Izel's vision was foggy but her eyes darted around wildly at the sound of the familiar voice. "Grandpa?"

"Shhh. I'm here, child."

She couldn't see. Black dots spotted her vision. "W-where?"

"Within your soul, child. Your magic called to me. You are strong. I will always be with you. Have always been. You'd only to reach out to me."

Reach out? Magic? Was she hallucinating?

"You are of sound mind, my child. It is my voice you hear. I am so sorry, Izel. When I cursed the Pookah, I didn't know it would be you that he would value. I only wanted to protect you."

Izel tried to speak but choked on the blood in her throat. She was dying. And soon, Kelvin will die, too.

"No, child. He will be spared. The magic I put over him came long before your bonding."

So our connection is severed? I won't be the end of Kelvin Kerr?

"He will live, Izel."

Relief rushed over her. Kelvin would live. The world around her seemed to slow. She couldn't focus on anything except the roar she heard growing closer. Kelvin.

"You are a miracle, Izel. I tested fate once with you. I thought knowing the outcome would keep you from harm, but all it has done is lead to this moment. Forgive me, child. Your fate is now up to you. Be strong."

The deep timbre of her grandfather's voice left her mind as easily as it had entered. She didn't know how this worked. Could she be projecting magic? Whatever the cause, it wasn't enough. Her eyelids were heavy with exhaustion. Life seeped from her and cold crept in. Before her eyes fluttered closed, she thought she saw Kelvin swinging a sword, hovering over her.

Dropping to his knees, Kelvin cradled Izel's body against his. His eyes quickly roamed over her. There was so much blood. The scent of her, of himself, comingled, assailed his senses.

He placed a palm over her belly.

My woman and my child.

"Izel," he choked on a sob. "Izel, love, look at me." Her eyes shifted behind her lids. Obviously struggling, she lifted her lashes and he caught a hint of green as she tried to gaze up at him.

"There ya go. There's my strong girl," he cooed, holding on to every ounce of will he had. Rage boiled beneath his skin. A stabbing ache clenched in his chest, but he forced his hands to be gentle, knowing the slightest jostle could cause her even more pain.

"T-the woman... she's... p-pulling me." Her broken whispers were so soft he could barely hear them.

"What woman, love? There's no-" He quickly glanced around and spotted the red-cloaked female. Kelvin's eyes widened. "Death!"

Thompson, who had finally defeated the last vampire, stared where Kelvin was looking. The crimson cape swirled with the woman as she turned and ran. "Do no' let her get away," he yelled at Andrew. "She's trying ta take Izel's soul!" The Fionn sprinted after her, disappearing into the woods.

Kelvin looked down at his Izel. "She's gone, love," he whispered, gently tracing fingers across her brow. God, she was so cold.

With heavy lids, she looked up at him. "D-don't worry. You w-will be all right."

Kelvin frowned, then realized what she was saying. He wasn't dying as she was. "Impossible. We're mated. I will no'-"

She shook her head. "No. I... I won't take y-you with me." She smiled. "I... love... you." Her sweet voice damply broke around the blood rising in her throat.

"No! No' good-bye." He didn't know how this was possible. Didn't know how their bond could have broken. Rage, fear, sadness engulfed him. Resting a hand flat on her stomach, he felt tears leak from his eyes and down his cheeks. "You have ta hold on, love. Do you hear me? You need ta hold on for me." He gave a gentle squeeze at her belly. "For us."

Her delicate brows drew together in dazed confusion.

"Aye. Seems there's ta be another Pookah trying your patience." His gut convulsed as he spoke the words. Although he knew her wounds were fatal, he simply couldn't believe that she, his mate, lay dying.

And fate was cruel not ending him alongside her.

Her full lips were tinged blue and her normally pink cheeks paled further. "I-I'm sorry."

"Shhh. Don't you dare be sorry, lass. You just stay with me. I'll fix this." Tears spilled down his face as if from a busted dam. Throwing his head back, he screamed to the heavens. "Take me! This is my fault. Please, spare her! Take me!"

He noticed she tried to speak, but he couldn't make out the words this time. Leaning his face toward hers, he pressed his lips against her mouth. "Please, love"-he sobbed against her-"do no' leave me."

He felt her slightly smile against him. Her chest rose on a shaky breath.

