by Неизвестный
He hurried over to her and knelt by her side.
Bong.
"Take the necklace and rub the dragon, just as you’ve done before. Put your other hand on Adrian’s chest."
John did as asked, his eyes never leaving hers.
Bong.
"Good. Now concentrate on healing him. Close your eyes and take away his pain. In your mind, picture the bullet and pull it out."
John squeezed his eyes closed, his face tight. His lips thinned.
Bong.
She held tight to Adrian’s hands, hoping to feel the energy from the necklace. He kept his gaze locked on hers. She waited, but there was no heat.
Bong.
John looked up, his eyes filled with panic. "It’s not working." He held out the necklace. "You do it."
Her heart clenched. Her body shook. She had to heal Adrian, but she didn’t want to take the necklace.
"No, try again, John. Concentrate like you’ve never done before."
Bong.
John shut his eyes, pressing his hand on his son’s chest and rubbing the necklace until she thought it would break.
Bong.
A tear slipped from John’s eyes, and moisture gathered in hers. She closed her eyes and concentrated with John. Please, please....
"Damn it!" John yelled and threw the necklace on Adrian’s chest. "It’s not working."
Colette took deep breaths, trying to control her fear. "John, pick it up and try again. If you believe it will work, it will."
Bong.
John’s shaky hand took the necklace again. He closed his eyes, his chest moving rapidly from his ragged breathing.
Through Adrian’s hands, heat touched her skin. She held him tighter and focused harder. John gasped. His body swayed, his face etched with pain.
It’s working!
Bong.
A moan tore from Adrian mere seconds before John finished the sound. The intense heat that had consumed Adrian’s body disappeared. She lifted her hands. He’d stopped bleeding. She ripped his pirate shirt open. The wound had closed, a bullet lay near his right breast.
Bong.
Adrian’s eyes blinked and he switched his gaze from her to his father. He licked his lips. "What just happened?"
She released a joyous laugh and bent down and kissed his lips. "You’re healed, that’s what."
He glanced at his father, his eyes narrowing. "Dad, what’s going on?"
Bong.
John’s eyes clouded with tears and he shook his head. "All these years I’ve been using Colette’s Zoetan powers through her necklace. I never thought I’d use it to save my son’s life."
Adrian sat up, his hands patting his chest. "I’m not in pain."
Colette shook her head. "That’s because your father removed the bullet."
He reached out and cupped the side of her face. She snuggled against his palm. "You’re a witch?"
The clock’s last chime echoed through the room. Colette held her breath. An invisible veil had been lifted as if someone disrobed her. She was free. Alive.
Mortal.
She looked back at Adrian and smiled. "Not any longer."
He shook his head. "I don’t understand."
"Your father had my necklace for ten years and had been controlling me. If I didn’t get the necklace in my possession by the stroke of midnight, my powers would be lost forever."
"Now I’m confused." John scratched his head. "Why didn’t you take your necklace when I offered it to you?"
She ran her finger down the side of Adrian’s face. "Because if I took the necklace, my powers would be restored, and I didn’t want that."
"Why?" Adrian asked.
"Because I loved you so much I wanted to be with you forever. I wanted...." she paused, swallowing the lump forming in her throat. "I wanted to grow old with you." She shrugged. "Zoetan witches never grow old."
Adrian smiled and opened his arms. She closed the space between them and crushed herself against his chest. He placed a kiss on her forehead.
"I love you, Colette."
She tilted her head up. "Enough to see me as an old woman?"
He chuckled. "Yes, as long as you don’t get sick of me looking like an old man."
"I think I can handle it."
Adrian glanced at his father, his face hardening. "What do you have to say about all this?"
John wiped his moist eyes. "I see how she makes you happy and I can’t argue with that." He shrugged. "Son, she’s no longer the woman I’ve been controlling for ten years. She’s no longer a seductress."
Adrian smiled into Colette’s eyes and raised his eyebrows. "Yes, she is. She’ll be mine."
EPILOGUE
Colette’s heart swelled when her one-year-old took his first steps toward daddy. Adrian caught his son, his laughter booming through the house.
Finally--a happy family. She smiled.
Her life was now on the right path and complete. No longer did she have to worry about John. He’d actually become a different person after the shooting, and closer to his son.
Lori was taken to jail. A few days after the shooting, she’d miscarried--a relief to both John and Adrian.
"Mama."
She glanced at little Stephen in his father’s arms. Adrian opened his other arm and she cuddled against his hard body.
Life couldn’t get any better.
The End