The Dark Divine

not the date Pete part, of course. But it's not like I need to kill you right now. We can--"

"You don't understand." He wouldn't look at me. "I either need to die, or I need to leave--today. Before tonight. Before I cause any more damage ..."

I brushed my hand down his cheek.

He flinched away.

"You didn't hurt those people," I said. "Marya

Daniel fingered his necklace. "No. It wasn't me."

"You've got that moonstone necklace. You can live a ... semi normal life. You can even use your abilities to help people if you want. We don't have to do it today.

Eventually, yes ... but not right now." Putting it off, not really having to face the reality of it all, was the only thing keeping me sane. "That's why you can't leave me. We need to stick together so I'll be there when it needs to be done. Just give me more time, and then I'll free your soul before you die."

"Grace, I wish it were that simple. Time is exactly what we don't have. We can't put this off indefinitely. There's more than one person out there who wants me dead. And if anyone other than you kills me ..."

"Who? Who wants you dead?" I felt like I could wring that person's neck with my own bare hands-- moral consequences be damned.

"My father, for one." Daniel's eyes were wide like a frightened child.

"Is he here? Is he back? Is he the one who---?"

"No," Daniel said. "Last I heard, he was in South

America somewhere. I'd know if he were anywhere close."

"Then why are you so worried? We can deal with all of this when the time comes. All I'm asking for is more time. Can't we just live for today?"

Daniel sighed, sounding resigned. He pulled me into his arms and leaned my head against his chest. I listened to his two heartbeats thrumming under his skin. The slower pulse seemed closer to my ear, the faster one fluttering behind it.

"Is your human heart in front of the wolf's heart?" I asked.

Daniel made a noise like he was surprised that I'd noticed the fact that he had more than one heart. "Yes, but only when I'm in human form. When I'm the wolf, then its heart takes the dominant position. But it's always with me--part of me."

That must be why I needed to stab him while he was in wolf form--to guarantee that the wolf's heart took the brunt of the blow.

"What did the letter mean when it said 'In an act of true love'?" I asked. If I was going to do this--kill him-- someday, I wanted to make sure I understood exactly how to do it right. "The letter said the cure would only work if" you were killed 'in an act of true love' by the person who loved you most."

"I think it means the intent has to be pure," Daniel said into my hair. "Not something done out of fear or hate or coercion. It has to be an act of pure, unwavering love."

"No fear." I pictured myself alone with a monstrous wolf. Was that something I was capable of? I'd have to be. "Just love," I said, and buried those other thoughts.

"Yes," Daniel snorted. "True love's first kill."

He held me tight against him. The parking lot had emptied and filled with a new set of cars by the time he let me go. He brushed his hands through my hair and kissed my forehead.

"You can so do better than that." I stretched up on my toes for a real kiss.

Daniel turned his head away. "What about your brother?"

"I don't want to kiss him" I said, and pecked my lips along Daniel's jaw.

"He's here, you know." Daniel swallowed air. "I can taste him."

"Okay, let's put that on our 'Top Ten Things Not to Say While Making Out' list. Super senses are cool and all, but kinda not romantic. Besides, Jude's probably just picking up April's corsage for the dance... Oh, crap."

Daniel stiffened. "What is it?"

"I'm supposed to go to the dance with Pete tonight. We're sharing a car with April and Jude."

"No." Daniel let go of me. "You can't go out tonight. You have to cancel."

"You know I can't do that. Pete's probably already spent a ton of money. He's a nice guy. I can't just bail--"

"Pete's not as nice as you think," Daniel grumbled.

I laughed. "Are you jealous? Pete's just a friend--"

Daniel grabbed me by the hips. "Of course I'm jealous, Gracie. You just told me that you love me but you are going out with another guy. But this is more important than my jealousy. If I'm staying here, then you have to stay in. I've got enough to keep my eye on. I can't have you out there. Not tonight."

"What's with tonight?"

He looked down. "The full moon."

"The full moon?" I looked at the little crescent carved in his necklace. "You're afraid of the--"

"Even with this moonstone necklace, the wolf is hard to control under the light of the full moon. It's when the wolf has the most draw on the emotions." He bit his lip. "I try my hardest to never go into wolf form. Even though I can control my actions now, it scares me to give the wolf that much leeway. I've only gone wolf twice since I've been back. The last was when I was looking for James. The moon was waning, so I felt safer letting the wolf have a little freedom. But the first time ... it was the last full moon.

That time scared me. I'd turned and was miles from my place on Markham before I realized it." Daniel looked at me. "Do you remember the last full moon?"

"No." Where had the last month gone?

"It was the day I first saw you again." Daniel dropped his hands from my hips, but he didn't step away. "Your dad had asked me to stay away from you and Jude until we figured things out, but I couldn't. I think he knew I wouldn't be able to, either; he was just doing the fatherly thing." Daniel studied the back of his hands. "I've always liked you, Grace. I don't know if you knew that?"

My heart fluttered. "Really?"

"Ever since the day you marched home with that three-legged runt of a puppy, I knew that there was no one else quite like you. Gabriel told me to find someone who loved me--and I hoped if there was anyone in this world who could, it would be you.

"So when I saw your name in that art class, I was so curious. ... I remembered you as this spunky, unbelievably caring, totally bossy kid, and I couldn't help teasing you a bit. But then when I looked at you and saw how beautiful and amazing and strong you had become--it was like something woke up inside of me."

He stepped back now. As if he needed to put distance between us. "I'd never felt that way before. I didn't know I was capable of feeling that way ... but the wolf felt it, too. And when the full moon came out, it told me to go find you. It told me I couldn't stay away. I even tried locking myself in my room, but that didn't work. Like I said, I was almost to your house before I came to my senses. I had more control, but I still couldn't leave--not until I saw you again."

I gasped. "I saw you. You were that dog, that wolf, that sat under the walnut tree. The one that was watching me."

I don't know why that surprised me--that I'd seen him as a wolf. I guess I'd pictured some kind of grotesque mix of man and beast. But that dog had been beautiful, large--larger, I realized now, than any dog I'd ever seen before--and sleek, majestic. Like the sculpture of the wolf with Gabriel in the Garden of Angels.

"So you're afraid that now that you know--and the wolf knows--that I'm the one, the wolf will come for me?" I smiled, trying to lighten the mood. "At least I know I'll have one free night to myself a month."