imagine our surprise.”

  No one says anything, and I can hear the grandfather clock ticking behind me.

  “Do you know about how far along you are?” Abby finally asks.

  “Almost six weeks. I know when I, uh, conceived. I should be due around June thirtieth. Well, if…if…” I trail off and can feel Eliza’s eyes on me. “If everything goes how we think it will.”
/>   “What do you mean?” Abby asks.

  “Callie is the first nephilim to ever become pregnant,” Lucas says, giving my hand a squeeze.

  Abby sharply inhales. “You’re not human.”

  “Right.” I blink rapidly, willing myself not to cry. “I don’t know how things will turn out,” I say slowly.

  “The baby isn’t fully human then, either,” Abby says, trying to comfort me. “Right?”

  “Right,” Julian and Lucas say at the same time.

  “You’re not going to start drinking blood now, are you?” Nicole asks.

  “Gross, no.” I shudder. “Sorry,” I tell Eliza and Lucas. “The only nonhuman parts it has are from me.”

  Silence falls over the table again, and then Tabatha gets up. “My baby is having a baby.” She blinks back tears and gives me a tight hug. She’s not my biological mother, but Tabatha is my mom. And having her here means more to me right now than I thought it would.

  She lets me go and looks at me, smiling, and then turns to Lucas. I know she—as well as my other friends—was hesitant to accept my relationship with a vampire. But they’ve learned to look at Lucas for who he is, not what he is, and I hope they see him the same way I do.

  Because there is no one in the world for me but him.

  “I’m sure this came as quite a shock,” she says.

  “It did,” Lucas agrees and takes my hand. “It is the last thing I thought could happen, but now that it is happening…” He squeezes my hand. “I couldn’t be happier.”

  Tears spring to my eyes, and I look up, blinking them away. “I told you, I’ve been sorta emotional,” I say, and my friends laugh.

  “I was a sobbing mess most of my pregnancy,” Abby tells me. “I cried at a restaurant once when the waiter took my empty salad plate away because I wanted to eat the leftover dressing with a spoon.” She laughs. “You get a pass for a few months.”

  “It’s so weird,” I say, letting out a slow breath. I’m still hungry, but the smell of the gravy is starting to get to me. “Like now, I’m hungry, and this looks so good, but I feel so sick.”

  “How else have you been feeling?” Tabatha asks and goes back to her seat.

  “Really tired. I lay down and fall asleep, which is weird for me, too. I can usually function on just a couple of hours of sleep,” I tell her.

  “It’s been nearly thirty years, but I remember the exhaustion well. I can’t help you with that, my darling, but I can make a potion to rid you of the morning sickness.”

  “Seriously? It’s only been a week and I can’t handle this.” I look around the table at my human friends. “I don’t know how you all put up with being sick. It’s awful.”

  “You don’t get sick?” Ruby asks.

  I shake my head. “No. I never really thought about it until it was pointed out. I’ve been tired and run down before, but I don’t get colds or the flu or even a sore throat.”

  “Angels are immortal,” Julian states. “We don’t get sick.”

  “Except for now,” I say and take a drink of water and then look at Lucas. “But it’s already worth it.”

  Lucas laces our fingers and kisses the back of my hand. “It is. You are going to be an amazing mother.”

  “I hope so. I’m scared,” I admit.

  “I was, too,” Abby tells me. “Penny was planned, and she took nearly half a year of trying, but even then I was scared when I found out I was pregnant.”

  “Most first-time mothers are,” Tabatha says gently. “And I imagine second and third and so on. Being a mother can be a terrifying thing, but it’s also the greatest gift you will ever receive.”

  “I am quite awesome,” Evander says. “Should you be thanking me, Mother?”

  “Oh, hush,” Tabatha tells him.

  “Have you thought about names or anything yet?” Nicole asks.

  “No, not yet,” I reply. “We just found out I’m pregnant. Fuck, that’s weird to say.” I close my eyes in a long blink and shake my head.

  “It’s kind of fun to think about,” Kristy says. “And Kristy is a great name for a girl.”

  “And Evander if you have a boy,” Evander quips with a smile.

  “Eliza already put in a request for us to use her name.”

  “I’m the closest this kid will have to a sibling,” she says, batting her big, blue eyes at me. “Unless you plan on cursing my maker again so he can knock you up a second time.”

  “That’s not a terrible idea,” Lucas says, keeping a straight face.

  “Oh yeah.” I roll my eyes. “You almost died and I had to murder a poor innocent deer in order to transfer the curse. One kid is more than we thought we’d have. I’m good with that.”

  Lucas grins, making me excited for bedtime to roll around and have everyone leave so Lucas and I can be alone.

