Hunted

Chapter Twenty Seven

He was pale by the time I got to him. I set his head on my lap and tears just poured out of my eyes as I put pressure on his wound. The cut was deep. It was so deep that he should have been dead by now.

"You're.....hurt." He forced out with his breaths. I shook my head with a smile. "It's okay. I'm fine." I summoned my magic to heal him. The blood disappeared as the wound closed up. A sigh of relief escaped my lips as I kissed him. "See now you're all better." Or so I thought.

Around his heart was a yellow substance. "No! No!" The sword Nicolae used was laced in poison. If it got on me and I died I would be fine. "I need to find the herbs to heal this! I have to go okay. I'll be right back." I kissed his forehead and started to leave but he grabbed my hand.

"Ali, from the look on your face I don't have much time left." The hole in my heart grew more and more. "No. You have all he time in the world. You're going to get to graduate high school, see the country, even gank some evil son's of bitches." Both of us smiled and laughed a bit. "You're going to live a full life Caleb. It won't end tonight."

I knew that wasn't true though. My magic might be powerful but I can't heal this poison. If I was able too so many more people wouldn't have died. The herbs were too far away. He was running out of time. The best thing I could do was stay with him. No one should be alone when they die.

"What will you do?"

"What do you mean?" That half cocky smile that I loved made its appearance. "What will you do when I'm gone? You have a lot more time then me." I had never thought about this. All my life I've been running. "I might stop running. Take some time and travel the modern world with my father." Of course all of that would only happen when Nicolae payed for what was to come in the next few minuets.

"What about a family?" Family. I knew what he meant by that, but it was something I could never have. "Just me and my father." Tears were falling out of the corner of his eyes. His breaths were more labored. I placed my hand over his heart. If I couldn't heal him I could take away the pain. A golden light covered his body. The pain that was in his body was now in mine.

"What did you do Ali?" I placed a light kiss on his forehead. "I took the pain away. It won't hurt anymore." Tears threatened to spill out of my eyes. "I'm so sorry Caleb. I shouldn't have brought you into this mess of life. I shouldn't have given up that magic." His hand reached up and brushed my cheek.

"It's okay Ali. Once upon a dream I saw a girl exactly like you. She was in so much pain.  It was my job to save her. Ali, if my death means I saved you it is worth it." He turned to the side and coughed. Blood came out of his mouth and I started to panic. "No! Please! Please don't leave me! I can't survive with your blood on my hands."

A twig snapped and my father appeared out of the darkness of the woods. "Please papa! Help him." My father made his way over to me an placed his arm around me. "Ariralana, it's too late. The poison has reached his heart." My tears became full blown streams. "Please daddy! There has to be something we can do! I can't lose him!"

"All we can do now is wait." With a growing sadness I grabbed Caleb's hand. "Please. I'm so sorry Caleb.  Can you ever forgive me?" He answered my question with a kiss. "Of course. I love you Ali." The tears were silent but I could feel them burning my skin. "I love you too." I bent my head down and kiss his lips.

It was soft and tender. Just like those first few we shared. If only we could go back to that time. When everything was simple. When the kisses were soft and full of life.

His lips stopped moving eventually. They were cold. When I pulled back his eyes were closed like he was just asleep. If I didn't know better I would say he was asleep. But there was no breath coming from his lungs. There was no pulse to be felt. There was no blood running through his veins anymore. "No! Caleb no! Please come back to me! Please!" I cried over and over again for him.

I don't know how much time had passed. All I knew was the pain in my heart. I cried forever holding his limp body. Eventually it went cold and my father placed a hand on my shoulder. "We have to go. Ariralana, he's gone." Of course I knew he was gone but it didn't hurt any less. I threw myself into my father's arms.

"It's hurts daddy. It hurts so much." I cried as he held me. "I know. It hurt when I found out your mother died. It will always hurt." He just held me in his arms and let me cry like he used to when I had a bad dream. Except this wasn't a dream. This was real.

It became real the minuet we took Caleb's body to his brother and father and told them what had happened. It became real the minuet I saw him laying on his bed in his room.

It became real the minuet I kissed his cold, dead lips.