Page 71 of To Crave Deeply
I felt Iveri’s presence strengthen as we got nearer the witch. Shit. Were we actually working together?
I didn’t have time to analyse it. The moment we reached her, a pain like no other ripped through me. Selene’s cackle intensified as my screams grew. I could hear Iveri screaming deep in my mind as a fiery lance of pain twisted deep in my heart and obliterated my ability to think. I fell to the ground, clutching my chest. I could hear Torsten yelling over the blood pounding in my ears. But I didn’t have the strength to look at him. I felt a hook bury deep in my gut and pull. Iveri screamed again. My stomach churned horribly as the pain intensified. I was on the edge of blacking out.
I couldn’t catch my breath. There was another tug on this hook and Selene cackled again.
“Let go, Lori. It’ll all be over soon.”
I fell onto my side and rolled onto my back. I could feel Iveri clawing at my insides, trying to hang on, but this force, whatever it was, was pulling her. I could feel ropes of twisted thorns and wires wrapping around her, digging into my insides as they wrenched Iveri free. I tried to hold on, but the pain was too much.
“Let her go!” Selene roared as she flooded my system with more magic. My back arched off the ground as I screamed.
“Iveri…”I muttered feebly. I tried to hold on, tried to protect her, but Selene was too powerful and there was just so much pain.
It’s okay, Lori.
And then she was gone. All that was left was the pain, and even that was too much to face. I succumbed to the shadows and fell deep into unconsciousness.
***
My stomach rolled as my senses came back to me. There was a soothing hand brushing my hair from my face but that wasn’t enough to stop the bile burning the back of my throat. I rolled onto my hands and knees and emptied the contents of my stomach. Tears streamed down my face as I continued to wretch, and I was aware of a soothing hand rubbing circles on my back.
After I’d finished, I sat back on my hunches and wiped my mouth with the sleeve of my jacket. The first thing that hit me was a deep emptiness. She was gone. And not like last time. This time, I knew Selene had pulled her from me.
No. Not pulled. Ripped.
She’d ripped Iveri away from me, carved me in two and scooped Iveri out before throwing me back together haphazardly. I felt wrong. Incomplete. Empty.
Torsten was muttering soothing words under his breath as he rubbed my back. I wondered how much was for his benefit rather than mine. He’d been terrified when he’d been stuck on the other side of that barrier. I’d seen the fear in his eyes as the witch had attacked me and he couldn’t do anything about it. Just watch it unfold before him.
I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his neck. He smelled so good, all clean and fresh with a hint of cedarwood. It was subtle, simple, and I breathed him in deeply.
“Well, I hate to break up this touching reunion, but I’ve got a witch to meet.” Selene’s melodic drawl hit my ears and I felt a rage burn through me, starting at my core and traipsing through my veins until all I could think about was wiping that smug grin off her face.
I detached myself from Torsten and stood on shaky legs before the witch. “What the Hell did you do?”
“Is this how you’re going to thank me?” Selene pouted.
“Thank you? Why the fuck would I thank you after that shit you just put me through? Where’s Iveri?”
She just grinned and put her hands on her slender, designer clad hips. “She’s behind you.”
I spun on my heel and found myself staring at the woman whose soul had been inhabiting my body. I knew her instantly. Even though I’d never really seen her. In my mind she’d always looked like me but there she stood, as clear as day, looking nothing like I expected her to.
“Iveri?”
“Hello, Lori.”
Her voice was strong and confident, just like it had been in my mind. Her hair was thick and hung to her waist, a shimmering black like the colour of Lucifer’s wings. Her eyes, which were studying me intently, were the same as his, too. Two black orbs surrounded by a ring of fire. She was beautiful. Built on Junoesque lines but with a delicate face and elfin features, she looked graceful, but I could sense the warrior buried just beneath the surface. She was a combination of beauty and deadliness, and I could tell she was made by Lucifer’s hand. She was just like him.
Apart from the fact that I could see straight through her.
I turned back to Selene. “What have you done to us?”
The witch rolled her eyes and scoffed. “I’ve merely separated you, so you don’t look like a crazy person conversing with yourself. She’s still tied to you until you die, but at least this way you have control over your own body.”
“Is that why she looks like a ghost?” I asked.
“She will look solid shortly. The magic is still manifesting, but eventually she will look as real as you and I. Pretty cool, huh?”
