Addict (37 page)

His favor. Not mine. But I had been trying to find a way to get him out of that stupid contract. It wasn’t something Gray had signed. It had basically been written into his DNA. His mother had signed over his soul before he’d even been born. Talk about shitty parents.

I looked over at Jamie’s body. “Can he hear me?”

Matthew frowned. “Yes.”

“Jamie, I’ll call Mom as soon as I get us out of this. And Nate. I love you and I forgive Mom and Nate.” It was totally easy in the face of Gray’s family sins. I wasn’t sure I would talk to Jamie again. I wasn’t sure he would be here with us. He could die or be rendered insane from Matthew’s use of his body, and I needed him to know that I’d been foolish. “I forgive them all. I love you.”

I forgave my father. Not the shitty one. Not the one who’d tried to kill me. He could burn in Hell for all I cared.

But I forgave my dad. Lee Owens. I hadn’t realized how angry I’d been until this moment. It was irrational. My mother had been the one to walk away. She’d left him, but there was a part of me that thought he should have followed through. He should have come after her or made certain there hadn’t been a me to take care of.

I’d been told that he would have loved me, but for the first time I accepted it. My father would have loved me. He would have protected and taken care of me.

It was enough.

“He understands,” Matthew said. “Though he isn’t entirely certain you mean it. He wonders if you haven’t found a new family now. He misses you. Misses Gray. Misses everyone because he’s all alone. He’ll die alone. He’ll die without a wife or children because that’s his destiny, the path his father set him on long ago.”

“Stop it,” Gray said, his voice a low growl. “Leave him alone. You have no right to drag his emotions into this. I’ll sign a deal to accept the drugs. I’ll do my absolute best to become what you want, but I want Kelsey and Jamie safe. That is nonnegotiable.”

“And he wants his time.” He wouldn’t ask for it himself. “He wants his original contract in play. You can’t force him back to Hell before his time.”

Sloane’s lips curled up into a satisfied smirk. “Perhaps he won’t have to resort to rape. It sounds like she cares for you.”

“Do you accept?” I ignored the rest. I wasn’t getting into bed with Gray anytime soon, but I also wasn’t about to willingly let him go to Hell. He’d proven a valuable ally.

Yeah, I actually told myself that.

Winter and Sloane stared at each other, and for a moment I had to wonder if they couldn’t communicate on a level I didn’t understand. An evil, telepathic level, but one I couldn’t hear.

“Lucifer will be thrilled that we created one,” Papa Sloane stated. “He’ll forgive the transgression because we’re the only ones who can give him this gift. It doesn’t matter that Grayson might prove uncooperative. I’ve always found ways to make him help in the past. I’ll do it in the future. Sign the deal.”

“I will be signing away your best bet at making him cooperate. He loves the girl.” Winter stared at me as though he was thinking about all the fun stuff he could do to make Gray cooperate right that moment.

“He is unreasonable about the girl,” Matthew argued. “He won’t ever help you if he thinks it will hurt her. Your best bet is to give him the one thing he wants. My brother is far too attuned to the humanity in his DNA. Or I suppose it’s that bit of angelic DNA you managed to pump into his background. He’ll honor his contract. He’ll honor his word. Sign the deal and let us be done.”

I wasn’t exactly grateful for Matthew in that moment. I still wanted to strangle the bastard, but I was happy when that contract went in front of Gray and it seemed like we would leave this mansion with both our heads intact.

Gray gave it another pass. I’d argued he deserved a lawyer. They’d argued that was simply my excuse to bring a vampire into the discussion since I’d explained the only one I would accept was Hugo Wells. It was totally true, so I lost that argument. It was precisely why Gray insisted on simple language. The original contract had been twenty pages long. Gray had gotten them down to a few lines no one could misinterpret.

I hoped.

He seemed satisfied and signed his name quickly, as though he had to do it in that particular moment or he wouldn’t have done it at all.

I stood up and faced Matthew. “It’s done. Get out.”

I wanted my brother back. Every minute that asshole stayed in his body was a minute too long. What was Jamie feeling? Was he afraid? He was likely pissed as hell, and it would take a lot to keep him from immediately trying to hunt down Gray’s brother.

