Chapter 23
“Iforgive you.” Those three words were like a balm to all of Rook’s unseen wounds. When she’d nearly died in the frozen water those long weeks ago, he’d assumed she would hate him forever.
He pulled her tight against him and could feel the wetness of her tears dampen his chest. She was fading. He could feel his grip on her mind slipping. The world he had created around them started to shimmer. He reached one hand down, tilting her chin upward, and stole one last kiss.
“I hate you,” she said, giving him a sad smile.
He smirked and brushed his thumb down the apple of her cheek. “I love you, too, little bird.”
The words had slipped from his tongue before he could stop them, but he did not regret the admission. If he was to truly lose her this time, he was glad she knew.
The shock on her face was evident, but before she could say anything more, the dreamscape wavered again, and his hold on her world ended.
* * *
Rook was backin the fabric shop, his hand firmly gripping Soren’s as she lay on the crafting table before him. The sewing needle and thread he’d used to mend her injury lay beside her leg, along with the strips of cloth he had used to staunch the wound. The blood on his hands was beginning to dry and flake off like pieces of ash from a dying fire. It was still sticky where their palms met, and he kissed her knuckles before separating his fingers from hers. She had minutes left.
He pressed his lips to her forehead, not caring that her hair was matted to her scalp with the blood of the enemy. Before he could whisper his last goodbye, however, the door burst open. His weapon was in his hands, and he was poised to strike.
Before he could swing his blade, the female Celestial donning the armour of the enemy held up her empty palms and said, “Wait—I can help.”
“I sincerely doubt that,” Rook ground out. His teeth were pressed so hard together he feared they might crack.
“Let me save her,” the woman said softly, not taking her eyes off his sword.
“Save her?” He let out a sickening laugh. “It is your people who have done this.”
“I know, but I am not here for them. Please, let me heal her.”
Rook looked at her, and then at Soren, whose breathing had slowed to a dangerous rate. He flicked his eyes back to the strange woman, and something in him said to trust her.
“Fine, but if you try anything, I will remove the hands you say will heal and show you what the true meaning of pain is.”
To his surprise, she quirked a smile and said, “I would expect no less.”
The woman had an intense look of determination in her golden eyes as she moved to Soren’s side and placed her hands over her calf. Her palms glowed with a soft violet light that seemed to soak into Soren’s tanned skin and snake through her veins. Within seconds, her whole body glowed violet as the woman’s power took hold.
When she was finished, she backed away, breathing heavily, and sat in the chair Rook had been previously occupying. His blade fingers itched as she then traced her index finger along Soren’s face. What she said next took him by surprise.
“She looks so much like her mother.”
“You knew Celandine?” Rook asked, still wary of this stranger.
The smile she gave him made her look as aged as all the years she had been in existence. Then she nodded, wiping away a stray tear. “She was my best friend.” She held up her hands. “She was the only one, until my mate, who knew of my ability.”
“How does it work?” he asked, lowering his blade. If she was going to attack him, she would have already done it.
He rolled the tension from his shoulders and waited for her to answer.
“My father liked to experiment, you see. The Maker of all things got bored, and making different versions of his children brought him joy. Adriel was gifted the power of healing himself, whereas I was gifted the power to heal others, though mine is finite. Father must have known I would use my gifts on the people of Entheas and did not want me to upset the balance of nature here.”
“What is the cost?” Rook asked.
Her brows pressed together in confusion. “I’m sorry, I did not catch the meaning behind your question.”
“If your power is finite, like you say, what does it take from you?”
“Years,” she said simply. “I have lived a long life, you see. Each time I heal, I age backward. Since I am the only one of my kind, it is hard to guess what would happen should I empty the well, but I would imagine I would just cease to exist.”
“Thank you,” he said, nodding toward Soren, “for giving a piece of yourself to save her.”
“I would give her the last of me, if I had to,” she said honestly. “Her mother was a light in my life, and I would die happy knowing I saved her child.”
Luscinia jumped in surprise when Soren’s hand squeezed hers, and she looked at Rook with wide eyes. “She is coming back to us.”
Rook tried to ignore how the word us made him feel coming from this stranger’s mouth. She was his, and he did not relish sharing her with anyone else when he already had Baz and Enara to contend with.
He tucked his jealousy away and walked over to take Luscinia’s place at Soren’s side, replacing her hand with his.
Soren’s petite hand flexed in his, and he was happy to notice that the warmth had returned to her fingers.
Her eyelids fluttered open to meet his. The browns and golds in her irises met the cloudless skies of his.
“You love me?” she asked breathlessly.
“Always, little bird.”
Before she could articulate how those words made her feel and what she wanted to say in response, her body stiffened. She sat up swiftly, the fingers of her free hand searching for her dagger as she glared at the soldier in the corner.
Rook placed his hands on her shoulders, dragging her attention back to him. “She is a friend,” he said in a calming tone. “She healed you.”
Soren narrowed her eyes at the woman, still hesitant to trust someone who bore the armor of Anistera. “Why did you heal me?” She had a feeling that the woman’s actions would have a cost, and she wanted to know what bargain had been struck while she had drifted between the living and the lasting.
“Because you,” Luscinia started, looking to the both of them, “are the only ones who can defeat Adriel.”
“Not anymore, not without the Oculus,” Soren said, the cool hands of guilt crawling under her skin like a cluster of spiders waiting to catch her in their webs. “It was stolen in the battle to leave Thorncrest.”
“Fucking Corvus,” Rook growled, baring his teeth.
