A Tangle of Hearts (A Shade of Vampire #44)(6)

And yet I looked up, pleased to still see the blue sky with wisps of white clouds above.





Vita





[Grace and Lawrence’s daughter]





I had a lot on my mind as I left our room and made my way downstairs for breakfast. The shower had cooled me off a little, but I still couldn’t stop myself from revisiting previous visions of the Nevertide Oracle.

Why had she sent us to the Daughters? Had her intentions been skewed? Had Azazel manipulated us through her? It didn’t make much sense, since the Daughters of Eritopia had no interest in playing his sick games, but Draven still lost his eyes in the process. I couldn’t wrap my head around this systematic cruelty.

What was the purpose of all of this?

We didn’t get anything out of the visit except for some vague notion of the last Daughter’s awakening. How were we supposed to wake her? We only got more questions.

My feet brushed over the last few steps. I shook my head.

What does the Oracle want from us?

Jovi’s imminent death squeezed my heart and tied knots in my stomach. What steps were we taking that would lead us to that specific outcome? What could we do differently?

I reached the ground floor, the old planks creaking beneath me, and once again envisioned the Nevertide Oracle floating quietly in her sphere. I remembered her face, pale in the water.

Heat rose to my temples, and everything went white. My body felt weightless, like a stream pouring through the abyss. Darkness closed in from all sides, and the white light concentrated into a tunnel that stretched ahead of me.

I lost myself to the vision.



At the end of the tunnel was one of the rooms of the plantation house. The heavy cream curtains were drawn, and I could see the fine centuries-old embroidery highlighted where the pearly moon cast its milky light. The tourmaline sky was clear and riddled with stars.

The walls were covered in the same faded pink wallpaper, torn and peeled off here and there. There was plenty of furniture around—a couple of mahogany dressers, a heavy chest of drawers, and a small vanity table tucked away in a corner. Clothes were strewn all over the floor. The bed I lay on felt surprisingly comfortable.

I was enveloped in a pleasant and comforting warmth, molded to another body. I looked to my right and saw Bijarki. His arms were wrapped around me, his face nuzzling the hollow space between my neck and shoulder. His fingers drew circles on my bare skin beneath the linen sheets.

The clothes on the floor were ours.

It felt natural to be there. He moaned in his sleep, his lips moving and kissing my collarbone, sending waves of soft heat into my stomach. His silvery skin glistened under the moonlight pouring through the window, and I relished the sensations he offered me, even while he slept.

Our bodies fit perfectly together. Our hearts beat next to each other in a peculiar unison. And I didn’t want the moment to end. I could’ve stayed there forever.

Then, the wall exploded inward, shooting splinters and glass shards all over the room. They scratched my skin and tore my lover from his sleep.

The cool night wind blew inside and brought with it Destroyers atop their winged black horses. They rumbled into the room, their ghostly wails sending chills down my spine. I froze in my little spot in the bed, and Bijarki tried to shield my body with his.

They pulled us apart. I watched, helplessly, as they dragged him away, leather whips coiled around his throat and arms. He shouted my name over and over, his eyes wide and filled with dread.

One of the Destroyers slithered off its horse and rushed toward me, its crooked fingers curled around a burlap sack. I screamed as loudly as I could. How had they been able to breach the protective shield?

I screamed for Bijarki, for myself, for my friends who slept under the false assumption that we were safe in the mansion.

A snake tail wrapped itself around my throat, slick and cold and heavy. The burlap sack covered my head, and everything went black.



I came to, gasping for air. My fingers desperately tried to pull the snake tail away from my throat. My body contorted with panic.

A pair of arms held me down. A gentle voice told me that everything was okay.

My eyes came back into focus. I was at the bottom of the stairs, and I could see the plastered ceiling, the stuffed animals with beady eyes, the dusty curtains on tall east windows.

Bijarki looked down at me, his hands pressing my shoulders into the floor.

My lungs struggled to catch up. Sweat glued my hair to my forehead. I felt sticky and hot and cold at the same time. I tried to take deep breaths to return to some semblance of calm.

Bijarki’s voice was smooth, his eyebrows scrunched into a concerned frown. The corners of his mouth turned down, his firm lips tight.

“It was just a vision, Vita,” he said, his voice soothing. “Take it easy.”

“What… What are you doing here?” I asked, instantly remembering that I had been specific in my request the other day. “I told you to stay away!”

I sat up and shuffled backward on my heels and palms until my back hit a wall. Unless I could sink into it, that was as far as I could get from Bijarki.

What the hell were you doing in my bed?

He watched me with a mixture of befuddlement and humor, irritating me even more. What could be so funny when I’d just had visions of myself naked next to him like it was the most natural thing in the world?