  “I didn’t get to throw the killer bachelorette party I had planned,” Kristy starts. “So you better believe your baby shower is going to be insane.”

  “Baby shower?” Julian questions. “You’re going to wash her baby?”

  “It’s a party,” I explain. “You buy stuff for the baby. You play lame games and have food and cake, usually.” I look at Abby in question. “I think you have them more towards the end of the pregnancy, right?”

  “Right. I had mine at seven and a half months,” Abby says. “Do you want to find out what you’re having?”

  “Yes,” Lucas and I say together. “Though I don’t know how I will,” I go on. “I can’t really go to a doctor and get blood work or an ultrasound.”

  “Oh, right.” Abby bites her lip. “I might be able to help with that. We do the occasional ultrasound in the ER. When you’re around fifteen weeks, I can get you in during my shift and have one ordered for you. And if things aren’t, uh, quite normal…” She flicks her eyes to Lucas. “You can handle it, right?”

  “I can,” he assures her, and I smile, so thankful for my sister right now.

  “You’ll be in your new house by the summer?” Nicole asks.

  “Yeah, we will,” I answer. “We technically could move in now. It’s done enough to live there, but there’s still a lot of construction going on.”

  “It’s best to wait until the dust settles,” Lucas say. “Literally. You don’t need to be breathing that in.”

  “I’ll be fine,” I press. “I’m not fragile, guys.” I look around the table. “Please don’t treat me any different than before. Remember, I’m not human, so I can handle like a lot more than you all.”

  “Humble as always,” Eliza huffs as she looks at her nails, appearing totally bored with this whole dinner.

  “It is annoying being treated like you’re weak just because you’re pregnant,” Abby agrees. “Though I’ll fully admit I liked the special attention.”

  “Oh, I like attention. Give me all the attention you want, and in fact, if someone wants to bring me some cake, I would not object.”

  “If you want cake, I will get you some.” Lucas kisses the top of my head and gets up, going into the kitchen. Binx jumps up in my lap, purring, and I feed him a piece of chicken from my fork. Before he takes it, he jerks his head up and growls.

  “I feel it, too,” Julian says, getting to his feet. His eye glow blue as he looks around the room.

  “What is—” Evander starts but is interrupted by Sister Selena’s astral projection appearing in the hallway next to the dining room.

  “High Priestess,” she pants. Her projection shimmers, and she looks up, relief washing over her face. “It worked.”

  “What is the meaning of this?” Tabatha rises from her chair.

  “The coven is under attack,” Selena rushes out. “I had to find you. To warn you. We need help. She’s…she’s trying to break through.” Selena turns around, able to sense something back wherever her body is.

  “Who?” Tabatha asks, brown eyes wide with fear. “Who is attacking the coven?”

  Selena opens her mouth to tell us, but no sound comes out. Her projec
tion jerks, and suddenly a dagger is plunged through her from the back, with the blade piercing out through her skin. Kristy screams, and I watch in horror as Selena’s light gray robe becomes soaked in blood.

  Lucas speeds back into the room just in time to see Selena’s image fade from view. She never told us who was attacking the coven, but it doesn’t matter. I already know.

  Ruth.

  Chapter 41

  “We must go at once.” Tabatha whirls around, moving away from the table.

  “Mother, wait.” Evander grabs her wrist. “We don’t know what we’re going into.”

  “Then I’m going to find out.” Tabatha pulls her hand out of Evander’s grasp and hurries into the living room. She lies on the couch, crosses her arms over her chest, and starts chanting.

  “What is going on?” Abby asks, looking terrified. “Who was that and what the hell happened?”

  “That was a witch from our coven,” I tell her, heart racing. Lucas and Julian are both close behind me. “She astral projected here. Tabatha is the High Priestess of our coven.”

  “And she…she’s dead?”

  “Probably.” I take Abby’s trembling hands.

  “How did she know to come here? Can you teleport?”

  “No, we can’t. She astral projected here, and I’m guessing she used a scrying spell to locate Tabatha.” I swallow hard, looking at her, lying on the couch. My heart is hammering in my chest, and my muscles ache to do something.

  Just standing here is killing me. And it could be killing others in my coven, too. Because if Ruth is behind this—and I know it in my bones she is—then she should take it up with me and me alone.

  “And what is she doing?” Abby asks, hands still shaking. She’s no stranger to death and watching someone die. I’m sure she sees it almost daily. Chicago has a high crime rate, and ERs are full of victims of unspeakable violence.

  But seeing someone just appear before you like that would be a shock, and watching someone get murdered before your eyes is a whole different story than someone coding and dying in the emergency room.