Page 115 of Shadow & Stars
“Xavier?”
He carried a lifeless Roman in his arms.
I ran to greet him in the hallway. “What happened?”
“Where can I find Jaz?” the demon responded gruffly.
I went onto my hind legs, stunned by what he’d said. “My ex? How do you know about him?”
“Because I think he’s the one to save Roman’s life.”
He knew about Jaz? “What happened?”
Xavier explained quickly, ending with, “A hospital is too risky at the moment, especially if everyone is retaining their memories. Roman mentioned Luton.”
Jaz was a name I never thought I’d hear again. Talk about a heartbreaker, but also a brilliant heart surgeon. If anyone could help my poor bestie, Jaz could.
Looking at Roman made my heart struggle to beat.
“I know where he is,” I said with raspy fear, climbing up onto the demon’s shoulder. “Let’s go, before it’s too late.”
Please don’t be too late…
40
XAVIER
Once again, time was my enemy.
How much of it did Roman have? How long before I heard him draw his last breath?
His lungs continued to work, his chest rising and falling, his slow pulse beat against me, the device still working as his heart with labored effort.
With Buckingham Palace destroyed, and many lives lost, the hospitals would be working overtime. I considered calling Piper, but we hadn’t met yet. If she didn’t retain her memories during time’s reversal, we could run into more problems.
I wouldn’t take that risk.
Jaz was the only answer, the one to take one of my hearts and give it to Roman.
You’ll be on your feet again soon,I thought down at my sleeping love.
I stole a car, making the fifty-minute journey to Luton in under thirty minutes.
This had to work. We’d come too far for it to end here. I suppressed every fear, every dark thought trying to trip me up.There was no other way forward without my witch. No other suggestion would ever be permitted to hinder my quest to see those amber eyes again.
Carrying Roman with Darcy on my shoulder, I kicked the boarded door down.
“What the fuck?” a man howled from upstairs.
“You have to save him!” I bellowed back.
Jaz appeared on the stairs, hidden by shadows. “Roman?”
“And me,” Darcy said, offering a little squeak.
Jaz gasped. “What…”
“There’s no time for any of this. We need you to save his life. Now. I know you can do it.”
