Page 54 of Midnight Kiss

“I will find you, Julius, and I will?—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, sorry. Off-color joke. I don’t know what got into me, must be the beta-carotene. So, wait, you want to remove the book. And the victim, the one who’s cursed is a woman? We’re talking about the same book you called me about the last time, right?”

“Correct. The cursed object.”

“Gotcha. Where is it?”

“It’s in the living room,” I said. “How is that relevant?”

“It’s not. I meant, how far away from her is it? What happens when you touch it?”

“She’s aware it’s being touched,” I said.

“Ah. Can you move her further away before you take it?”

“No, and that’s not my issue. I need to know that I won’t instantly kill her by taking it out of her apartment,” I said. “I need to know how long I have before she dies.”

“Huh. That’s a tough one. Likely, her condition will improve while she’s away from the book at first. Like, she’ll be right as rain, might even forget that the book existed at first, or just move on with her day like everything’s fine. And then after that …”

I ran a hand through my hair.

“Five days, maybe a week?” Julius said. “But it depends on the book and the curse. I’d have to look at the book before I could give you a real idea of how long it would take to kill her.”

I railed at the phrasing. Kill her? I wouldn’t allow it. “Do you know anyone who could copy a book in a short period of time?”

“How short? A couple of days?”

“A couple of hours. At most, half a day.”

Julius was silent for several minutes. “I might know a guy, but it will cost you. He doesn’t work for cheap.”

“I don’t care about the cost. I want it done. Someone close by. In the city.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’ve got a guy. Let me forward him your number. I’ll tell him what the deal is.”

“Good. Thank you, Julius.”

“I look forward to my next paycheck, Boss. I figure it’s going to be significant after the twenty million questions.” Julius crunched down on his carrot. “Just, uh, don’t go falling for a mortal, would ya?”

I hung up without answering, grinding my teeth. Don’t go falling for a mortal? It was too late to worry about that.

I rose from the sofa, staring down at the book. I had to get it back to Haldren as soon as possible, and I would have to smuggle it out of the apartment without waking Emily.

A quick peek through her bedroom door showed that she was still fast asleep, that beautiful hair strewn across the pillow. Her breathing was labored, as if the proximity to the book and the distance from me had worsened her condition.

That was what I’d forgotten to ask Julius about, but no matter. I shut her door quietly then walked back to the living room and lifted the book off the coffee table.

Emily cried out softly, but I didn’t wait to hear if she’d woken all the way. I strode toward the door and opened it, slipping out of her apartment and shutting it behind me. The hall was quiet, and I made myself invisible as I moved down it and away from her. Away from Emily and the protective circle I’d placed around her.

But no protective circle of magic would save her from her fate if I couldn’t figure out how to get rid of the curse.

19

EMILY

Irolled over in bed and laid my hand across the pillow. Alex’s scent, a delicious woody cologne, filled my nostrils, and I smiled, the memories of last night coming back in full force. He’d been all over me. We’d made love, and he’d held me afterward.

My phone alarm buzzed on the bedside table, and I blinked, grabbing it and switching it off.