54. A Deadly Promise
A Deadly Promise
Fintan
Fintan didn’t know if he’d ever stop screaming. His entire body was collapsing as he struggled after Kaiden.
For fuck’s sake leave me here to die!
He knew Kaiden would never leave him behind. Fintan tripped over a body. Another reminder not everyone had made it out. He half ran, half limped down the tunnel. He wiped at the tears blinding him as he stumbled and let out a string of curses.
Cahira. Oh gods, Cahira.
She had sacrificed herself to save them. He had lost her forever. No, not forever. Where there was an entrance, there had to be a matching one, an exit. Somewhere. Aradia had been the key. But now —
He glanced at Kaiden’s full arms. She hadn’t moved since Kaiden had poured every ounce of his magic into her. She hadn’t breathed. She hadn’t come back. What did that mean for opening the gates? What did that mean for Cahira?
Oh gods, please!
Fintan stumbled and slipped in blood as the ground beneath him shook.
Keep moving.
Was it Kaiden’s voice or his?
She had said to live, live for her. By the gods he would make sure they all would.
Pulling from his pit of despair, rage, and hatred he gathered strength enough to follow Kaiden through the smoke-filled tunnel.
The first wisp of clean air hit his face as they launched through the darkness and into the clearing. Pain radiated through his entire being.
He succumbed to it, curling against the wind and sobbed. His sobs turned into panicked coughs as he gripped his chest. Was it possible for his heart to physically break, to fracture into a million pieces? This feeling, would it ever go away?
“We’ll get her back,” Kaiden whispered, laying on the ground beside him.
No stone would be left unturned; he would walk straight into Moliath’s depths for her. There was no length he would not go. If he had to defy the gods themselves he would. He would find Cahira and he would bring her home.