“I’m so sorry.” I felt a solid weight press against my chest. Wherever I landed, I seemed to bring misery to others.
“It’s all right, child,” John James said wearily, rubbing his brow. “Your mother felt the same way.”
“So, do you have any knowledge as to where Mother’s journal might be?” Even saying the word “Mother” soured my stomach.
“I do, indeed,” John James said.
I sat up tall, eyes wide. I’d expected to hear another dead-end answer. “Seriously? Well, where is it?”
“Alina gave it to Eyan Malik,” John James said, nodding vigorously.
Marcellious and I looked at one another.
“Who’s Eyan Malik?” Marcellious said.
John James’ eyes grew hooded. “Malik is a very dangerous, potent darkness. He is sin and power. He’s a replica of Balthazar—he’s just like him.”
I gripped the edge of the table as if to steady myself. “Here we go again. First, I have to find this journal. I look everywhere. Then, the Kiowa attacked our tribe, followed by a meeting with Balthazar, where he told me he’d break me. I lost my baby as a result of that fight. I lost my husband in the Kiowa attack, and now you’re telling me I have to retrieve my mother’s journal from a demon as dark as Balthazar?”
A fresh wave of tears threatened to cascade from my eyes.
John James reached across the table and patted my hand. “It’s not as bad as you might think.”
“Enlighten me,” I said, sarcasm dripping from my tongue.
“Malik is indeed ruthless and dangerous. But he’s on the hunt for Balthazar. And when he finds him, he’llkillhim. He’s been planning and scheming about destroying Balthazar for a long time.”
The room spun.
“Malik can kill Balthazar? I thought Balthazar was invincible?”
“Not quite,” John James said. “Balthazar has a weakness, and Eyan Malik is that weakness. If Balthazar finds out about Malik, he will stop at nothing to destroy him. Malik holds all his secrets. You must find him. He is the only one that can help you.”
“What? Why would he help me?”
“Let me tell you a story of who Malik is and why he’s so important,” John James said, rubbing his jaw. “Malik was created as the darkness when he was five. The darkness is created when the Timeborne time travels for the first time. Malik’s thirst for killing immediately manifested at the tender age of five.
“Balthazar witnessed this young little boy killing without mercy. That’s when Balthazar realized that Malik was darkness like him. Balthazar was impressed by Malik’s first kill.”
My lip curled. “Sounds about right for Balthazar.”
“After that,” John James continued, “he killed often and freely. His thirst knew no boundaries. So, Balthazar took him in as his adopted child. He raised him, and together, as Malik matured, they shared in all sorts of debauchery. They killed together, shared lovers—if Balthazar did it, Malik was always right there, sharing in the discovery. Together they were invincible—no one could stop them. Balthazar was proud to have a son like himself and to follow in his footsteps. Malik never disappointed him. He enjoyed having Balthazar as a father figure.”
I nearly vomited the contents of my stomach. “Balthazar didn’t…oh, God…”
“What is it?” Marcellious said, grabbing my wrist.
I shook off Marcellious and glowered at him. “Don’t touch me.”
“Balthazar and Malik didn’t share my mother, did they?” My lip pulled up in a sneer.
“Oh, goodness, no,” John James said.
“Are you certain? I don’t think I could take that.”
“No, no, no. Alina was completely off-limits to Malik. Balthazar made sure of that.”
“Thank God.” I wiped the perspiration from my brow.
