Sunlight: Blood Magic Book 4

by L.H. Cosway

  “Oh, right. Well, can I speak to her?”

  “Are you a family member?”

  “No, I’m an old friend,” I lied.

  The woman sucked in a breath and let it out. Her voice was soft and consoling when she said, “I’m afraid Felicity died just over a week ago. She … she took her own life.”

  I gasped, a heavy brick sinking to the bottom of my stomach.

  “I’m so sorry. We had a small funeral for her, and she was buried in the local graveyard. We couldn’t trace any of her family. The only person who would visit her was her ex-husband, but we couldn’t seem to get into contact with him at all.”

  That was because he was dead, too, I thought sadly. Now poor little Rebecca had no one. I thanked the woman and hung up, nervously fidgeting with a pen on Ethan’s desk. What was I going to do?

  I agonised over the choices. Either I sent her away as Ethan planned to, have her raised in safety by people who were strangers to her, or … I could raise her myself. Was I ready for that? Was I mature enough to take on the role of parenting a young girl?

  As if sending me a sign that I was already destined for motherhood, I felt my baby kick for the very first time, and I sucked in a surprised breath. My bump was still tiny, only slightly protruding, but I guessed this wasn’t a normal pregnancy. Babies weren’t supposed to kick until much longer down the line, so maybe I imagined it?

  A moment later, it happened again, and I knew I didn’t imagine it this time. Instinctively, I closed my eyes and called on my magic. A soft white glow emanated from my hand, and I ran it over my stomach, soothing her. Since Alora told me of her vision, I more or less knew I was having a girl. The kicking sensation became more distinct now, and I laughed in surprise.

  “What do you think, little peapod, would you like a big sister when you come into the world?”

  She kicked again.

  “Okay,” I chuckled. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

  “Are you talking to the baby?” a voice asked, and I lifted my head to find Ethan standing in the doorway, his eyes all soft and melty as he took me in.

  “She’s kicking,” I told him, my voice full of awe.

  Milliseconds later, he was kneeling down on the floor in front of me and putting his hands over my belly. Another kick came, and Ethan’s face transformed with happiness.

  “I felt that one.”

  “It’s crazy. I’m not even that far gone.”

  “You’re thinking about this in human terms. Since you’re only going to be pregnant for three months, give or take, you are much further along than you think.”

  “Oh. Wow.”

  “Yes, wow,” Ethan beamed and pulled my face to his for a kiss.

  I broke it saying, “I need to ask you something.”

  “Ask me anything.”

  “Okay … what do you think about Rebecca living with us, like, permanently?”

  “I think that’s a big decision. What happened to you finding her birth mother?”

  I shook my head sadly. “That’s a dead end.”

  There was understanding in Ethan’s gaze when he replied, “She can stay with us then.”

  I glanced up quickly. “You mean it?”

  “Of course, I mean it.”

  Without thinking, I threw my arms around his neck, hugging him as tightly as I possibly could. “Thank you,” I whispered, emotion catching in my throat before I quietly continued, “And if I don’t survive the birth, you’ll still keep her with you, right?”

  His eyes grew dark and intense when he replied, “You’re going to survive.”

  “Just promise me, Ethan, for my peace of mind.”

  A sigh. “Alright, I promise.” A stretch of silence elapsed. “Our little family is growing bigger by the day.”

  “That it is. And so is my belly,” I joked to break the tension.

  “Come back out and celebrate with us?”

  “I will. I just need a few more minutes in here. I’m still in shock that the baby kicked.”

  “Alright, call me if you need anything.”

  “I will.”

  I wanted to go and tell Rebecca the good news, but that could wait until later. Right now, I just wanted to savour this feeling of contentment. For the next few minutes, I rubbed my hands over my belly, even though the kicking had stopped. I imagined her closing her eyes and taking a nap, exhausted from all the activity.

  I got a momentary fright when my phone buzzed on the desk. Picking it up, I found Edwards’s name on the screen. I answered straight away.