That was my job.

Matthew sighed. “I can’t until he transitions. I promised Father. I didn’t want this, Kelsey. I know you won’t believe me, but I’m doing this for him. And I’m not even doing anything to torture your brother. He’s angry, but he’ll come out of this as whole as he was when I took over. I vow it.”

There was absolutely nothing that demon could say that would make me believe him.

Gray stood beside me, his eyes blank as he looked to his father. “Let’s get this over with. What do I have to take?”

Winter snapped his fingers and Bellamy produced a goblet. It was easy to see this evening hadn’t gone the way the billionaire thought it would. His hands were shaking as he stepped back. He moved close to the curtains as though he could hide himself in their voluminous fabric.

He could try that all he liked. I would remember his face. I didn’t particularly care that he was one of the richest men on the planet. Or that he was human. He’d helped to do this to Gray. He would pay.

Jacob watched with patient eyes as Gray took the goblet in his hand. “Grayson, are you ready for this?”

Gray shook his head. “No.”

“It can be quite painful. While your physical form won’t change, parts of your mind will, shall we say, open in a way they haven’t before. You have to remember that much of the pain you will feel comes from various futures. Ones that will be, could be, are only the vaguest of possibilities. You will see them all.”

“Everyone’s future?” I asked, unable to truly comprehend.

Jacob shook a finger. “It’s more complex. So much more. He will see everyone in the world and all of their potential futures. It can be a bit much at times, and he won’t have a way to stop the flow if this goes the way they hope.”

“Are you trying to talk him out of it?” Winter complained. “I thought you were only able to watch.”

“I’m explaining what is about to happen because I’ve read all the signs and I believe this will happen. The other paths have faded. This is Grayson’s path now. He will transition, but how he comes out on the other side is up to her.” Jacob stared my way.

“What does that mean?” I wasn’t sure I wanted to be in the middle of Gray’s destiny. I still hadn’t even figured my own out yet. The one thing I knew was that destiny kind of sucked.

“Leave her out of this,” Gray warned.

Jacob stepped up to me, taking my hand in his. He flipped my wrist over and one finger traced the blue veins he found there. “The drugs will change the chemistry of his brain, but also his blood. If you take a portion of the drug, you can take some of the chaos for him. I can help. It’s your future he’ll try to hold on to. You’re the one his mind will instinctively reach for, and that is what will cause him the most pain. It’s better for him to let it flow. I’ll stay in the room with the two of you and direct a single path into your mind. Is there one thing he’ll look for?”

“No,” Gray said, his jaw tightening.

“Our wedding night.” There was no question about it. If Gray could find that single flash, he would hold on to it as tightly as he could. He’d been trying to get back to that one blast of the future he’d seen years ago. That one single path would hold him back. “He thinks he saw our wedding night and he’ll look for it.”

“Stay out of this, Kelsey.”

“Not on your life.” If I could spare him some pain, I would do it. He was taking one for the team.

I couldn’t let him go through it alone. Not if I had the choice.

Jacob glanced over to where Winter and Sloane stood. “I see the path. If she aids him, takes some of the pain, it will work. If not, the odds are great that he will be damaged.”

“Why would you help?” Winter asked, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Jacob sent him a serene smile. “I seek only to manage his pain. I remember well how it felt, even after millennia. And I was an angel at the time. His transition will be more difficult. If you would rather he faced it alone, of course, do as you will. I am not here to change destiny. I am a simple watcher.”

“My contract stated she wouldn’t be harmed,” Gray ground out.

Sloane stood before his son, his tone as smooth as any con man’s. “And she won’t be. Besides, your contract was only that Winter and I and our minions can’t bring her to harm. This is a choice she will make herself. Mr. Bellamy, I believe the lovely
Nex Apparatus
requires a serving.”

Winter’s eyes laser focused on me. “You bitch.”

“Way to blow a girl’s cover,” I groused. “Now might be a good time to reiterate all those nice contractual words like ‘no harm comes to Kelsey.’”

