Ophelia lit the candles and pulled out the red pillow and the goblet and knife. She looked focused. She took Sam's hand and dragged the knife across it. It stung slightly.
She did the same to Hanna who made a brave face. Ophelia squeezed Hanna's hand over the goblet and then his. She poured wine in and then cut her own hand. She rubbed their hands together and let the mixed blood drip onto the red pillow. They each took a turn drinking the blood.
He watched as dark shadows from the moons light crept along the ground like snakes.
"Ophelia what is that?"
She looked scared as they swirled their way up her legs. Her lower lip trembled as they made their way up her stomach and vanished. She gasped and shook her head.
When she opened her eyes they were solid black but stars sparkled from them. A calm smile crept across her face. It was disturbing.
Ophelia took the knife and the red pillow and bound them up in a package. She got up and left them there.
Sam looked at Hanna who stared at the wine glass.
"I want to say how sorry I am. Now that the anger is gone from it all I really think I over reacted Hanna."
She looked crushed, "Don’t say that. Please don’t make this be for nothing Sam. My heart is broken and I don’t know how to fix it."
He nodded, "I know. I think you should ask Roland, he knows stuff."
She got up from the blanket and walked away.
Sam felt sick suddenly. He couldn’t fight it, he was nauseas. He couldn’t flash.
He stumbled away from the blanket to the inside of the house. He made it inside when everything went black.
xxxx
He woke to Aimee next to him. She stroked his face.
He frowned, "What are you doing?"
"I found you. I get to keep you."
He laughed and then winced, "I'm in agony again. I'm thinking Ophelia might have messed it up."
"Stop being a baby. At least you can feel the pain."
Sam smiled, "I can feel something else."
She frowned.
He laughed, "I'm fucking annoyed with you right now."
Aimee giggled, "Yay. Can we go back to being the friends where you sympathize with me and my sadness over breakups? I kind of missed you having a heart. Or sarcasm."
He sighed, "Sweet friggen god Aimes I don’t want to talk about it anymore."
She squealed and hugged him, "You are back."
He laughed and felt joy for the first time in what felt like ages. He thought about Hanna but nothing but wounded pride and a slight amount of anger floated around in him. He thought about Ophelia and nothing. He looked at Aimee and smiled, "I'm free." He let his head rest on the bed next to her. "I feel like I've fought a battle and haven’t slept in ages but."
She kissed his forehead, "Sleep now. I won’t leave you. Just in case the horrid heartless other you comes back and tries to take over."
Sam smirked and rolled on his side trying not to wince in pain, "You kick his ass if he comes back Aimes. Kick it hard."
Her eyes glossed, "Sam no one knows what it's like to sink into a pit of despair like me. You've got to have someone there to pull you out."
He remembered her stories about the days before Aleks and how sad she was. He fell asleep feeling sad and not for himself.
xxxx
He woke again feeling groggy but the pains that had been burning through him were gone. He looked around the room for Aimee, but he was alone. He got up and stretched. He felt a hunger he hadn’t felt in ages. His need was strong. He could feel it on himself. He pulled on some jeans and a t-shirt and stumbled out to find food.
A blur shot past him in the hall and suddenly his back was slammed into the plaster of the wall. A warm mouth pressed against his neck. Savagely a dark head of hair nuzzled into him. He tried to pull back but she slammed him into the wall again. Her warm lips caressed his throat. He shoved hard and flashed.
Giselle stood at the end of the hall he had just left. Blood trickled down his throat. She licked her lips. He could see the black eyes from where he stood. He put a hand out, "Giselle calm down."
She snarled at him, "Come here Sam."
He flashed to the kitchen where Aimee sat staring out the window. She glanced back at him and smiled, "Hey look who's awake. How are you feeling?" She frowned at the dark blood running down his neck where his hand was.
He scowled, "Giselle."
She raised an eyebrow, "Did she just blood rape you?" She sniffed the air around him, "That is pretty unbearable Sam. What is that?"
He shook his head, "Nothing."
"Doesn’t smell like nothing." She got up from her seat grinning.
He took a step back, "Aimes, for Christ sake not now."
She nodded, "I want it now."
