Shattered Promises 02 - Fractured Souls Read Free Page A

whispers, rubbing the spot with his fingertips. I’m surprised when it stays and doesn’t smudge.
    “Why did it do that to you?”
    “Because the magic bounced back on me.”
    I scan him over; long lean arms, solid shoulders, a firm, stubbly jawline. “But then how could you… do you… huh?’
    “That’s what the sugilitedoes,” he explains. “Those who try to use harmful magic on someone who has sugilite on them, automatically gets magical harm done on them instead. So when I used it on you it bounced back on me.”
    “And you knew that was going to happen?” I gape at him.
    “Better me than you.” He shrugs, acting nonchalant, the exact opposite from the meaning his words convey.
    “When you say the magic bounced back on you, does that mean your memory was erased?” I inquire. “Because you seem fine now.”
    “I am fine now,” he assures me. “But for a while there…” he blinks and then his face contorts like he’s remembering an excruciating memory.
    “But you weren’t fine?”
    “No. I blacked out. When I woke up Stephan and the Death Walkers were gone.”
    “And you have no idea where they went?” I question. “Or why they just left?”
    He shakes his head. “By the time I came to, Aislin and Laylen had shown up to a torn up cabin and you were still passed out.”
    Pushing past my confliction, I extend my hand forward to rub the black spot on his head. The contact brings a euphoric tingle to my body that I secretly bask in. “Is this permanent?”
    He watches me intently. “It’ll go away eventually.”
    I withdraw my hand to my lap, fighting the impulse to touch him some more. “What about your head?”
    The corners of his mouth tug upward. “What about it?”
    “Is it okay?”
    “Do you want it to be okay?”
    I tuck my hand under my leg to keep from touching him again. “I’m sure it probably has its benefits.”
    “Like what?” he wonders, looking amused.
    “You tell me,” I say. “I’m sure you have answers. More than you’re probably sharing.”
    Frowning, he retrieves something from the pocket of his jeans. “Put this back on.” He holds his hand in front of me and in his palm is a silver, heart-shaped locket with a small, violet stone in the center.
    I don’t take the locket right away. Can I trust Alex to help me instead of harm me? Is he finally telling the truth? Considering his track record, my initial instinct is to scream no ! However, there’s something else inside me that’s conflicting. My emotions. Those Goddamn tingling and fluttering sensations in my heart that are fucking with my head.
    “You can have it back.” He urges his hand at me. “I want you to wear it again, so you’ll be protected.”
    I still don’t take the necklace. “I don’t understand why you took it off me to begin with.”
    “Because Aislin had to use magic to get us out of the cabin,” he explains, slipping his hand under mine and forcing me to open my palm. “And if you would have had it on it would have hurt her.”
    He lifts the necklace above my hand and releases it from his fingers, allowing it to fall into my palm. The metal is cold, yet his touch brings warmth. He chews on his bottom lip as he studies me while I put the necklace around my neck and secure the clasp. I feel weirdly better now that it’s back on, so I release a stressed breath, shutting my eyes for a moment, taking everything in. I don’t know what to do. What to believe. I know what I want to do and that’s pretend that Alex is a trustworthy person, but things aren’t that simple.
    I open my eyes. “Alex?”
    “Hmm…?” He looks distracted in his thoughts.
    “What happened to the memoria extracto ?” I ask.
    He snaps back to reality and shifts uncomfortably on the bed. “Aislin and Adessa destroyed it with a spell.”
    “And what about your father?”
    “What about him?” he asks, his tone clipped. “I already told you I don’t know where he is.”
    I observe his reaction closely.