Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 132582 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 530(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132582 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 663(@200wpm)___ 530(@250wpm)___ 442(@300wpm)
She pins her eyes on me, then shakes her head. “Never mind.” I want her to elaborate, but someone clears their throat.
“Are we ready?” Caz’s voice floats through the kitchen. When I look back, he’s standing by the window, his leather-clad fingers crossed in front of him, as if he’s been there for quite some time now. He’s put on a black trench coat and the same black cap from the first day I met him is pulled over his brows, creating a shadow over his eyes.
“Sure.” I climb off the stool, carrying my plate to the sink.
“So, you’re leaving Vakeeli for good?” Juniper questions.
“I hope so.” I feel a thump in my chest, and Caz shifts on his feet.
“Well, it was nice getting to know you for the short time I did.” She smiles and climbs off her stool to hug me.
I hug her back, then turn to Caz who has cleared his throat again, clearly wanting us to end the farewells. I’m not family or a friend to him. I’m just a woman in his way.
“I have the chant here,” he says, holding a sheet of paper in the air. “Seeing as I can’t take you there, to the portal where you’ll return, Killian will guide you to the forest and send you off. I made sure this was a one-way chant. One that will send you home so that you can’t return to Blackwater, or any of the Vakeeli territories, for that matter.”
I walk to him, taking the paper and clutching it in my hand. My eyes don’t leave his. A one-way chant? Why?
“This way,” he says, leaving the kitchen and ignoring the telepathic question.
I follow him out, waving once more at Juniper who blows a kiss at me before I step around the corner. Caz pulls the front door open and leads the way out. The air is salty and cool, and the wind nips at my cheeks. The leaves of the trees sway with the breeze, and as I take a few more steps out, Silvera runs across the field to me.
I smile as I drop to one knee and rub her head. “You’ll look after her?” I ask, pointing my gaze to Caz.
“Yes.”
I look back down at her and sigh. “I wish I could get to know you more.”
She pants, sitting on her hind. I don’t expect her to understand, so I give her one more rub on her head, a scratch behind the ears, and then follow Caz down the rocky path leading to the forest.
Once he passes the gates, he stops and says, “This is as far as I go.”
Killian is ahead, leaning against the trunk of a tree, using a knife to slice into a piece of bumpy-looking fruit. He pushes off the tree and walks off, and I assume I’m meant to follow him, so I turn to Caz and say, “Thank you for…getting me a way back home.”
Caz steps back and nods, his hands clasping behind him. “Take care of yourself, Willow Woman.” He looks me over twice, gaze lingering, before his throat bobs and he turns away, focusing on his house instead.
It’s all I’ll get, and I won’t ever see him again. It’s like our kiss didn’t even happen. None of the time we spent together ever happened. It’s all a wrap, and I get to go home.
I don’t know why that thought pains me, but I accept his cold farewell and follow Killian into the forest. I fight every urge to look back, but something deep inside me begs me to turn back and go to him. I won’t go running, but I do look.
Before a line of trees can cut off my view of him, I peer over my shoulder, and Caz is standing in the same spot, only he’s not looking at the mansion anymore; he’s looking at me.
Before the trees officially cut us off, he drops his head and clenches his jaw, and the sharpness in my chest intensifies.
Fifty-Two
CAZ
When I can no longer see her, I make the trek back to my house. The door is already open, and Juniper stands there with a bloom in her hand, pulling from it.
“Don’t start,” I grumble, walking past her.
“Why’d you let her go?” she demands, following me. Not that I didn’t expect her to. She can be relentless.
“She had to go.” I march to my office, picking up my transmitter.
“Did she?” Her question is laced with sarcasm.
“Yes. The longer she stays, the worse it becomes for me.”
“Is that so? Because it seems the more she’s around you, the better it is for you. She humanizes you.”
I glance up, and she pulls from her bloom, a smug smile on her lips.
“Just leave me alone please, Juniper. I have work to do.” I don’t look at her, and I expect to hear her footsteps drifting away, but she doesn’t go. She’s still here, and I sit in my chair, pinching the bridge of my nose.