Pickup Styx (21 page)

“Just stop, Selene. You don’t deserve Cheney. You know that. I know that. Stay with me,” Jaron leaned forward and whispered in my ear. “We deserve each other.”

“Leave me alone.” I kept moving.

“We’re trying to help you, pet.”

“Not you. Him,” I said between breaths.

“Is he hurting you?” Corbin glared at Simon.

Simon let go and held up his burnt hands defensively. “I wasn’t doing anything.”

I tightened a hand on Corbin’s arm. “Jaron, not him.”

“Who’s Jaron?”

“You can’t see him?”

“Selene, Selene. Is one man ever enough for you?” Jaron taunted me, glancing at Corbin.

Corbin tilted my chin up. “Can
you
see him?”

“Yes.”

“He’s not real,” Corbin said firmly. “Let him go.”

“You know I’m right. You can’t stand to be alone. Even for a few hours, you’re already looking to replace poor Cheney with a vampire.” He made a noise. “Surely you can do better than that.”

“I’m not replacing anyone. I’m going to get back to Cheney.”

“Yes, you are. Now stop talking to it. You’re just feeding it energy. It isn’t whoever you think it is, Selene.” Corbin pinched me, but I hardly noticed it with the constant pain I was in from the burns. “Your insecurities are being used against you. Don’t help it.”

“You aren’t going to make it back. You don’t deserve to go back. Simon and Corbin would make it through so much easier without your baggage, Selene. Stay with me. You owe me,” Jaron said. “You put me here. I need you so I can move on.”

My feet stopped. “You did this, Jaron. Not me. I loved you long ago. I would’ve stayed with you, but your need for revenge did this. You perverted what we’d shared. This punishment is yours to bear alone.”

I walked up to him, fists clenched at my sides. He smirked at me, waiting for my attack. I swallowed back the anger and the guilt. In my heart I knew what had happened. “Cheney isn’t his father. You would have liked him. Think of what you could have accomplished together. . .as a family.”

Jaron shifted. “You—”

“Shhh. Just listen. You let your anger and hate ruin both chances you had for a family. Let it go, Jaron. Move on.”

“Both?”

“With me or with your brother. But I forgive you. We are all blind to something and you were blind to love.”

Jaron smiled slightly and leaned down to me. “Beat this place, Selene. Beat it for all of us.” He kissed my cheek and faded into nothing.

“Damn it, you have to keep walking.” Corbin shoved me forward, making me stumble, then helped steady me.

I didn’t ask how bad I looked because I no longer cared. For the first time in too long, guilt wasn’t weighing me down. I coughed like I’d been a smoker for thirty years. Wisps of smoke rose from my arms, but I was alive. Better than that. I was winning. “He’s gone.”

“Good. Don’t fucking stop moving again.”

The land grew darker as we went. I could still see, but barely. “Where’d Simon go?”

Corbin glanced around. “I have no idea.” His muscles tightened as he picked up our pace, taking my hand. “No matter what happens, don’t let go.”

It probably wouldn’t work, but I held on tighter to him.

“There are people out there,” Corbin said.

I looked again but couldn’t see anyone. “Where?”

“Everywhere.” He squeezed my arm so hard I was worried the skin would peel off and the bone would snap underneath.

I cast a small darkness spell to illuminate my hand and held it out in front of us. There was nothing but burnt remains surrounding us. Corbin’s eyes darted back and forth, and he pulled me harder to his side, squeezing me tightly and moving faster. I understood finally. He was going through his own personal challenge, but at least we were still moving, so I didn’t say anything. Twenty feet ahead, Corbin stopped dead. “You can’t be here,” he said. “This isn’t where I left you.”

His forehead scrunched. “You aren’t real. None of you are real.”

He loosened his grip on me. “She doesn’t know anything.”

It was too hot to stand still. I slipped my hand out of his and circled around him, hoping to catch his attention. I could try to wake him up, but he had to work through whatever was holding him or they’d never leave. His pale face turned red with ugly, oozing blisters until he was hardly recognizable. Movement to Corbin’s right caught my eye. A shadowy gray figure was headed our way with jerky movements. I scanned the rest of the area. At least five more similar creatures were moving toward us. Not good.

“Corbin.” I tapped his cheek with my open palm. “Corbin, we have to move.”

He brushed me away. “I said I’d do what I have to do. . . No, now is not the time.”

“Sorry about this.” I swung my arm forward and caught him under the chin with a right hook. Pain shot through my arm, but he barely flinched.

“We need her,” he said.

Crap. He was too far gone. Part of me wondered who he was talking to and what it was about, but I’d have to think about that later. At the moment I had creepy gray guys to take care of. I tried spell after spell, but they kept closing in. Scanning my mind, I grasped for anything they could be, hoping to find a weakness. Nothing. I could fight, but they’d easily over power me with sheer numbers. Corbin needed to start moving.

Before I could move in front of him to try to get his attention again, a scorching hand grabbed me from behind. I kicked and swung my arm at it. The gray creature disintegrated into ash but left a perfect burned handprint on my shoulder. I swallowed and glanced around. If one of those monsters wrapped its arms around me, how long would it take for me to burn to death? I had one more idea. Then I had to move on—with or without Corbin.

