A Spell of Time (A Shade of Vampire #10)(27)

Christ. This wolf is insane.

Micah cocked his head to one side. “You didn’t slip.”

I sat up and glared at him. “I almost did.” I dared peek over the edge of the cliff and gasped at how high up we were. Strong gusts of cold wind swirled around us. I was afraid to stand up lest I lose balance. He’d brought us to a particularly narrow peak, and with Micah already hogging most of the space with his giant frame, I stayed where I was, flat against the ground.

“I wouldn’t have let you fall,” he replied.

My eyes narrowed on him.

“Life is more fun with risks,” he said.

“That wasn’t fun. That was just stupid. And now we have to make our way all the way down again…”

“I’ll go gentler with you on the way down,” he said. “I promise.”

He fell silent as we both set our eyes on the magnificent view. I should have been terrified to be all the way up here, away from everyone with a giant wolf. But somehow I trusted Micah. Even though I barely knew him. But perhaps that was just my naiveté again.

I’d lost all track of time. It was only now that I was no longer preoccupied holding on to the werewolf’s back for dear life that I glanced at my watch. Ten o’clock.

“Crap. I need to get home now. It’s past nine-thirty.”

He looked disappointed, but said, “If that’s what you want…”

I climbed on to his back and held my breath as Micah jumped from the cliff and began making his way down. So much for going easy on the way down.

I could have sworn his fur was thinner behind his neck by the time we arrived back at my penthouse. I slid off him, holding on to his head for support as I steadied my weak knees. As I approached the elevator, Micah motioned to follow me. I turned to him and shook my head.

“It’s best you stay here,” I said. Although I was still annoyed with him, I wasn’t keen on him getting an earful from my father. I’d rather take the brunt of it myself.

“Good night then,” Micah said.

“Good night,” I said.

It was hard to be angry with Micah. There was something refreshing about him. Something wild and raw. I liked the fact that he wasn’t inhibited by social norms.

He was about to turn, as was I, but before we parted, I walked over to him and stroked his fur.

“Thanks. Tonight was fun. I’d like to do this again some time.”

“You know where to find me?”

“Which house number?”

“Sixteen.”

“Okay. I’ll see you around.”

He went running off into the dark woods while I ascended the elevator back to the apartment. I held my breath as I stood outside the front door. I knocked.

Ben answered the door.

“You’re in trouble,” he muttered, stepping back and allowing me entrance.

“What’s new?” I said.

My father emerged from his study, glowering at me.

“Do you know what time it is?”

I looked down at my feet. “Sorry, Dad,” I mumbled. “I lost track of time.”

I moved to walk past him and lock myself in my bedroom but he was having none of it. He stood in front of my bedroom door, blocking my way.

“You’re grounded.”

“What?”

“For the whole weekend.”

I huffed and puffed, but there was no budging my father. I pushed past him and entered my room, slamming the door shut behind me.

I couldn’t have expected my father to act any differently. I’d gotten myself into enough trouble recently. It was only to be expected that my parents’ discipline would tighten now.

As I collapsed in bed, I found myself worrying about Micah. When I didn’t reappear, he might think that it was something he’d done or said. And despite him almost dropping me from the Black Heights, I wanted him to know that it really wasn’t.

Chapter 22: Caleb

Annora gave me space after I returned. I supposed that she’d seen the state I was in and thought it was best I recovered my strength before she visited me again.

But I wasn’t able to give my body the sleep it was crying out for. My mind was too alive. I tossed and turned in bed, trying to fall into slumber, but eventually gave up.

Rose had left a flavor in my mouth, familiar, yet distant. A flavor I hadn’t tasted since Annora’s better days. And now I hankered for more of it.

I sat up in bed, looking out the window, watching as the sun began to rise beyond the boundary. My conversation with Mona still plagued me. Lilith. She was the only straw I had to cling to.

* * *

The next day I waited for Annora to leave her apartment before sneaking inside. I headed straight for the library and began pulling books off the shelves, searching for any mention of Lilith—any clue as to what she was and where I might find her. Most of Annora’s books were written in the ancient witch tongue. I’d picked up a little of it over the years, and I could understand enough to look out for Lilith’s name.

After twenty minutes, I was already realizing that this was an impossible task. For one thing, Annora had many dozens of books in this room. Even if I had the time to search through every page, there was no guarantee that I would find mention of Lilith.

Careful to replace everything in the room exactly as I’d found it, I slipped back out of the apartment and headed downstairs to my own quarters. But my apartment suddenly felt claustrophobic. Instead, I went down to the ground floor and began to pace from chamber to chamber, seeking to avoid bumping into anyone. Thankfully, solitude wasn’t hard to come by in this castle.