"Al, this is the best page to use. We already know what's on it, what the thing in the drawing is called, and the person who told me that was Eric. It will give us something to gauge his translation against. If we use another page, we don't know what's on that either, and we have no idea about anything on it at all - this page, we at least know it's about my necklace." She wrinkled her nose at me, ready to shoot off more words when I cut her off, "Al, it's not totally stupid. Collin and I can trap him. He'll read the page and we'll..."
She raised an eyebrow at me, "You'll what? Let him go? Ivy, Eric's a Valefar now. He'll kill you if he has the chance. You can't trust anything he says. That's why this whole shindig is ridiculous!" She slammed her hands on the old table, causing it to shake as she stood. "This is an unnecessary risk that don't need to be taken, not when you know what you know." Her gaze cut to Collin, and then back to me.
I opened my mouth to argue with her more, but she swished an arm at me and hobbled away irate. She knew about what Lorren said. I'd thought about the angel since then. I wondered why Al didn't tell Collin that there was an angel we could talk to, but I wasn't going to bring him up. That would be completely stupid. Looking over at Collin, worried he'd sense my thoughts, I saw he was still busily trying to decode the page. He had several pages of notes, but nothing that was usable. He glanced up at me and smiled before returning to his work. How could I tell him that I needed my soul back? And oh yeah, by the way - I'm taking yours too. Collin fought to get that tiny scrap of himself back. It was astounding that he spilt his tiny piece of rancid soul to save me, but he did. Collin was...I pressed my eyes closed, unable to even consider telling him that remedy. No. There had to be another way. And there was. And this was it. My plan to trap Eric had to work. Period.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Collin and Al worked on the page, but got nowhere. While they were busy with that, I sat in the study thinking of how to lure Eric out and trap him. He was playing dirty, from what Collin told me. Using his blood when he kidnapped me last time was dangerous for him and me. Collin acted like he didn't understand why Eric did it at all. At least that's what it seemed like at the time. When I asked him about it, I had to twist his arm pretty hard to get him to talk. For some reason speaking of Valefar blood and dark magic worried him. I could feel fear growing inside of him, and it brushed the bond as he was unable to control it at times.
It may have been insane to go looking for Eric. I could admit to that. After all, he had the opportunity to kill me twice now. And both times, he chose not to. I didn't think it was because he forgave me. I wasn't stupid, but there was some hesitation within him. I could sense it. I was counting on that tiny spark of uncertainty to make my plan work. Eric would speak to me. He had to. My plan had to work. There were no more choices, and as long as I was in this weakened state, Kreturus could attack and I'd go down without a fight. This was the only way.
Night fell and when the time came to set the trap for Eric, I revealed my plans to Collin and Al. Al sat there, not saying much, but didn't argue with me any longer. She thought I was taking an unnecessary risk, but I wasn't. I couldn't sacrifice Collin like that. And I knew that I had to be careful with Eric. I didn't bind him when I had the chance. It was mostly because I thought he was dead, but given the chance to bind him now, I would still decline. Something inside of me told me that binding Eric was a mistake, even if it put me in danger. Tonight, Eric would come looking for me, and he'd find me. Collin and Al had Celestial Silver chains that we'd use to trap him and keep him from effonating away.
My plan was fairly simple. Eric wanted me for his own sadistic reasons. We needed someplace where I'd be out in the open alone, but still somewhere that it seemed like the encounter was an accident. We'd make Eric think he caught me. Then, when he tried to take me, Collin and Al would chain him. The old nun assured me she could move fast enough to keep him from leaving with me. And Collin seconded that opinion. This was the part of my plan that was hard for me. I had to believe that they'd get to me fast enough and that if something did go wrong, that they could fix it before Eric snatched me. I thought the plan was simple enough. Al muttered it was too simple, but that was the point. If it looked like we were just out and about, Eric wouldn't suspect an ambush. And even if Eric used his blood and tried to do the same thing as before, we'd have him. There was no way he could escape with me this time.
We put the plan into effect. I left the church building, unshrouded by shadows so that there was nothing masking my scent. Eric would find me faster that way, but so would other Valefar. It was increasingly rare for me to walk around without being shrouded. The shadows were like a cloak shielding me from those who'd drink my soul. But the shadows' presence left a chill deep within me that wasn't warmed in their absence. It had grown permanent, so that I was always cold. I wondered if that was the poison amplifying the shadows' effects, but there was no way to know.
Leaving the safety of the church, Collin helped me into his car and we drove to the diner - the one I had met Eric at so long ago. The diner shimmered. It was a silvery beacon in the middle of the dark night. As Collin slid into the booth, I slid in opposite him. He was agitated that he agreed to go through with this. I could feel it wafting off of him. Instead of being offended, I placed my hand over his until he looked up into my eyes.
I smiled softly at him, and whispered, "I love you."
His anger faded as he took my hand in his. "I love you, too. But I don't know if I can do this, Ivy. I can't stand the thought of something happening to you." Collin rubbed his fingers gently against the back of my hand while he spoke softly. "What if he's more powerful than we thought? He already showed that he's mastered some of the vilest magic that we're capable of. What if he's not the same for some reason? Ivy..." his voice trailed off and he shook his head.