Primal Heat 05 - Darkness Reborn

fear, real fear.
    Sarah sat up. "You know him? What do you know?"
    "I have heard rumors, but I didn't believe them. I didn't think they were true."
    Sarah frowned. "What rumors? I've never heard of him."
    "Javier told me about him, and even he said they were rumors." Nonny's gaze shifted between Sarah and Kane, and she seemed to hesitate. "Luc Acostos is the link between the demon world and the angels," she said. "He was once an angel, but he made a bad choice and was condemned forever." She looked at Sarah. "He was once like you."
    Kane shifted, his body tensing. "What did he do?"
    Nonny sat down in front of them and picked up the candle again. "He was an angel of death, and he came to our village to claim a young woman. But he fell in love with her instantly, and he refused to kill her."
    Sarah thought of how Mason hadn't had that same aversion to killing her, and anger rippled through her. How come Mason hadn't been that strong? "Can an angel of death do that?"
    "No. It is impossible for an angel to ignore a death call, so what he did was unthinkable. He shifted the death call onto someone else." Nonny set Thano's candle upright. "He used his love for his woman to overrule his compulsion to kill her and killed an innocent instead. It was the first time that an angel had ever been able to do that, and the repercussions were extraordinary."
    Sarah glanced at Kane, and thought of the sheva bond and how Kane managed to break through Luc's hold on him to save her. Was Kane the kind of man who could do that?
    "The demons were able to claim him instantly, and they did, turning him into a demon more powerful than most because of his angelic origins. Because of his connections to angels, they were able to use him to prey on angels. He became their tool to destroy this village and the angels, and to free up the land so that demons could cross over. He guards the link between their world and ours, and his job has been to weaken the barriers between the worlds until the demons can pass over." She met Sarah's gaze. "He is bound to these woods forever."
    Sarah thought back to what Luc had said. "He wants to be free of the bondage." She looked at Kane. "He said he needs you to do it."
    Kane narrowed his eyes. "Me? Why?"
    They both looked at Nonny, but she shook her head. "That I don't know, but if Luc Acostos truly is the one haunting our woods, then he has the immortality of a demon. This is not good." She held her hands over the candle and lit Thano's flame again.
    The orange light flickered and danced, casting shadows on the walls.
    For a long moment, no one spoke, and the only movement in the room was the flickering of Thano's candle.
    Eventually, Nonny stood up, walked over to the closet and pulled out a stack of linens. She set it on the couch, then opened the door to the spare bedroom, the one Sarah had slept in when she was recovering from the attack by Mason. "You both need sleep. Tomorrow, we will talk." Defiance flared in her eyes. "Tomorrow, we will plan." She walked over to Sarah and pressed a kiss to her forehead, and Sarah reached up to hug her.
    Nonny's arms wrapped around her, a fierce hug so much stronger than an old lady should be capable of. Sarah clung to her, to the wiry body that had been her sole support for so long. God, she wanted to be a little girl again so her nightmares could be washed away by Nonny's special blanket and a glass of warm milk. Not anymore. She wasn't a little girl. There was no magical solution. "I'm sorry, Nonny," she whispered. "I'm sorry for letting you down."
    Nonny pulled back and shook her head. "Apologies are for the weak and pathetic, Sarah. You owe me nothing." Her gaze went between them. "Sarah, you—" She hesitated suddenly, indecision flashing across her face. Then Nonny shook her head and stood up. "Rest well, both of you."
    "Wait!" Sarah sat up as her grandmother headed toward her bedroom. "What were you about to say?"
    Nonny didn't look back. She just waved her hand. "You aren't ready for it." Then she walked into the bedroom and slammed the door shut.
    * * *
    Kane leaned his head back against the wall as Sarah slipped out of his arms. She stood up and faced him. Her blond hair was tousled and tangled around her shoulders, and her eyes were heavy with shadows and weariness. Her skin was pale, the aftereffects of her using her white light on him. But in those shadows was softness, warmth, the woman he'd thrown himself into a pit for.
    Somehow, the need to save her had