Chapter 44 #2
He stared at her for a moment, teeth nibbling at the inside of his cheek.
One the breath of a tired sigh, he said: “We passed your death onto someone else.” Her heart stilled.
“We don’t know who they are or where they are, but Dieve has said that they are of equal importance.
And while I should just allow Fate to run its course, I can’t consciously sit back and allow anyone else to die. I’ve already been selfish enough.”
The last thing she wanted was for any innocent being to die because of her. This feeling had remained in the forefront of her conscience for years and years, from the moment she discovered what had happened to the people of Nym—to the Mystics she was supposed to protect.
“Then we will find them.” She said firmly. “We will find them and we will save them, too.”
“It could take years—”
She shook her head, leaning forward to press her forehead against his.
“We have the time.” Her lips brushed over his.
Aziel hesitated, his hands twitching against hers before he finally relented.
His fingers plunged into her hair, pulling her down to him hard and fast. Their lips met in a heated kiss, her hands immediately ripping at the buttons of his dress shirt.
“You are the most daring woman I have ever met in my entire life.” He chuckled, but the deep honey sound of his laughter was cut short by a gasp when her hand dipped below the hem of his trousers.
Nymiria arched her brow, biting back on her grin. “And I’m yours.”
The sun warmed her, the soft breeze rustling the grass just enough to tickle along her skin.
She felt vines weaving through her fingers, blossoms sprouting between her toes.
Each cloud that passed overhead seemed as if they’d been painted—all of them almost too perfect to be real.
The head stones she laid in between were perfectly framed with the most beautiful moonflowers she’d ever produced.
Though they weren’t in bloom during this time of day, they were still beautiful and she could wait to see how they looked once the sun began to sink below the arch of hills in the distance.
A shadow suddenly fell across her face. Nymiria pushed herself up onto her elbows, her furrowed brow relaxing when she saw Desi standing at the entrance to the garden.
“I figured I’d find you here.” The soldier sighed.
Since the war, Desi’s hair was in its natural state—haloed around her head in beautifully tight curls.
They bounced when she plopped down next to Nymiria in the grass, both of their gazes fixed on the name etched into the ornate marble stone at their side. “He finally had them moved, I see.”
Nymiria nodded, offering her friend a small smile. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Phyona loved the green veins in the marble. She said it suited him.”
“It does.”
Her fingers wove through the grass, more flowers sprouting from beneath her palm.
The sound of trees rustling in the wind and birds chirping in their branches drowned out the silence.
Nymiria slowly slid her hand towards Desi’s until the tips of their fingers touched.
Desi didn’t even look, she merely wove their fingers together and let out a relieved breath. “I thought you would hate me forever.”
“Why would I hate you?” Nymiria snorted.
“We’ve all done things we aren’t necessarily proud of.
Besides, I think that it would be very hypocritical of me to not forgive you.
I think that I was more upset at the fact that my mother had her claws in everything that I loved.
I don’t think she left any part of my life untouched. ”
Desi scrunched up her nose, squeezing her hand affectionately.
“There are some things that she couldn’t touch.
She tried, but they were too strong. You and Aziel, for instance.
The love you have for one another. I don’t think any amount of her hate could have ruined it completely. And then there’s you.”
“Me?”
Her friend laughed. “I find it absolutely ridiculous that you don’t see just how powerful you truly are.
You always tried to stay in the background and follow the rules so that you wouldn’t draw attention to yourself, Nym, but you were never meant to be hidden.
You have this light inside of you, and while I’m not certain if it is because of your godhood or if you were just simply destined to shine as bright as you do, I do know that you have a tendency to bring out the best in people.
Especially those who just need help finding it. ”
“And that is a mystery to me.” Desi continued. “That the people around me who emit such light are the ones who are often left to suffer in a darkness they don’t deserve. You took the brunt of the shadows, Nym. But it’s time for you to step out of it.”
Nymiria’s gaze slowly moved to her home, a smile blooming across her face when she saw Aziel walking in their direction.
She thought of all of the pain and all of the joy that led them to this moment—she thought of his laughter, his hand slipping into hers, their fingers brushing.
She thought of the disbelief in his voice when she first told him she loved him, how he asked her to repeat it over and over again and how he never grew tired of it, even after the hundredth time she’d said it.
She thought of how his hands smelled of leather and tobacco, his sleepy eyes squinting in the morning light to see her despite being blinded by the light.
She looked at Desi and remembered every single night she’d stayed at her side, holding her as she cried herself to sleep.
She remembered how much her friend fretted over her well-being—encouraging her to eat enough, making sure she had water in the morning.
Desi had loved her through the darkest moments of her life.
She’d held her… healed her. And despite all of the odds, was still by her side even now.
She thought of Trio, of Thorn and Raven, and every single person she’d met that had given her grace for her mistakes.
“I think I have.”