He tore his gaze away from her as he bolted across the street. “You’ll be fine, you’ll be fine. Annabelle!” he bellowed again.
Cassie touched his arm lightly, sensing the impending end of her life, sensing that she did not have much time left. “Julian, you can’t let him die. Promise me that you won’t let him die, not because of me.”
“Cassie…”
“Please Julian,” she pleaded. “Please. My life is not worth his too.”
This time when his eyes met hers, there were tears spilling down his cheeks. He may want to deny it, he may still wish that Annabelle would be able to help her, but she saw now that inside he knew the truth. She would not survive this. “I will do everything I can to keep him alive,” he promised softly.
Tears spilled down her cheeks. “And yourself too?”
He hesitated a moment before nodding sharply. “And myself too.”
“Thank you.”
Cassie’s head slumped against his chest as he shoved into the store door, crashing it off of the wall. Darkness seeped slowly over her; a strange sense of peace embraced her. She thought she would be scared in the end, but she wasn’t, not for herself anyway. A strange warmth seeped into her outer limbs, it replaced the cold chill that had been there before.
It wasn’t ok that she was leaving everyone; she wished that she could stay with them forever. But she was not afraid, there was something else waiting for her, and in the end she had always known that fate would never be denied. That it could never be changed. And this was her fate. It always had been.
She heard Julian screaming for Annabelle’s healing ability again, and then she heard nothing more.
***
Chris was numb with horror and terror as Julian burst into the store, nearly breaking the door off its hinges as it slammed against the wall with enough force to shatter the plaster behind it. Chris had heard Cassie’s whispered words; he could feel the strange sense of comfort and peace that had settled over her. And he hated it.
He could not lose his best friend, he could not lose her. And she was ready to be lost. Please, he begged silently. Please just hold on.
“Annabelle!” Julian yelled again, his voice so loud that the windows in the store rattled but Annabelle was already racing through the door. Her strawberry colored curls were a mess, blood smeared her cheeks, but she appeared unharmed as she bolted toward Julian. Chris shut the door, propping a chair against it as its bent frame wouldn’t allow it to close properly.
“Hurry,” Julian pleaded his voice a hoarse whisper.
Julian knelt on the floor; he placed Cassie gently upon the ground. Her hands slid limply away from her stomach, falling upon the ground. Chris got his first good look at the hideous wound. His eyes widened, bile rushed up his throat as he stared in horror at the jagged, vicious tear that had ripped deep into the inside of his friend. The strong pulse of her blood had slowed to a near stop, her shirt was torn open but her flesh was covered by the deep red color of her life.
A small moan of despair escaped him. Cassie was a fast healer, but even with that ability, and Annabelle’s powers he couldn’t see how they could do anything to heal that. It was too deep, too long, too brutal and cruel to ever be healed. Terror pulsed through him, full blown panic took over. They were going to lose her, he was certain of it; he was going to lose his best friend.
Tears clogged his throat, making it impossible for him to breathe. “What are you waiting for? Do something!” Julian snarled at Annabelle. She remained frozen, her sea green eyes wide in horror, her hand over her mouth as she gazed at Cassie. “Annabelle!” Julian barked, causing them all to jump in surprise.
Annabelle shook her head as she turned toward Julian; her shoulders slumped in defeat, her posture was sad as she huddled in on herself. There was a hollow look to her eyes that made her appear somewhat shrunken. “I cannot heal the dead Julian,” she whispered forlornly.
Chris felt as if he had punched, he took a staggering step back. Pain clutched at his chest as tears instantly sprang forth. “No,” he moaned.
He took a step toward Cassie, determined not to believe it, unable to accept the fact that she could be gone so easily. Unable to believe that she could be so swiftly and cruelly ripped from their lives. Unable to believe that her inner light could so easily be doused. He froze though, unable to go forward as his gaze landed upon her face. Cassie’s eyes were halfway open, her pupils dilated as she stared unseeingly at the ceiling. Her mouth was parted slightly, her face lax. Knowledge slammed into him, strangling him with its intensity as he turned away, gasping and choking for air as pain and loss engulfed him.
Julian and Annabelle remained silent, unmoving, but he could feel their sadness and loss even through his own grief. Julian swore loudly, turning away he slammed his fist down on one of the metal shelves. It crumpled beneath the blow, spilling its contents across the floor. Before Chris could even blink, he lifted up one of the cases and heaved it across the room as if it weighed no more than a feather. Glass and materials shattered across the room. Chris wrapped his arms around himself as he took a step away from the cans that rolled toward him. Julian bellowed in rage before lifting another shelf and heaving it across the room.
Fresh agony swamped Chris, but this time it was so fierce, so intense that it knocked him to his knees. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see as his vision blurred and his head pounded with the torment pulsing through him in never ending waves that nearly caused him to pass out. He bowed down; his forehead nearly touched the floor as his heart exploded, shattering into a million pieces, destroying everything that was good and right inside of him. Burning away the humanity that had been in him, and leaving only scattered pieces of nothing that were quickly buried by a rage so intense that Chris feared his head would explode. The blood in his ears was a loud rush that blocked out nearly all other sound.
Rage and a thirst for vengeance, for destruction and brutality, swamped him. Chris couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t think through it. Both of the emotions were so intense that physical pain twisted through him as he struggled to breathe, and tears rolled down his cheeks.
“Julian stop,” Annabelle whispered pleadingly.
Julian froze, his shoulders heaved as he stared at the back wall. His hands were fisted at his sides, his body shook but he seemed to have regained some control over himself again. “Devon cannot know about this, not yet. Not until we can contain him in some way. I promised her he would not die, and I am going to keep that promise,” Julian said softly, his voice choked with emotion.
“How are we going to do that?” Annabelle whispered.
“I don’t know.”
Chris gasped for breath, he tried to find his voice, tried to rise up against the tidal wave of emotions crashing over him. He was afraid that if he couldn’t get control he would be forever buried beneath the debris of Devon’s rage and grief. Forever caught up within the whirlpool that now controlled the vampire. For Chris was keenly aware of the fact that there was nothing left of the man within Devon. The man had been destroyed by Cassie’s death; the monster inside him had finally burst free of its cage to take Devon’s place.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
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Inferno Page 27
