Saving Death

Chapter 19

Sorry for the delay in getting more chapters uploaded! I hope you continue to enjoy the story!! Rosy xx

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I awoke from a dreamless sleep with a jump, as something nearby moved. As soon as my eyes adjusted and I worked out where I was, it all came rushing back to me with renewed clarity.

"Hi," Sam said.

I turned and blinked at him blearily. He was grinning at me and he looked better. The glint was back in his eyes and the gash had gone completely. Only a few dried smears of blood remained in his hair. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I sat upright on the sofa and looked about, getting my bearings, and saw it was already light. Panic rose in my chest—Dad. I quickly got to my feet, feeling a blanket drop to the floor.

"Don't worry. Your dad called last night," Sam said, picking up the blanket and draping it on the arm of the sofa. "Seline said you were sleeping on the sofa," he grinned mischievously. "Which, technically, is true..."

"Was he okay?" I asked apprehensively, my voice croaky.

"Yeah," Sam said. "Seline told him she'd make sure you went home after lunch. It's still early now."

I nodded and stared at him. I was amazed by how quickly he had healed, but his greyish skin tone remained, and as I looked at him seriously, he stood and took my wrists gently in his hands.

"I'm fine," he reassured me. He scanned my face before opening his mouth to speak, but something stopped him and he closed it again. I looked at him steadily so he knew I needed the truth. His jaw clenched and he sighed just as I heard Seline enter the room.

"Does she know?" Her tone held a mixture of intrigue and pride, and as she stood in the doorway, her eyes flicked between the two of us.

"Not yet," Sam said with a grim determination. Turning to me apprehensively, he knelt down in front of me. His eyes were still deep black, but his gaze was kind. "Is there any way you can make this easier for her?" he asked Seline. She shook her head.

I felt my heart beat erratically against my ribs. This was it. What had I got myself into? I watched as Sam unzipped his hoody and threw it on the winged chair before turning to me with a look of inner turmoil stretched across his face. He reached to his sleeve and pulled it up revealing the intricate black hourglass tattoo that I'd come so close to touching.

"You wanted to know," he warned. I glanced at him nervously. "Well this is me, right here on my arm." I frowned. "This is all the time I have left...before I turn to dust."

I felt my head shake in confusion and when I opened my mouth; my throat was like sandpaper. "Dust?" I whispered.

"I didn't say it would be easy to understand," said Sam. I looked into his eyes and knew what he was saying must be true. I would never have believed it if I hadn't already discovered that Seline was a witch. A whole new parallel world was being exposed to me and I was expected to just believe it.

"When you say 'all the time you have left,' what does that mean?" I croaked, feeling my throat constrict further as I dreaded the answer.

"It's a curse, Ava. It shows what time I have left." He watched me for a moment. "When it runs out, I... I'll turn to dust. I'll die." He spoke the last bit quickly as if saying it faster released some of the pain of telling me the truth.

"Die?" I whispered. I felt like I'd been punched in the stomach. "Can you stop it?" I asked. I couldn't quite believe I was having this conversation and my hands trembled. Sam leant forwards and put his hands over my own.