Chapter Twenty
Skylar Cathal
“No, Talon!” Rhea’s scream tore through the air, sending a chill down the bones of every soul who heard her as we appeared on the deck of the Opal.
“No! Skylar, heal him!”
Panic seized my chest as a lifeless Talon lay sprawled on Rhea’s lap—an arrow embowed with shadow and darkness protruding from his chest.
A chest that failed to rise.
Instantly, I called on my healing powers. A golden light formed in my palms as I leaped forward to keep Talon on this side of the crossing.
Tears were streaming down Rhea’s cheeks as she clutched onto her mate with all the strength she could muster. “Skylar, he can’t—”
My eyes flew open to find hers. “We’re not losing him.”
Rhea’s lip quivered, and for once, I saw true panic in my best friend’s eyes. But she bravely swallowed her fears in the next breath, trusting me to bring him back.
“Daxton, the arrow!” I said, my voice cracking despite my attempt to remain calm.
My mate was already there. His hands trembled as he gripped the shaft of the arrow, reaching around to break the head before preparing to pull it out. As Daxton’s hands curled around the fletching to pull it free, he released a hiss through his teeth.
Castor was there in an instant, grasping Daxton’s wrist to pry his hands away, discarding the arrow on the deck.
“It’s laced with something—something dark,” Castor said, his eyes narrowing as blackness spread across Talon’s lifeless chest.
“Dax?” I asked.
He nodded.“Focus on Talon.”
I returned my focus on healing Talon’s wound.
I pressed my hands to his chest, light pouring from my palms like liquid sunlight.
It sank into his flesh, meeting the wound, only to hiss and recoil.
The darkness within him moved. It twisted around my magic like smoke with a mind of its own, leeching the light before I could push deeper.
“No, no, no…” I whispered, forcing more power into him. The glow grew blinding, the air around us trembling under the clash of opposing forces. “Stay with me, Talon. Please!”
The shadows responded with a violent pulse, shooting up my arms like black veins of frost. My breath hitched as a cold, suffocating ache spread through me.
The shadows were somehow alive, feeding on me just as they fed on Talon.
“Skylar!” Daxton’s voice was sharp and commanding. “Pull back!”
“I can’t!” I shouted through gritted teeth. “It’s. In. Him! It’s taking everything—”
Then came my mate’s snarl, his need to protect me taking control.
Daxton’s hands gripped my shoulders and ripped me backward.
The connection broke with a violent jolt, throwing me against the deck of the ship.
The shadows in my veins evaporated like smoke, leaving an invisible burning sensation beneath my skin.
Rhea’s scream tore through the night. “No! Let her go! She can save him!”
Daxton’s eyes glowed like molten silver as he turned on her. “I’m saving her! You think I’ll let the shadows devour both of them?”
“Then what? Let him die?” Rhea’s voice cracked, shattering with despair. “He’s my mate, my heart—”
“And she is mine!” Daxton roared, his voice breaking as he looked down at Talon. “I won’t stand by and watch that dark magic take them both.”
I pushed myself upright, trembling, vision swimming with gold and black spots. Holding my breath, I watched Talon’s chest rise. They were ragged, shallow breaths, but at least he was breathing.
My magic had done something.
I looked for the discarded arrow, but realized it must have dissolved into ash, leaving only a jagged wound still rimmed with blackened veins in Talon’s chest.
“He’s alive,” I whispered. “But it left something behind.”
Rhea leaned over him, sobbing as his eyes flickered open. “Talon?”
He managed a ghost of a smile. “Hey. Don’t cry.”
I swallowed hard, feeling the sickness of shadow still twisting around us. “The darkness… It’s inside him. I slowed it down, but it’s spreading.”
“How long?” Castor whispered as he moved behind me to keep the crew at a distance.
“It depends.” I didn’t have the heart to voice a true timeline.
Rhea’s head snapped toward me. “Try again, Sky. Take these shadows out. Heal him, please.”
“I can’t.” My voice broke at the confession. “I tried. The shadows fed on me, on my magic. If I try and heal him again, it’ll consume us both.”
Silence fell, broken only by the ragged sound of Talon’s breathing. I’d brought him back from the crossing for now, but I didn’t believe I could keep him here much longer.
Talon’s voice was weak but also filled with something aching and tender. “Skylar…”
Somehow, I mustered the strength to look at him, tears burning in my eyes.
“Will I… will I live nine months?” he rasped, gaze flicking to Rhea, his palm pressing against their unborn babe. “Long enough to meet our child?”
The question stole the air from my lungs. Rhea froze, tears spilling anew as she pressed his hand to her heart.
“I—” My lips closed around the truth. I couldn’t lie to him. Not Talon. “I don’t know.”
Talon smiled faintly, though his eyes glimmered with pain. He knew, and yet he still tried to mend the peace in our group. “Then we’ll just have to make each day count.”
And as his eyelids fluttered shut again, I felt the slow pulse of the shadow magic spread. Black veins inching outward over his skin.
Gods, I didn’t want Talon to suffer. I couldn’t watch him die a slow death like this.
And Rhea? Rhea…
I clenched my fists tight, causing my knuckles to turn white. Fuck this. This wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.
Daxton’s hand came down gently on my shoulder, grounding me back to the moment. His touch was warm and steady, the opposite of the frigid shadow rot that had tried to swallow me whole.
“Hey,” he said softly, his rough voice breaking the silence. “You did it. You pulled him from the crossing.”
I shook my head, staring at Talon’s shallow breaths. “But for how long? I didn’t bring him back. I only gave him time, Dax.”
“Then we use it.” His glowing eyes met mine with fierce certainty. “We’ll find a way to stop this shadow rot, Sky. Together, we will find a way.”
For a moment, I let myself breathe. The night air was heavy with grief, but Daxton’s presence kept me from slipping under. Then—
“Skylar.”
The voice was a whisper, almost ghostlike. But unmistakable in who it belonged to.
My heart stuttered, and my magic flared instinctively. The bond that tied me to my beta ignited in my chest like a burning thread snapping taut.
“Where are you, Shaw?”
Daxton stiffened beside me, instantly alert. “Skylar, what is it?”
I couldn’t answer Daxton as I tried to focus on the pack bond. It pulsed, sending a wave of panic crashing through me. Shaw’s presence flickered, and a cold sense of dread curled around my throat. He was in trouble.
I quieted my mind.
“Solace.” The word was barely more than a whisper.
My pulse spiked, and the world tilted as adrenaline surged through me.
No, no, no. I was not losing him.
“Shaw! Shaw!” I called, reaching out with my magic, but the thread was fading fast.
“Skylar!” Daxton caught my arm. “What’s happening?”
“We need to go to Solace. Right. Now!”
“I’ll stay with the wolves,” Castor said. “Go.”
“Sail back to Silver Meadows,” Daxton said to Castor, before stepping to my side. “If you beat us there, call Crimson City and Aelius forces, prepare for our armies to sail east. Have Magnus ready the shifters and Gunnar our armies. Spread the word of Minaeve and Taran’s alliance.”
Castor nodded. “I will see it done.”
Daxton returned the gesture before stepping to my side and releasing his magic, teleporting us back to my homeland.