Finding Demons

Part 2.2

Panic as he had never felt it before started to bloom inside of James. It had never been this bad, even on the nights he had heard the things coming for her, yearning for her blood.

She lay beneath him, her eyes fluttering. He tried to ignore the fact that she wasn't wearing a shirt, but even with the wound on her chest, her black bra drew his attention like a moth to a flame.

Her breathing was ragged, and rapidly becoming shorter.

He didn't know what to do. No wound had ever been too much for him. Ever. So why was this any different?

"James?" Her voice was like water in a desert to him. It was a sign that she was still here, that she had not left him. Yet.

"Right here, Ally, I'm right next to you." He straightened his legs out in front of him and laid her head in his lap. "I'll always be right here."

Her eyes could not focus on him. Instead, she stared at the ceiling through her half-open eyelids as she answered him. "I want to go quickly."

"You're not going anywhere Ally," James said. He paused as his voice caught. "I won't let you."

She took a shallow breath. "If, it it gets that bad, I want you to kill me. Quickly."

James stared at her. Kill her? The option was unthinkable. "I- I don't think I can do that."

She raised her hand straight up into the air. He caught hold of it, and she squeezed. "You have to. For me. There's too much blood-"

Blood.  That was the answer. James didn't hear the rest of Allya's sentence, instead, he carefully moved her off him and scooted over to the little nook in the cabin wall. He drew out a short-bladed knife. He didn't even have to think twice about slicing diagonally across his palm. If it was for her, he would do anything.

He hastily dropped the knife and scurried back over to her. Whispering a prayer to his homeland, he let the golden/red blood drip onto her wound. This time, there was a sizzling noise where demon and angel blood combined. However, James's blood was strengthened by his prayers, and Allya's blood stopped flowing over her belly.

It's not enough.

James realised that seconds after his blood mingled with hers. It was not enough to entirely bring Allya back. 

But if it wasn't, what was?

What in the human world was stronger than blood?

Allya reached for the comfort of his hand again, and automatically his fingers entwined with hers. James stared at their joined hands, thinking.

And then it hit him.

It struck him like a blow to the abdomen. No, he couldn't do that.

But for her... He tore his eyes away from their hands and looked at her face. Her eyes were still half-open, and obviously struggling to stay that way. Her lips were slightly parted, almost like an invitation.

But he couldn't.

Could he?

He let his eyes drift down her body.

Maybe he'd have to.