If I couldn’t hurt him enough to wake him, maybe I could create a hunger that would. I pressed my lips to his, not so much a kiss as an invitation to take what he wanted, what all vampires always wanted—a piece of the life they’d lost. He could absorb me as he had the souls earlier, but I had to believe he would stop himself. It took only a second for a reaction. A startled inhale, then a pull like nothing I had ever felt. It was like part of me was going into him. For what he took from me, he also gave. I didn’t know vampires could do that. His essence swirled within me and then spread. I began to fade.

He lurched back. “What did you do?” His voice was strained and rough.

I pressed my hands to my knees, dizzy.

“We have to go. Are you all right?” he asked, standing over me with worried eyes. His hand hesitated over my back before he jerked it away. “I shouldn’t touch you. Can you walk?”

I nodded, forcing myself to straighten. It felt like he’d taken chunk of me when he pulled away. I wanted to touch him to feel whole again. I followed behind him as he fought through the gray figures as they attacked. I was worse than useless, my arms limply hanging by my sides, too heavy to lift.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Corbin said as we finally outpaced the gray creatures.

“You weren’t moving. We had to go.”

He shook his head. “It’s not the same down here as it is up there.”

I had no idea what he was talking about. I needed to slow down. I reached for him, but he dodged my hand. He glared at me with a furious expression. “You cannot touch me.”

“Fine. Slow down though. I feel lightheaded.”

He pursed his lips and moved a little closer, gazing down like he was assessing damage. “When vampires feed in the Abyss, they take someone’s life force.”

I nodded.

“In the Underworld, the people are already dead. It’s pure soul we are feeding on. Think of the best drug in the world. One that’s euphoric and makes you feel like a god.” Hunger pinched his face. “That’s what it’s like. Now that I’ve tasted you, I won’t be able to stop myself from taking more—and I have already taken too much.”

I bit my lip, considering his words. “Do you always give part of yourself when you feed?”

He started to speak but stopped, eyebrows laced together. “I gave you part of myself?”

“I felt it. I still feel it.”

He backed away. “That’s not possible. What exactly did you feel?”

I explained, and though I wouldn’t have thought it possible, he looked even more alarmed. His paced slowed so much we were barely moving, and the heat became unbearable once more.

“I couldn’t have,” he said to himself. “Not again.”

I had no idea what to say to make this better.

“Stop walking,” he said.

I stopped with a sigh. Instantly it was excruciatingly hot, but he gave me a warning look before I could move as he paced around me. A new blister popped up on my neck, and his hand darted to his own neck. “Damn it.”

“What?”

His hand pulled back, revealing his own blister.

Oh no. This wasn’t good. “Is the reverse the same?”

He shook his head. “A vampire’s essence is different. You should be fine. The dizziness will wear off. At least you aren’t human.” He waved me forward. “We need to keep moving.”

“That’s it? That’s all you’re going to say? At least I’m not human?”

He ran his hand through his hair. “This is the least of our concerns right now.”

“What did you mean at least I’m not human?”

“You’ll live longer,” he said absently.

He didn’t speak further as we walked, though I tried to talk to him. He was off in his own world. The fourth time he ignored me, I pinched my thigh as hard as I could and twisted for good measure.

“Damn it,” he said, glaring over his shoulder at me. “Stop.”

“Stop ignoring me. Tell me what’s happening.”

His face immediately shut off and he stalked forward. “Pinch all you want.”

The next river was in sight so I scanned the area, waiting for the next monster, but nothing appeared. As Corbin moved in front of me, the ground crumbled beneath him. He hopped from side to side and made it to the landing, leaving me stranded on the other side. He looked over at me.

“Now would be a good time for a little magic,” he called out.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Simon’s voice came from behind me.

I smiled, happy to see him because Corbin and I could use a buffer. “Why not?”

As I turned toward him, he plunged a knife into my stomach. I fell to my knees, clutching my belly, vaguely aware of Corbin yelling.

Before I went with Sebastian, I called Sy to come to guard Selene just in case I failed. He arrived moments later, and Sebastian and I went back to the archive. The coven had cleared the tables and Devin was drawing on the floor with chalk.

“We need Edith,” she said without looking up.

“I’ll get her,” Sebastian said. “They can catch you up.”

“What did you find?” I asked.

“A spell. I don’t know how we overlooked it so many times. It was on top of a stack of books we’d all gone through,” Leslie said.

“Basically, we can send you directly to whoever’s blood this is.” Katrina held up the shovel. “The plus is you’re taking the fight to them. The minus is, of course, we’re sending you to a raging killer. ”

Jessica rubbed her eyes. “If you don’t want to do this, we can keep looking. I personally think it’s a bad idea and we should find another way.”

Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at me. Time was running out for Selene, Lily, and any other family I had out there. I needed to stop this. The elverpige had to be coming to the castle because there were at least two of us here it wanted dead. And if she cleared a path through those protesters the same way she had at the casino, there’d be countless more grieving families. We didn’t have time to play it safe. “It’s fine. I’m ready when you are.”

“Don’t die. Selene will kill us if you die,” Katrina said, throwing her arms around me. I gave her a soft hug back. I really did like Selene’s friends.

“I’ll do my best.” I fastened a scabbard around my waist. “If I’m not back before Selene wakes up, make sure she doesn’t go to the cemetery. We need to discuss the Pole of Charon.”

“When it rains, it pours,” Devin said from the floor with a smile. “Both of you should go on vacation after tonight and try really hard to not get into trouble.”

I chuckled. Erlkings didn’t get vacations. “Thank you all for everything you’ve done for us tonight. Selene and I are forever in your debt.”