Exhale.

He watched, begging, pleading for the angels to take him in her place.

Her chest rose.

Exhale.

He knelt there, looking upon his female, his one true mate. The woman he loved more than himself, more than life.

"Izel?"

She was still.

"No," He stared hard at her, waiting for her chest to rise with another breath.

His eyes shifted over her wildly. He cupped her face in his palms. Cold.

"No!" He leaned in, grasping her nape, yanking her face to his. The moisture from his eyes drenched her cheeks as he nuzzled his nose against her forehead. He cradled her lifeless body in his arms, rocking back and forth.

"I know you hear me, you cowards!" He yelled at the sky, clutching Izel close. The angels chose not to respond. Why should they? It was he who was to blame. His mere existence had cursed her and he hadn't protected her. He had failed her.

Kelvin barely heard the footsteps behind him. "Is she...?" Thompson was looking over his shoulder. For a brief moment, he wanted to slash the Fionn from hip to sternum for not doing a better job of keeping her safe. But once again, Kelvin knew he couldn't blame anyone but himself.

"My mate." He continued rocking with her, croaking on the words. "Everything I cherish... gone."

He heard the Fionn's sharp inhale. "Oh no... Euan," Andrew said.

Kelvin glared over his shoulder at Thompson. How dare the Fionn speak of the Mystic while he sat here, holding his dead female! "I know! I know I cursed her! I read the sodding book!"

"No," Andrew responded in a dazed tone. "I was there the night she was born," he glanced at Izel. "The same night you killed Jimmy."

Aye. Kelvin remembered that night well. He had warred against James Campbell for over a millennium. But the last time he'd met him on the battlefield, Kelvin had finally walked away the victor. If he'd only known his actions would plague his female with hurt.

"This is Euan's curse at work," Andrew admitted. "Euan's curse over you."

Kelvin's brows drew as he looked at the Fionn. "What?"

"James was Euan's only son, and when you killed him, he placed a hex on you. For you to lose"-his voice strained-"that which you most cherish."

Kelvin's eyes widened. Twenty-five years ago, that fucking Mystic had unknowingly set into motion the forces that would cause his own granddaughter's death. Since it had been bestowed before Kelvin mated Izel, the curse took precedence.

Now I am alive and she is dead.

A strangled wail escaped his chest as Kelvin bellowed against the darkness.

The blood in his veins heated another degree. He couldn't accept this. He wouldn't. With Izel secured in his arms, he rose to his feet, turning to fully face the Fionn.

"I'm taking her with me. I'm gonna save her, bring her back."

"Pookah, there's no way. She's gone."

"No!" he fired back through gritted teeth. "The witch I have... she can help. She will restore her life." He was clinging to the last bit of hope he had. If Ryo couldn't save his female, Kelvin would follow her into the afterlife on his own.

"I cannot allow you to take her."

"I'm no' asking, Fionn." He glared at Thompson. Blood dripped from two small puncture wounds at his neck, and Kelvin realized the Fionn was not completely coherent.

"She belongs with her clan, buried in the Campbell plot."

"She belongs with me!" Kelvin barked.

Thompson's glossy eyes raked over Izel. "She's our chief, and she deserves a proper burial with her kind. If you take her now I will assemble my men to come for her."

"Do what you want, Fionn. This night, she goes with me. Now step aside."

Andrew gave a final challenging look, but whatever he saw in Kelvin's eyes made him move. "I will be seeing you soon, Pookah."

With the lifeless body of his mate pressed against his chest, Kelvin took off, sprinting headlong for his castle.

Chapter 31.

Ryo shot up in bed. She lifted her platinum hair out of her face with her forearm and glanced toward her open window. It was still dark but he was coming. She could sense it. She'd known this would to happen but had been unable to affect what she'd known was fated. Fate always got its way.

He was getting closer.

Ryo yanked the covers back, righted her pajamas, and stood several feet in front of the door waiting. She swallowed against the lump in her throat. Her stomach churned. She knew that what she was about to see would be horrifying.

"Ryo!" Kelvin bellowed as he kicked in the door to her chambers. "Bring her back!"

Ryo's jaw went slack in shock, the air sticking in her lungs. The Pookah was holding the broken, bloody body of his mate-the last human. It was far worse than she'd foreseen.