Sloane’s lips curled up in a satisfied smile as he looked me over. “There’s only one reason my son’s blood would be coursing through your veins. You’re the one who got her arm frozen off. I can actually see the line. It’s fascinating. And I keep a closer eye on Donovan than anyone. He thinks he has the upper hand, but we intend to show him tonight exactly how little power he has.”

“What does that mean?” I didn’t like the sound of that. Especially the time line. Tonight was right freaking now. If something was going on, I needed to be wherever it was happening.

Bellamy passed me a wine glass. It was filled with a rich amber fluid that probably didn’t taste anything like wine.

I glanced back at Matthew. “When are you going to give my brother back to me?”

I was beginning to believe we should have had Matthew sign that contract, too.

“When my own brother is alive and this can be done,” Matthew explained. “He must transition or his usefulness to our father is at an end. He’s been stubborn and rebellious, and I can’t stand the thought of him crushed under the boot of some minor Hell lord, but that’s what will happen if he has no value. I love my brother. I’m willing to risk a lot to save him. How about you, Hunter?”

“Kelsey, don’t.” Gray’s hand came out to stop me.

I swallowed the drink as quickly as I could. Truly, I’ve learned nothing of white magic tastes good. In my days, I’ve had to take more than my share of a witch’s tonic and brews to heal and help. There’s always an earthiness to it that makes one think of dirt or other things one doesn’t particularly want in one’s gut.

Oh, but dark magic tastes like the finest of liquors. It touched my tongue and was easy to swallow. I wanted more the minute I finished because it was sheer perfection. It soothes and eases down your throat right before your body catches fire.

I gasped and pitched forward, right into Gray’s arms. He caught me, cursed, and then he too was drinking the potion down.

I held on to him as all the fates of the world swamped my senses.

“Ease her down on the bed.”

I was moving. Someone held me. I wasn’t sure. My mind couldn’t keep up with the flashes, the warnings, the moments that might be. They flashed through my head, tendrils I couldn’t quite catch.

“Kelsey, I need you to follow the sound of my voice.”

I could make out the words but they seemed so far away. The low moan that came from my mouth was much closer. I moaned because my body ached. Age. I could feel it. So much age and death. Those were certain fates, and those lines seemed to crawl across my flesh like ants, biting and stinging their way. Anger. There was so much anger in the world. It was fuel for fate. So many different outcomes could be traced back to a single act of fury.

“If you don’t follow my voice, none of this will work, youngling.”

Jacob. He was the way out of this terrible place. I caught on his voice and tried to follow.

“That’s right. Grab on and ride with it. Come to me.”

The flashes of fate changed suddenly to vines. The world around me was filled with a million plants and trees. The leaves and branches were infinite possibilities. I strode through the jungle I found myself in, pulling away when the vines would try to wrap around and haul me back in. If I got lost, I would be here forever. I would be adrift in the never-ending potential. As one fate became reality, another formed to take its place. As one event occurred, another tree or bush sprouted.

“Hello.” Jacob was suddenly in front of me. He turned, taking in the space we found ourselves in. “Everyone views this place differently. It says something about you that the worst possible fates are dandelions. An interesting choice.”

Anyone who’s ever had a yard knows how awful the fuckers are. One small breeze and one weed becomes a hundred. “How do I stop this? I don’t even understand any of it.”

“You don’t need to, though I should note you’re handling it beautifully. The fact that you formed a world for yourself to walk through is testament to your strength. Most would simply sit and scream. Your mind found a way to take some control. You’re taking a great deal of pain from him. The physical transformation is…unpleasant.”

“Will he live?” I glanced around. Things were making more sense now. The vines still tried to cling to me, but I was able to brush them off. It was all about acceptance. Sometimes the worst pain is made better by simply accepting it, riding it, and knowing it has some purpose.

The answer was here. All answers were here.

My eye caught on a massive tree in the distance. An oak. It was thick and strong, and it was coated in numerous flowering vines that looked as though they might choke the tree. Gorgeous blossoms covered the trunk with a possessive clasp.

“That’s us. That’s me and Gray.” I stepped closer and noticed a second vine. The flowers were stunning, opening for me even as I watched. As though they knew I stared and they wanted me to see, to see that two vines coveted that great oak.