Read Online Prophecy: Caelestis & Aurorea by Felicity Heaton - Free Book Online Page A

to fade. She tried to move but her feet wouldn’t cooperate. She felt bound, stuck to the floor. Her hands flew out at her sides and she struggled against the invisible bonds that were holding her fast. The darkness encroached, surrounding her, and the cold swept in again, numbing her body and making her drowsy. Closing her eyes, she struggled against the overwhelming pain that filled her but it kept growing and growing until she felt ready to pass out.

    Venturi leapt backwards when Prophecy shot into a sitting position, the needle still protruding from her neck. He went to remove it but she backed away from him, her eyes wide and full of fear. Holding his hands up, he waited for her to realise it was him and calm down, and then reached out towards her.
    He carefully pulled the needle from her neck and placed it back in the box. He hadn’t needed to watch her closely for a sign of panic. It hadn’t been small or fleeting when it had come. She’d cried out in pain as though someone had run her through with a sword and had convulsed off the bed, throwing the covers aside and struggling against something. It had taken all of his strength to contain her enough to get the syringe into her neck and revive her.
    He watched her breathing heavily and holding her neck. Her eyes were closed and she was trembling. Taking hold of the blanket, he wrapped it around her shoulders and covered her. She grabbed the edges of the blanket and huddled into it.
    “Are you cold?” he asked and she looked at him with eyes that still betrayed how scared she had been.
    Her pupils were dilated, making her dark brown irises even blacker, and her eyes were wide, showing white all around them. He sat down on the bed beside her and toyed with the corner of the blanket, giving his hands something to do so he didn’t reach out to comfort her. He would only frighten her more and she didn’t look as though she could take it.
    “What did you see?” he said, trying to get her to speak. She just stared at him.
    He wanted her to speak and allay his fears.
    “Prophecy?” he whispered her name and her eyes grew wider.
    “Valentine,” she said and he leaned back, placing distance between them.
    His brows met, his eyes growing dark as he glared at her. He couldn’t believe that she’d uttered the Aurorea’s name in response to him. Could she even see it was him and not her precious hunter that was with her?
    He went to move but she caught hold of his arm, her grip so tight that he couldn’t have left her even if he’d really wanted to. He looked down at her hand and then up into her eyes. She’d come out of the blanket and was kneeling on the bed, leaning towards him. One hand held half of the covers over her while her other held his arm. He stared at her, resisting the temptation to drop his gaze to her nightdress. She was leaning over so much that he knew he’d be able to see straight down the black satin dress.
    “Venturi?” she said and released his hand. He watched her look at herself as though she had only just come back to the world from her sleep and was surprised to find herself kneeling on the bed clutching his arm.
    He didn’t know what to say to her. She smiled the slightest amount, the corners of her mouth twitching almost imperceptibly, and gave him a coy look while she pulled the blanket closed around her. He noticed that the fear in her eyes had been replaced with a hint of awkwardness.
    Leaving the bed, he returned to the chair he’d occupied while watching her for the eight hours she’d been sleeping.
    “Are you all right?” he said and didn’t wait for her to answer him. “I woke you the moment you seemed distressed. What did you see to make you react so violently?”
    “Violently?” she asked, confusion evident in her expression and her voice.
    “You literally leapt off the bed. I had to fight to pin you down so I could inject you with the antidote.”
    “Oh.” She blinked and lowered her gaze to the bed, staring