Dark Desires After Dusk (Immortals After Dark #6)(97)

But she didn’t care that she would lose out. The school had been good to her.

N?x asked, “But you know you can go out every now and then?”

She nodded. “With a buddy.” Holly was in much less danger now that Cade’s crew had in fact taken out two factions, and Tera the Fey had spread the word that Holly was not to be touched.

Plus, Holly’s reputation as a slaughter-happy Valkyrie would make enemies, as Regin put it, “a jot leery” about attacking her.

Still, she wasn’t to go anywhere without another Valkyrie.

“I’m glad to see that Regin has taken you under her wing,” N?x said. “Though I wonder about that, since she isn’t exactly the most giving of Valkyrie.”

Holly said, “She’s already admitted that she’s using me for distraction and advised me not to look too deeply into it.” Straight-shooting Regin, telling it like it is.

Regin was even going to help her find an exorcist for the Laughing Ladies—though she wouldn’t accompany her to the bridge. Fierce Regin was terrified of ghosts. So Holly was still looking for a buddy to go with her to Michigan in the winter.

Yes, Holly was settling in. Life was almost dandy. Except for the fact that she was pregnant with an evil demon’s spawn.

In a rare bout of lucidity, N?x had explained that Cadeon could’ve “double bagged it,” and Holly could’ve been on the pill, a sponge, and an IUD, and he still would’ve “slipped one past the goalie.”

The Vessel was hyper-fertile at all times for the first pregnancy. A virile male could have blown her a kiss, and Holly would’ve been calling him in nine months.

Good to know. Now. Score another one for N?x, who could’ve divvied that little nugget of wisdom, but hadn’t.

Holly didn’t actually believe Cade was evil. But her general attitude about having a demon baby was: Meh. She couldn’t get worked up about it one way or the other, and waited each day for it to sink in, hoping to feel some kind of excitment.

She’d forgiven her aunt for the most part. Without N?x’s interference, Holly would still be stubbornly clinging to her old life, when this one suited her far better.

Holly had realized that being with Cadeon wasn’t the sole reason she’d been happy. And though it didn’t feel possible now—even after everything, she still missed him terribly—Holly believed she could be happy once more.

All she’d ever wanted was to feel normal. In the Lore, she did. Even with her lingering quirks and compulsions, Holly fit in.

N?x had told her that she would finally get a sense of herself on her journey, and in fact, Holly had discovered who she was: Holly the Bright.

It was her new Valkyrie name. She kind of liked it. Especially when compared to her coven’s first few ideas: Holly the Spawner, Holly the Plucky Single Mother, and Holly Crocker.

N?x said they’d chosen her name because of her intelligence, but also due to the fact that she’d followed the northern lights to get away from danger.

“Any thoughts on Cadeon?” N?x asked. “You can’t put him off forever.”

He actually hadn’t lied about Holly being his by fate. And N?x had told her that the demon would be wanting his female back.

For the first week, he’d continued coming to Val Hall every night. Initially he’d acted as if he owned the place, striding right up to the front door—or at least intending to. The wraiths had caught him and tossed his towering frame into an oak so hard the trunk had split from the impact.

The Valkyrie playing Wii on the porch had cackled with glee.

If he yelled for her, her aunts slapped headphones on her ears, then sicced the wraiths on him even harder.

But then, five nights ago, he’d stopped coming . . . .

Now that Holly had time to think things over, she’d recalled all of Cadeon’s tireless training. She’d begun to suspect that he really did have feelings for her and had been counting on Holly to free herself when he turned her over.

His “pressing needs” had consumed him. He’d had to make a choice, and she’d lost out.

Holly could almost understand that. But what she couldn’t understand was how he’d given her the kiss-off at Groot’s. Holly had been terrified, numb with shock, and he’d been cruel, callously indifferent.

He’d sure fooled her. She’d never forget the look on his face when he said, “Never trust a demon . . . .” The ease with which he deceived still stunned her. She couldn’t even count how many times he’d lied to her over the course of their journey.

Holly couldn’t look back over their relationship and know if anything was real. How could he have left me behind—

When N?x cleared her throat, Holly realized that she’d spaced as badly as her aunt usually did.

“Something on your mind, dearling?”

“Um . . . no, everything’s great. Thanks for checking on me.”

“I’m really glad you like it here.” Nix smiled blankly. “But now you have to move.”





49





He was nervous as he pulled into Rydstrom’s estate. Why hadn’t his brother called anyone to let them know he’d escaped? Cade’s mind ran riot with theories.

Had Rydstrom been tortured? Had they done something to him so horrific that he was unable to face others?