Midnight CEO. To hell and back.

56.

"Carter?" Can you hear me?" I heard a voice in my head. "Carter,"

I slowly opened my eyes, but everything was blurry, and I couldn't focus. "Where am I?" I groaned, trying to sit up.

"You are in the castle, brother." You need to take it slow. You have been weakened by the spell." I felt a hand on my arm. "Slow down."

"Ebony, where is she?" I sat up quickly in a panic and looked around. "Where is she?"

"Carter, look at me," Leon said calmly with a hand on my shoulder.

"Where is she?" I growled, trying to stand up.

"You need to rest. Your body is weak."

"Tell me what happened," I said nervously, looking around the room, but my eyes were still blurry. "Where is my wife." A sharp pain in my head made me fall to the ground again. "What is this?"

"Your body is weak, and you need to take it slow," Leon said, kneeling beside me. "If you don't slow down, you are going to pass out again."

"Ok, fine." I rubbed my temples with my fingers trying to get rid of this pain in my head. "Where is Ebony? Did it work?"

"We don't know yet," Leon said, sighing. "You have both been unconscious for hours now, and Ebony hasn't woken up yet."

"Where is she?"

"She is upstairs in the castle. Jacob and Henry are with her, but she is not awake. I tried moving you, but your body felt like it was stuck to the floor. ZanZara told me this was normal and to be patient. If your sacrifice were accepted, then you would wake up. If I had a heart, I would be dead with stress right now." Leon sat on the ground next to me. "I don't know how humans handle this shit."

"I need to be her." I tried to stand again but failed and fell to the floor as that same pain appeared in my head. "Damn it," I yelled out in frustration, rubbing my temples again with my fingertips. "What do we know?"

"Ebony's body seems to be fine. She was with Jacob when she collapsed outside, and he escorted her into the castle. The kid hasn't left her side since. Henry has a team of witches on hand to help with her care." Leon said, looking over at me. "We don't know anything until she wakes, though. ZanZara said we will know nothing until the creature is awake." Leon cleared his throat. "There is one more thing."

"What?"

"Genevieve didn't survive the transition. I found her body, or what's left of it, lying on the cell floor a few hours ago. Whatever took Ebony's soul destroyed her body. She was barely recognizable."

"As much I despised Genevieve, I didn't want her to end like that." I hung my head down. "Does anyone else know?"

"No," Leon shook his head.

"Let's keep it that way," I said, sighing. "The others don't need to know about this."

"Agreed."

We heard a baby screaming in the hallway, and both turned to see Callan walking toward us with Cayden in his arms. "I can't make him stop." He said, frustrated. "He wants Ebony, but she is still...Oh, you're awake. You feel ok?"

"I am fine, son." I smiled at him. "Give me Cayden, and you take a break."

"Gladly," Callan said, handing me a crying baby.

"Hey there, it's ok. I've got you." I kissed Cayden's forehead. "I know you want your mom, but she is sleeping. I promise you she will be awake soon." I kissed his cheek. "Until then, you are stuck with us, kiddo." I looked over at Leon and Callan. "You will always have us." Cayden stopped crying and opened his aqua eyes. "My beautiful boy." Cayden stretched out his chubby little arm to my face and touched the dark stubble on my chin as he made raspberries with his lips. "Adorable."