She'd known this was going to happen, had seen the human's death before Kelvin had. The prophecy was coming true, claiming the last mortal soul from the earth.

Euan Campbell, the stupid Mystic, was responsible for this. In his blind hatred for the Kerrs, he had unknowingly cursed his granddaughter-his sole heir-to her death.

I hope you're happy!

Ryo slowly whispered. "Izel's course of fate had been set-"

"Bullshite! Bring her back! There's got to be a way." Kelvin choked on his words. He looked down at Izel and Ryo saw a fresh tear run down his already tearstained, dirty face. He clutched Izel close. Eyes squeezed shut, he bent his head and clenched his teeth against the human's bloody hair. "Please, witch... please. Bring her back ta me."

Ryo's heart hurt for the Pookah. Kelvin Kerr was one of the strongest immortals to ever walk this realm. He had seen centuries of war, endured countless injuries, yet here he stood, lost and defeated without his female.

The spirits had foretold this. Right after Kelvin had left that night after seeking Ryo's help, she'd read the truth behind the "real curse." However, prophecies, hexes, hate... all was vague for a reason. Ryo could do nothing, but Kelvin was a different story. What happened next all depended on the woman Kelvin gripped in his arms.

Time to see just how strong she is.

"There's something we could try..." Ryo looked at Kelvin. His stark eyes dared to show hope.

"Anything!"

Ryo held up her palms. She felt like she was trying to calm a wild beast. "I need you to listen very carefully. There is a myth, the tale of Ubore'. But this is beyond me. Only Izel can save herself. If it doesn't work, then that's it. Izel is gone forever. Do you understand?"

Kelvin nodded eagerly. God, she felt like an asshole. She was most likely giving him false hope, merely putting off the reality of the human's death for a few days. But Ryo knew about the instincts of Pookahs. There was not a single story in history of how a Razorback who lost his mate coped, because the Pookah never survived long enough to share. A Pookah's female was his heart, and he simply couldn't live without it. It was their nature, and nature was cruel. Euan's curse may have overridden the bond, but the moment Kelvin accepted Izel's death, he would undoubtedly follow her.

Nevertheless she trusted the ancient spirits that had spoken to her.

"Lay her down." Ryo motioned for Kelvin to set the human on her bed. "It's been said that if a spirit still lingers within the body, there is a chance of survival. After the ninth night of feeding, the soul will be fully restored and rise." Kelvin set Izel atop the mattress and Ryo hovered her hands over the girl's heart. "But Kelvin, there are a lot of ifs." She looked down at Izel and raised her palms over Izel's body. After several silent seconds, she muttered, "Damn it, I don't feel Izel's soul."

"No," Kelvin rasped, "she's still holding on. I can feel it." The faintest hint of a smile touched his face. A look of hope. Ryo, once again, felt like an asshole. She had to try.

"Okay. So even if she's held on, there is still no guarantee. What I'm telling you is an old myth." Ryo spoke with deliberate skepticism, but no matter how many times she repeated the words "myth" and "if," she didn't feel any less guilty, and the Pookah didn't look any more deterred. "Kelvin, if you want my honest, professional opinion, conjuring of this kind is impossible without magic present in the soul. Izel was a mortal. She didn't fully come into her powers-"

"You said 'feed'?" Kelvin asked, as if not hearing a word she'd just said. Ryo nodded. The Pookah was going to do this, no matter what she advised. May as well tell him.

"She's going to need blood from a live source, a strong source." She expected him to at least question this aspect. When dealing with blood, one's thoughts typically turned toward vampirism, which was not favored in this realm.

"She will have mine. Anything else?"

She looked him in the eyes, seeing the pain as palpable. "Kelvin, this is not-"

"You've explained the odds already," he snapped. "Is there anything else she'll need?" He hovered and looked upon Izel's lifeless body.

"Give me some time to prepare her." Before Kelvin could ask what that meant, she finished with, "I'm going to clean her." That was only part of what she would do. She didn't want to tell Kelvin she wanted a few moments alone to try to tap into Izel's power. She continued feeling for the vibrations of life, her hand slowly moving over the top of Izel, but still felt nothing. If Ryo could concentrate without the Pookah hovering over her, she might be able to get a better read on the mortal.