He flashed to Lydia's. She was stirring a cup of tea in the kitchen. She wrinkled her nose, "Oh Sam. Come on. Take care of that."
He sat at the table, "I can't."
She smiled, "Wait, if you're emitting that then you must feel again?"
He glanced up at her old face and bit his lip. He nodded.
Her face dropped, "Did you go find the black witches?"
His eyes darted to the table. He lowered his head in shame. He had no idea whose marriage Ophelia ruined to save him. He felt sick when he thought about it.
"Sam."
"Went to Lillian. They gave us the spell."
She dropped the cup of tea, "Sam what have you done?"
He shook his head, "Nothing."
"Who did Ophelia push the heartbreak on?"
She sat across from him. He couldn’t meet her gaze.
"I don’t know. She just took it and left."
She put her hands over her face, "Oh honey. What have you done? Your feelings for Ophelia will be so intense Sam. Her being a witch they will push onto her. You'll force her to love you."
He looked down, "When I think about her I don’t feel anything."
She sighed, "Babe you haven’t seen her since she gave away the broken heart have you?"
He shook his head.
"Oh goddess."
He looked up to her frightened face, "Can you help?"
She shook her head, "No honey."
"Can I stay here?"
She nodded, "Of course you can. Your room is always going to be your room."
He felt defeated as he rose and stalked off to his bedroom. The hunger in his stomach and everywhere else was painful but he couldn’t help but hate the choices he'd made.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Ophelia
The darkness of the shadows scared her. She felt them tickle inside of her. She sat perfectly still but they moved inside like snakes writhing around in her belly.
She felt movement in the room and glanced up at Oliver in the doorway.
He looked worried.
"Are they inside of you?"
She frowned, "Who?"
"The shadows."
She nodded.
He bent and pulled a small dagger from his boot. He walked to her and knelt on the floor in front of her.
"I have to get them out."
She watched as he took her hand in his. It looked tiny compared to his hands. He poked her finger on the tip. He put it up to his mouth and kissed the prick. He pricked his finger and pressed their bloody fingertips together.
Light filled the spot with incredible warmth.
The warmth ran up her fingers and into her hand. Soon her entire arm was tingling with warmth. She looked at his blue eyes expecting to see love or kindness but his face was filled with regret. She watched as the light shot through her body as if lighting her veins up with yellow glow sticks. The warmth touched every inch of her. She opened her mouth and a light beam shot from it.
An agonizing pain stabbed into her stomach. She doubled over in pain. The light and dark had a war inside of her. She felt the sweat start to build on her brow.
"Just give it a minute."
She looked up at Oliver. His beautiful face was covered in anger. She assumed it was directed at her.
She screamed as the pain blacked her vision. She could hear herself screaming but the sound got quieter.
xxxx
Cold shivers woke her. Her face hurt. The cold stone pressed against her face, it was painful against her eyebrow. She put her hands on the cold floor and pushed until she was sitting upright. She felt the gurgle of her stomach. She heaved once.
"Here." She felt his hands on her back as the empty garbage pail was put in front of her face. Her stomach retched. The most bizarre thing happened when she threw up. Black goo came out. The feeling of it against her lips made her retch more.
"Let it out."
Her stomach was completely hardened as she gripped the pail. She almost screamed as the black goo shot from her lips.
She coughed spattering it against the stark white pail.
She looked up, "What is it?"
"The part of you that died."
She frowned, "What?" She coughed again. Dark red blood filled her mouth.
"The shadow kills some of you off when it gets inside. It kills the light and the good. It's like a cancer. You've let it in too many times now."
She shivered.
He got up and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders.
"Are you full of shadows too?"
He looked pinched for a moment, "Sort of."
"Can you get it out?"
He shook his head, "Mine is different than yours. Mine is more like pieces of my soul."
"What happens if you die?"
"I will cease to exist. I have let the dark kill enough of my soul that I if I die I will just vanish."
"God can't help you?"
He laughed, "He probably could but he won't. I made my choice."
She nodded, "Like my father?"
He nodded rubbing her back, "Your father doesn’t have an ounce of love or light inside of him. He is completely dead inside now."
"Did he ever love my mother?"
Oliver looked like he was about to smile, but he stopped himself. He shook his head, "He has loved power, always."