  “Edwards? Is everything all right with Dad?”

  “Hi, honey,” a voice spoke softly, a voice I haven’t heard properly in too long.

  “Dad?” I whispered.

  “It’s me,” he replied, his voice low and full of emotion.

  “Are you … are you okay? I mean, are you better now?”

  He coughed. “Just about. I feel like I’ve woken up from a really bad nightmare.”

  His answer made me smile. “Maybe you should just pretend that’s what it was. It would probably be easier to comprehend that way.”

  “Yes, I think I just might do that,” he said, and there was a smile in his voice now, too.

  “It’s so good to hear you speak,” I said in a rapid gush. “I’ve been worried sick.”

  “I’m sorry about everything that happened, about never telling you who your mother really was until it was too late.”

  “You don’t need to apologise. I’m just so happy you’re feeling better.”

  “I can’t wait to see you. Edwards says I’ll be ready to go home soon.”

  “That’s brilliant news,” I beamed, my heart lifting at the prospect of seeing Dad. He’d probably even be here for the birth of the baby, which I decided I’d wait to tell him about until he was feeling a little better. I didn’t want him worrying about whether or not I’d survive the birth while he was still in recovery.

  After another couple of minutes of talking, I hung up the phone and sat back in the chair. It really felt like everything was coming full circle today.

  “That was rather touching, even if I do say so myself,” came a familiar voice from the far corner of the room. I turned in my seat to find Roman leaning against the side of some bookshelves.

  “Yeah,” I said, unsure as to what he was doing here. “That was my dad. He’s fully recovered.”

  “I gathered as much,” he replied and walked over to me, perching himself on the edge of the desk. “I hope you haven’t forgotten our agreement.”

  I swallowed. “No, of course not.”

  “Very good,” he said before handing me a piece of paper folded in half. “Here are instructions for the spell I promised you.”

  I took the paper, staring down at it. With this spell, Ethan would be able to feed from me and only me. My heart shimmered with a sense of possession. “Thank you. This means a lot.”

  “No need to thank me. Your training begins tomorrow.”

  “So soon?”

  “The sooner the better. If you’re going to stand at the side of a ruler you will need all the power you can get.”

  “I guess you’re right.” I looked him dead in the eye now, and there was a sparkle of excitement in his gaze. He was really looking forward to this, and as I watched him, some of the excitement began to rub off on me, too. I had no idea what being a sorceress was going to entail, but the endless possibilities filled me with a thrilling sense of anticipation.

  “Hey, Tegan, I was looking for you,” came Rita’s voice as she entered the room.

  Roman turned to appraise her, and she stared at him coolly. “Oh, you again,” she said casually.

  “Hello, little witch. It is a pleasure, as always.”

  Rita cocked an eyebrow and snickered. “Whatever. Tegan, are you coming back out, or do you plan on staying in here all night?”

  “Come and join us,” Roman said. “I think you might be interested in what we are discussing.”

  “Oh,
yeah?” She folded her arms and closed the door, walking deeper into the room and stopping a couple of feet in front of Roman.

  Roman looked at Rita for a long moment, and if I wasn’t mistaken, he seemed to be undressing her with his eyes. Rita’s casual demeanour faltered a little as she cleared her throat. Then Roman turned to me, “Tegan, how would you feel about having a classmate?”

  It took me a second to get what he was saying. “You mean you want to teach Rita, too?”

  “Teach me what?”

  “Teach you how to become a sorceress,” Roman explained.

  “Oh,” Rita said, her eyes growing round. Gone was the sassy attitude as interest marked her features.

  “I think it’s a great idea,” I put in. “It will be less scary than going it alone.”

  “Yeah, it is a great idea, but how do we know he’s not up to something?”

  “It’s always good to be suspicious.” Roman gave an approving nod. “But I assure you, I have no ulterior motives. I simply wish to pass my knowledge on. I’m not like other sorcerers, and I’m sick of keeping my powers all to myself. I feel it’s time for a change, and I want to share.”

