Chapter 33 #3
He finished his assessment of the situation and nodded again, coming to some sort of a decision.
“You can’t stay here,” Saturnino said quietly.
She blinked. That was the last thing she expected him to say. Her thoughts scrambled. “I don’t understand.”
“It’s becoming harder and harder to keep you safe.” He gestured toward Pietro. “This will make it impossible. The others—”
“I won’t leave you,” she said.
“Ravenna,” he said gently. “You’re not listening to me. The longer you stay here, the more likely one of them will kill you.”
“Then come with me,” Ravenna said. “Leave them.”
“I can’t,” Saturnino said. “The best way to protect you is to remain at the palazzo.”
“There has to be some way—”
“Ravenna,” he said again, this time more firmly. “We’re wasting time. Take the path past the grotto, it will lead up to a side street.” He gave her a small, tender smile. “But you probably already know that.”
She did.
“Don’t ask this of me,” she whispered. “I can’t do it.”
“You will. You are.” He took her hand and together they crossed the room.
He opened the door and tugged her after him.
Ravenna glanced over her shoulder, her gaze landing on the Nightflame.
She pulled herself free, went and picked up the gemstone, then carefully wrapped it in a cloth she found neatly folded on the workbench.
She tied the ends, making sure it was tight enough.
Saturnino didn’t have anyone who could cast the spell. All he had was the Nightflame, essentially useless without a witch to perform the necessary enchantment.
“No,” she murmured. “No. I’m not leaving you. Maybe I can—”
Saturnino held out his hand for the Nightflame. “This is not your problem, it’s mine, and what matters to me is your safety.”
Ravenna reluctantly gave him the bundle, when what she really wanted to do was wrench it back, hold on, scream, fight.
“I have been looking for a way to break this spell for decades, Ravenna,” Saturnino said, his voice low and raw.
“You know what the cost has been. People have lost their lives. I won’t let it cost you yours.
” He exhaled sharply, like forcing air through battered lungs.
“Let me do this one pure thing. Just once. For someone who I—” He broke off, throat working furiously.
Ravenna’s heart pounded.
Say it, she thought. Please. Please, say it.
But instead, he dipped into his pockets, pulling out a slim bag, coins clinking within; he tried to hand it to her. “Take this. I can hold them off until you’re far from Florence.”
“I can’t,” Ravenna managed. This was happening too fast, their conversation derailing and spinning out of control. Her control. It seemed incredible to her that there wasn’t a solution. A way forward.
Together.
When she still refused to take the money, Saturnino reached for the hidden pocket in her gown and widened the opening with two fingers. Ravenna stared, dumbstruck, as he dropped the bag inside.
“Promise me,” he repeated, more urgent. “Promise me you’ll go straight home.”
She lifted her head, staring at him in obvious disbelief. “It can’t end this way.”
He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and cradled the side of her face with his hand, blissfully warm. “We were always going to end this way.”
Ravenna’s hands shook. “I’m never going to see you again, am I?”
“No,” he said. “Because if I do, it would mean that I have failed you. That would destroy me in a way I hope never to find out. Your promise, Ravenna.”
“I promise,” she said in a broken whisper.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought him down to her.
She pressed her lips to his and poured all her heartache into the kiss.
Every complicated, devastating, human feeling.
All that Ravenna had to give. Saturnino lifted her against him, holding her tight, one arm banded around her.
His body trembled against hers as he tasted everything she offered.
Sweetness, despair, hope. He slid his mouth to her cheek, pressed a soft, reverent kiss to it.
He shuddered, his grip tightening around her like he’d never let her go.
But Ravenna knew that he would.
Slowly, he brought her back down, her toes touching the floor, their bodies separating like a tapestry coming undone.
“You’re worth everything. All that I am and more than I deserve,” Saturnino whispered into her ear.
He let out a shaky breath. “I am named for the god of time, and yet I have no control over the time I have left. The greatest irony of my life. If I could wish for one thing, it’d be to spend an eternity by your side.
” She tried to kiss him again, but he stepped away, putting distance between them. The look on his face almost killed her.
A bittersweet smile, hollowed eyes, a brave nod.
“Go, Ravenna,” he whispered. “Do it now while I can still let you leave.”
She took a step toward him, and he immediately backed up, his eyes flaring. A hint of his usual impatient exasperation crossed his face. “Go,” he repeated, this time more coldly.
Ravenna turned away, fighting a sob.
Somehow she managed not to look back.