Page 107 of Demons & Damnation

Kyla held her breath and looked down at her hands, wringing them together as she tried to calm her racing pulse. “He was the last thing I saw before I fell unconscious. He literally rushed in right as Mildred pulled me under.”

Dylan reached over and took one of her hands. “Hey,” he said, his tone quiet and gentle. “Look at me.”

Kyla peeked up at him from beneath her lashes, her mind whirling as to what he would say next.

“I am not blaming you for anything, let me just get that clear. You had been through a hell of an ordeal, he was the first person you saw when you woke, considering you were in his arms.” Dylan took a breath, those words leaving a sour taste in his mouth. “It hurt like hell, I won’t deny it, but I believe it happened because of the circumstances. What concerns me is...”

Kyla waited a second or two for him to finish his sentence but as his eyes drifted away from hers, she took a guess at where those words had been going. “The fact he’s my demi-soul. Apparently anyway.”

Dylan glanced back at her and nodded.

“Do you want me to be honest with you?”

Dylan swallowed a lump in his throat, then nodded. “Always.”

“I can’t deny that I don’t feel a pull towards him.” Kyla took a breath and let it out slowly, picking her next words carefully. “I can’t explain it, it’s weird...like he’s a magnet and I’m a paperclip.”

Dylan chuckled, trying to ignore the ache in his heart at her words. “What an analogy.”

Kyla smiled. “I know that’s not what you wanted to hear. I’m sorry, but we’ve battled through so much over the years, the least I can do is be honest with you.”

He nodded. “I appreciate the honesty so thank you. I guess I’m just worried about what happens next. Is this where you run off with him into the sunset playing happily ever after?”

She shrugged her shoulders and stared out of the windscreen. “I don’t know, Dylan.” She looked back at him. “I’m sorry but I just don’t have those answers yet.”

“What are we in the meantime?”

Kyla studied him for a few seconds, scanning her eyes over his. “Is it selfish of me to ask for everything to stay as it is until we figure all of this out?”

Dylan relaxed somewhat, grateful she wasn’t telling him to give her space until she knew her place with Azazel. “Not at all.”

Squeezing his hand, she said, “I’m worried that you’ll end up being hurt at the end of this though. Is it kinder to just cut it off now?”

Something in Dylan’s chest constricted, an arrow of panic shooting him straight in the heart, coursing through his body at a rate of knots. “No,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m ok, don’t worry about me. I’m as tough as old boots, you know that.”

“Maybe you’ll find your demi-soul soon.”

Dylan gave her a small smile, appreciating her optimism. “There was a reason I had no idea what a demi-soul was,” he said, his voice almost a whisper. “Wolves don’t have one.”

Kyla frowned. “What? How? Why? Maybe you’re just not aware of it?”

“It’s complicated,” he replied. “Werewolves are seen as the peacekeepers of the supernatural world. That’s why we’re big and tough and take a bit of rough and tumble. We’re like guards. If we had a weakness, such as a soulmate, it would compromise our position. Our duty takes precedence over anything else. As such, we can choose freely to be with who we please.”

Kyla frowned and shook her head. “I don’t buy that. It doesn’t make sense. If all the supernatural creatures have demi-souls, then you being with any of them means you’re with someone that isn’t technically yours.”

“That’s why we tend to be with humans or wolves. You won’t find records anywhere of wolves being with any other species.”

Kyla thought over his words for a few seconds, then said, “We need to get to my grandparents. Once we have some solid facts, then we can make decisions and figure things out, right?”

Dylan lifted her hand to his mouth and brushed a kiss over the back of it. “Good point.”

Easing the car back onto the road, they continued on in silence, each lost to their own thoughts. Kyla kept replaying yesterday over and over, specifically the part with Lucifer where he mentioned demi-souls and then presented the brothers with two red roses. What was that?

She needed them at her grandparents, they had questions to answer. Wondering if she could reach them with her mind, Kyla took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Picturing Azazel in her mind, focusing on his jade green eyes, she thought I need you and then showed him an image of her grandparents’ cottage.

After repeating it three times, she opened her eyes and bit her lip as she debated if it was as simple as that to call a demon to her aid. Was it as easy as willing yourself to communicate with someone?

Minutes later, as Dylan rounded the corner to Lily and Malcolm’s house, Kyla couldn’t stop herself from grinning as she saw Azazel and Balthazar waiting for her outside the cottage.

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