  There was a long stretch of silence as she mulled it over.

  “I’ll give you a month. If I decide it’s not for me, then I can back out any time before the month is up,” Rita said. “Deal?”

  Roman smiled widely and held out his hand for her to shake it. “Deal.”

  Hesitantly, Rita stepped forward and took his hand. They shook for a moment, and then all of a sudden, Roman tugged Rita into him and captured her mouth in a passionate kiss.

  Well, that was unexpected.

  She struggled for a minute but then sighed and submitted. I knew I should probably turn away, but I couldn’t seem to stop watching them.

  Finally, they broke their kiss, and Roman lifted her hand to place one last peck on the inside of her wrist. “I very much look forward to training you, little witch,” he said with hot, smoky eyes.

  Rita looked from him to me as though this was the first time in her entire life she’d been completely speechless.

  “Until tomorrow, my lovelies,” Roman bid us goodbye and vanished from the room.

  Rita looked like she was still in shock as she slumped bonelessly down into a chair. After a minute or two passed, she said, “Did that really just happen?”

  I chuckled. “Yes. Roman can be very, um … friendly.”

  “You can say that again,” she said and groaned, throwing her hand over her face in annoyance.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “That man is going to be serious trouble, Tegan.”

  “Serious trouble to your knickers, you mean,” I replied, still laughing.

  “Yeah,” she said, exasperated. “That’s exactly what I meant.”

  I walked to her and pulled her up from the chair, throwing my arm around her shoulders and leading her out of the room.

  “Let him be trouble, Rita. You deserve a little fun.”

  She scowled at me but there was the faintest hint of a smile tugging at her lips. “Yeah, maybe I do.”

  ***

  Two and a half months later…

  I never considered how much quicker vampires could build stuff compared to humans. In a matter of days, the bomb site at Crimson was cleared, the remains of the building knocked down, and a whole new and completely different structure was built in its place.

  Now the spot where vampires and humans used to spend their time dancing and getting drunk had been transformed into a round, dome-like building. Ethan and Rita put their minds together and came up with The Hawthorn Centre, named after the river that once separated the city into two halves. It was where they would form their future council consisting of a representative from each supernatural species.

  There had been surprisingly little resistance to this new plan, mostly because everyone was glad that the fighting had finally come to an end. Tonight vampires, magical family members, and all other varieties of supernatural creatures gathered at the river to throw white lotus flowers into the water as a symbol of peace.

  I thought it was beautiful.

  I stood beside Ethan and my dad, who had returned home several weeks ago, and watched as the witches and warlocks lit the river up with their magic to make it look as though the flowers were glowing.

  Now a big party was being thrown at the Hawthorn Centre, and the entire street had been closed off to accommodate for the crowd of people. I sat at a table with Ethan while everyone got drunk and merry around me. I even invited Florence and her boyfriend, Frank, to attend, glad to see their relationship was still going strong.

  On the other side of the table, Rita and Roman bounced off one another as Roman flirted and Rita tried her best to resist his charms. Gabriel and Alvie were dancing like they were having the time of their lives. Finn and Alora were dancing, too, all slow and romantic even though the music being played was fast. They smiled into each other’s eyes like they were the only two people in the entire world. Delilah sat atop Ira’s lap, feeding him hors d’oeuvres. Beside them were Amanda and Lucas, and I was so relieved to see them doing well. Amanda had never looked happier.

  I saw all of my friends around me, happy and looking to the future. So why did I feel so sad? I felt as though I could be seeing them for the very last time, but that didn’t make any sense. Ethan pulled me from my thoughts when he took my hand into his, rubbing tender circles into the centre of my palm.

  “You haven’t touched your crab,” he said, his deep voice resonating through me.

  “Is that what it is?” I said, trying to sound light-hearted. “I thought it was chicken.”

  “What’s wrong? You seem on edge.”