Soren nodded. “I’m sorry,” she said, disappointed for letting that happen. “I didn’t know it was taken until it was already too late.”
“I know, little bird, it’s okay,” Rook told her. “We will find another way.”
She gave him a small smile. She liked this softer side of him. She did not see it often, only in glimpses so small she usually thought the moments were imagined. His entire life, he had been trained to be strong, to not show emotion, and to endure pain without flinching. Now, he was free to feel what his heart had fought so valiantly to hide, and it warmed her from tip to toe.
“There is no need for that,” Luscinia said, reaching behind her.
Rook placed himself between the woman and Soren, fingers inching toward his weapon, just in case. He didn’t want to be unprepared for any surprises.
The woman noticed his change in stance and chuckled lightly. “I believe this may help,” she said, holding the metal artifact in her palms.
Soren’s eyes widened, and she gently pushed on Rook’s hip to move him aside so she could take a better look. The metal eye peered up at her from Luscinia’s fair hands, and she could feel the buzz of energy that emanated from the otherworldly metal. She was surprised she hadn’t noticed the sensation before. The loss of blood must have temporarily muted her body’s response to the item.
Soren hopped off the table, feeling better than she had in weeks, and took the artifact for her own as Luscinia offered it to her.
“What did you say your name was again?” Soren asked.
The woman chuckled again, her gilded eyes glinting. “It is Luscinia, but you may call me friend.”
* * *
Luscinia hurrieddown the alleyways that led to the outskirts of Edras Mora. She was running out of time. If she stayed in Entheas any longer, she risked sending herself to the afterlife.
Before leaving Soren and Rook with the Oculus, she had outlined the basics of Adriel’s plan. She would have given anything to stay a few moments longer, but she would be of little help if she were dead.
She flew through the doorway of an abandoned home on the edge of the city and padded down the cellar stairs as swiftly as her armor would allow. She weaved through the random items that had been stored there over the decades and pushed aside the tapestry that hung on the wall to reveal a portal. The golden light shimmered as she stepped through and felt a sharp tug behind her navel as her body was displaced.
Her feet landed firmly on the soft, white sandy beach of the Esinian Isles. The gates to all eight province capitals, as well as the larger gate to Anistera, lay before her in a circle.
She ran for the archway, feeling the seconds winding down until her time was up, and hoped her tardiness did not raise suspicion.
Luscinia walked through the blinding light and onto the rocky cliff in Anistera. She schooled her features into a stony mask when she arrived to find ten of her brothers and sisters, all Adriel loyalists, surrounding the gate.
Adriel, who stood in the center of the group, took a step forward, his lips turned up in a satisfied grin that said, “Gotcha.” She wanted to smack the smugness right off his face.
“Running a little late, aren’t you, sister?” he asked.
“Just dealing with a few stragglers,” she replied nonchalantly.
“The orders were given to return to Anistera three hours ago,” he stated plainly. “Care to explain how you deliberately disobeyed a direct command?”
“Must not have heard it,” she said, her hand tightening on her blade.
“Funny how you happened to stay in the same city Soren had been spotted in,” he mused, looking at his well-groomed fingertips.
“If you look up the meaning of the word coincidence, it may help you to understand things better,” she replied with a bright smile. She was sick of pretending she agreed with this monster.
“Enough of these games,” he spat, gesturing to the guards on his right.
They parted to reveal Horath and Malik, their skin showing obvious signs of torture. She resisted the urge to run to them.
“What have you done?” She was seething now and could feel the anger rippling beneath her skin, her hatred clawing at her willpower to demand justice for her friends.
“You see, I knew something had been off with you recently,” Adriel explained. “So, I thought I would question a few of your friends regarding your recent whereabouts.”
“We are sorry, Luscinia!” Horath cried.
“We didn’t mean to tell him anything!” Malik finished for him.
Luscinia’s eyes went dark, hatred for her wayward brother filling in all the gaps where light might have slipped out.
She softened her gaze when she looked to her friends. “All is forgiven. We will find a way through this.”
Adriel laughed at the sentiment. “Kill them.”
“No!” Luscinia shrieked, running toward her friends.
Two more of her siblings stopped her in her tracks, and she tried to get through to them. “Nakir, Ansell, please don’t let him do this! Don’t you see this is wrong?”
Their eyes were blank, no emotion resting behind their gaze. The siblings she had once known were gone, replaced by Adriel’s dark influence.
She looked on, horrified, as Horath’s and Malik’s throats were slit and they slumped forward, blood gathering at their feet. She continued to watch as the crimson pool expanded and bathed her armored boots in waves of red.
“You are a monster!” she screamed. She managed to shift out of her siblings’ grip and lunged for Adriel, slashing out, her sword catching him on the cheek.
“You insolent bitch!” he bellowed, grasping at his face. “Throw her in with the rest of our traitorous family.” The cut was already healed, but his face was still marred by the Oculus scar, which made him look even more menacing, but Luscinia did not balk. She would not give him the satisfaction of cowering before him.
“You know, I was happy when I thought Celandine was dead,” she spat. “Because at least I knew she would finally be free of you.”
Luscinia’s world was rocked when Adriel’s fist connected with her face, shattering her jaw.
She smiled through the blood in her teeth. “You’re too late.” She started coughing, choking on her own blood. She spat toward his feet to clear her throat.
“Get her out of my sight—now!” Adriel’s voice was filled with malice.
Luscinia laughed wildly as she was taken away. Before she was fully out of sight, though, she yelled back one final time.
“You will soon know what our father felt—the betrayal of a son.”