just as I feel myself slipping away, I’m yanked back to earth and sink to my knees, shivering from the shock. The ground is a sheet of ice and the air is bone chillingly cold. The Death Walkers have surrounded me, their yellow eyes gleaming with hunger as they tip their head back and shriek to the darkening sky.
“Alex!” I shout, stumbling to my feet, frantically searching for him.
“He’s right here.”
I jolt from the sound of Stephan’s voice right to the side of me then spin on my heels, fully prepared to fight. But my will to survive dies in an instant as Stephan steps back and gestures at the ground where Alex lays in a pool of his own blood.
“No!” I scream, dropping to my knees. “No . . . This can’t be happening. He can’t die. Not without me.”
Stephan steps forward and draws the hood from his head. “Haven’t you learned yet, Gemma? There are always loopholes, and this one’s mine.” He raises a jagged blade stained with silver and red. “It’s sealed with the blood of a witch. And not just any witch, one powerful enough to undo the binding of a blood promise.” His grin expands as I struggle to figure out what’s going on, why Alex isn’t waking up. “You still don’t get it? Well, let me explain it to you, then.” He leans in, getting right in my face.
I want to cry, but I know that will only make the situation worse.
“The reason you two have been able to survive for so long isn’t because of the star or because your souls are attached to one another. It’s also because of that stupid blood promise you two made. You two are so tightly wound together that it’s been a pain in the ass trying to figure out how to end you, but I finally found a way to destroy it.” He moves back so I can get a good look at the man I love lying in the snowy grass that’s now stained with blood. “And to destroy my son.”
When I open my eyes, I let out a scream as I shoot upright in my bed. My room is dark, my skin damp with sweat, and my bed is empty.
Alex is gone, and the candle has burned out. I almost start to cry, wanting him so badly, but then I remember that, if I allow myself to feel so powerfully for him, I could end up killing us.
Where did he go?
Rolling out of bed, I stumble through the dark, turn on the light, and pull on a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. I comb my hair into a ponytail then crack the bedroom door open. The house is alarmingly silent except for the sound of the TV downstairs.
I inch into the hall, tiptoe down the stairs, and chill out a little when I see Laylen lounging around on the sofa, channel surfing.
His long legs are kicked up on the table, his blond hair in his eyes, and he’s munching on a bowl of ice cream.
As if he senses me standing there, he turns his head, and his eyes find me. “I was wondering when you were going to wake up.”
“What time is it?” I glance at the clock, yawning. “Wow, it’s late. Where’s everyone?”
“Aislin and Alex had to run some errands and pick up some stuff for the spell.” He sets the bowl of ice cream down then twists around on the sofa to look at me. “I think they wanted to go together so they could say . . . goodbye.”
“But they’re coming back, right?” I know it’s a stupid question, but the dream I had makes me nervous.
What if it’s not a dream?
What if something has changed?
“Yeah, they’re coming back. I promise.” He turns around and faces the television as I join him on the sofa.
“Laylen, do you know if witch’s blood can undo a blood promise?”
“I don’t know . . .” He gives me a strange look as he clenches his fist. “Why are you asking?”
I trace the scar on my palm. “I’m just wondering.”
“I’m not sure if it’s possible. I’ve never heard of anything like it, but then again, a lot of stuff has happened that I’ve never heard of.” He gathers his bowl of ice cream and rests back on the sofa. “Are you thinking about trying to break a promise you made?”
I shake my head. “No, it’s not that. I just . . .” The dream I