  “I’m not. I just have this bad feeling.”

  He took both my hands into his now and looked me right in the eye, his expression serious. “Nothing bad is going to happen, Tegan. You’ve lived with uncertainty for so long that you’re uncomfortable with stability. Your life is going to be good and safe from now on.”

  “Yeah, you’re right. I’m just one of those glass half empty kind of girls, always looking for the catch.”

  Ethan shushed me, taking my fork and lifting some crab to my mouth. “Eat and enjoy the party, Sunshine.”

  I nodded and dug into my food. Finn and Alora returned to the table, Gabriel and Alvie following closely behind them. They were all laughing about something, but Gabriel looked unamused.

  “Hey,” Finn said teasingly, his hands raised in the air. “Whatever raises your flag.”

  “It’s not that weird,” Gabriel muttered in annoyance.

  “What’s not that weird?” Rita asked.

  “We were talking about poor old Marcel,” Alvie replied. “Gabe thinks he was attractive.”

  “I just think he had a handsome face and an alright body for his age. Jesus, you’re making too much of a big deal out of it,” Gabriel grumbled.

  “Eww, that’s gross,” Rita said, scrunching up her nose. “I don’t even want to think about what the two of you got up to when you spent so much time cooped up in Indigo together.”

  Gabriel shook his head and sighed in exasperation. “I should never have opened my mouth.”

  Alvie gave him a peck on the cheek. “It’s okay, Gabe. I still love you, even if you do have a penchant for wrinkly old men.”

  Gabriel blushed and looked away, keeping his attention on the wine glass in front of him. Everyone at the table started laughing, all except for Ethan. His attention was focused completely on me, and there was a startling look of horror in his eyes. I followed his gaze to the lap of my pale silk dress to see it wasn’t so pale anymore. Now it was covered in deep, red blood.

  I lifted my hand to my mouth in shock, a soundless gasp rushing from my lips, and that was when the pain hit me. Pure, undiluted agony shattered through my body, causing me to cry out. I was vaguely aware of the vampires nearby and how their eyes came alive at the scent of my blood.

  I fel
t as though I was being ripped open from the inside out, and all I could think about was the baby. Was I losing her? The doctor said I was still two weeks away from my due date, and judging by how much blood there was, it wasn’t a good sign.

  I could barely focus anymore. The pain was just too great, the strength of it tearing into my body at breakneck speed. Ethan took me into his arms and started shouting orders at people to get out of the way, but I was too out of it to concentrate on his words. Then it all became too much. I couldn’t handle a single second more of this agony.

  My eyes fell shut and blackness took over.

  21.

  Tegan

  Birdsong twittered in my ears and the scent of flowers and freshly cut grass filled my nose. It would be pleasant if it weren’t for the lingering scent of anti-septic. It was hard to open my eyes, but when I finally managed to pry my lids apart I found myself in a clean, sparsely furnished space, sort of like a hospital room.

  I was hooked up to an IV machine, and I winced at the tubes stuck into my arms. I tried to sit up, but a heady sense of weakness overcame me and I had to lie back down again for a minute. The events that happened before I passed out rushed through my head. How long had I been out for?

  And oh, God.

  What happened to my baby?

  I ran my hand down my abdomen, the rounded bump no longer there. Pulling the pale white sheets off my body, I looked down at the loose nightdress I was wearing. I lifted it to reveal my stomach, and there were no signs of stretch marks, no signs of pregnancy at all. A terrible swell of loss made my throat clog with tears.

  Where was Ethan?

  The pain I felt at the party was gone completely. I managed to summon up enough strength to pull the IV from my arms, climb out of bed, and walk to the open window. There were pretty lawns outside with a few people sitting on benches or walking the grounds. Farther away I spotted an entrance gate, over which hung a big stone sign proclaiming the name of wherever the hell I was, but I was too far away to make out what it said.

  I startled when a knock sounded on the door, and a middle-aged woman dressed in an orderly’s uniform stepped inside.