I staggered from tree to tree as if I’d had too much to drink. My hands trembled as I moved around aimlessly, waiting to drop to the ground and give up. Instead, I forced myself to continue.

With tears welling in my eyes and the world a dark hole around me, I slammed into something impossibly solid. Before I could do or say anything, I was spinning out of control.

Chapter

Sixteen

In what felt like an instant, I blinked rapidly, and my vision sharpened. I was back in The Between, lying on my back in Darkness’s soft bed.

My hand darted to my pants, where the artifact had once been tucked into the waistband. With a heart-stopping surge of dread, I bolted upright, my eyes scanning the room as my heart pounded like a war drum. The room was empty, but on the nightstand beside the bed was the box I’d taken from Noah’s drawer.

My eyes snapped toward the squeaky door as Darkness, with a ghostly grace, gently pushed it open. “Ah, you’re awake.”

“Ugh, what happened?” I groaned, my voice hoarse.

“You needed help, and I came to you,” Darkness replied, his gem-like eyes narrowing with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine. “You don’t remember?”

I shook my head, my mind a chaotic whirlwind of fragmented memories. I’d remembered leaving Noah’s house and running into the woods, but I didn’t remember much after getting lost.

“You’re exhausted. You need rest… to rebuild,” Darkness said, giving me a single nod before turning his back to me.

“Don’t leave!” I said, pressing my shaky hand to my forehead. I massaged the tense knot between my brows, hoping to find some relief from the tightness in my head.

Darkness turned, pressing his hands together as he looked at me. “Okay.”

“You didn’t take it,” I said, resting my head back on the pillow.

“It is not mine,” Darkness said.

“Who does it belong to?” I asked.

Darkness studied me for a long moment. “The artifacts have no real owners. They are too powerful to belong to anyone.”

“I don’t know what to do about the medallion,” I said, glancing at my wrist. “It seems stuck.”

“It will do what it wants,” Darkness said, blinking slowly as he stepped forward to hold on to the bedpost. “Forgive me, I am still in need of much rest.”

I sat up. “I didn’t mean to steal your bed.”

“Stay,” he said. “I feel much better knowing where you are. There are plenty of places to rest in my home. I just wanted to check on you before catching more sleep.”

“Nonsense,” I said, scooting to the edge of the bed. “I’m not going to take your bed from you. I feel much better.”

Darkness arched his brow. “Remy, you require sleep as much as the rest of us. This is far from being resolved. Please, rest.”

My throat dried as my eyes locked with his. With a breath, he glanced around the dimly lit room as if searching for a way to convince me to go back to sleep. The tension in the air was palpable, as though the room itself was holding its breath.

“It’s a big bed,” I said, biting my lip.

“Indeed,” Darkness said with a resigned nod. “For your safety, I will stay here with you.”

“Good,” I said breathlessly.

I watched him through the corner of my eyes as he lay on top of the covers. The mattress groaned softly as he settled on the other side of the bed.

Despite the enormous bed, the space between us seemed to shrink by the second. I could sense his nearness and feel his ever-subtle movement, which sent small jolts through my body. The air was still with the electrified tension of our unspoken connection.

His woodsy, intoxicating scent was a hypnotic aroma that drew me in, but I kept my eyes fixed on the canopy above. Each breath I took was a volatile mix of desire and danger that simmered inside me.

“Soon,” Darkness said, clearing his throat. “We will need to venture out in an attempt to stop this war. You will stay here, safe in my home. I will have the imps guard it even though demons and light beings cannot enter our realm.”

“I will join you,” I said, my voice scratching the back of my throat.

“No,” Darkness said, turning to the side to meet my eyes. “I need you safe. I can’t risk anything happening to me.”

I pulled in a breath. “You don’t even like me.”

“That is not true,” Darkness said. “Everything I’ve done has been for you.”

I scoffed.

“It may not seem that way to you, but ever since that night I found you, I’ve done what I could to keep you safe.”

“You stalked me. You threatened me. Hell, you almost killed me! All just wanting to get your stupid medallion back, and now that I want to give it to you, you won’t take it,” I said, slamming my hand into the bed.

I felt Darkness’s fingers brush against mine before he took my hand into his. “It may have seemed that way, but I had my reasons. I had my part to play. It wasn’t just you and Nightmare that met with The Oracle. My job was to keep you safe.”

“Does she know you tried to kill me?”

“I didn’t try to kill you. I was testing you,” Darkness said, looking away. “And yes, she knows. We had to be sure you were the one.”

“I’m not the one,” I spat.

Darkness groaned. “If I hadn’t gone there that night and given you the medallion, you would not have survived.”

“That is not how I remember it at all.”

“Because you weren’t allowed to remember it any other way.” Darkness squeezed my hand. “What if you’d been the wrong one, hm? And I’d given the medallion to the wrong person? It was my job to keep a close eye on you, and for the most part, I did a terrible job.”

I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply. “The Oracle thinks I can stop this, but I’m just a girl. I’m not anyone special.”

“You are special,” Darkness said, holding my gaze. “What The Oracle didn’t see was how I would end up feeling about you.”

I turned on my side. “I don’t for a second believe I can stop any kind of apocalypse.”

“I do, but I can’t risk losing you.” Darkness rolled onto his side as he slid his hand up my arm and around my waist. “We will figure out a way. It’s possible you just need to be here in our realm.”

Darkness’s fingers traced a tantalizing path around to my back, sending a warm, delicious shiver spiraling up my spine. His glowing, mesmerizing eyes locked to mine, their magnetic intensity drawing me into a tempestuous vortex of desire.