Chapter 25 #3
‘Till my dying breath,’ I whispered, clutching her hand.
For the briefest moment, a smile passed over her pale lips as though she knew I’d keep her son safe.
Matthias smoothed her cheek, shuddering as he held back his tears.
I squeezed her fingers, breathing hard as I held back the burning pressing against my eyes.
She turned her shattered gaze back to her son, lifted her hand, brushed the hair from his eyes.
‘Un… unruly as your…’ Her smile faded, hand fell and Matthias grasped it, raised it once more to his face. A warm breeze ruffled her hair and Isbeth exhaled her final shuddering breath. Tears stung as the light in her dark eyes, once so fierce, faded.
Matthias stilled.
The world halted, a meek pause as Isbeth Elmswood made her final crossing to the other side. The only sound from Matthias was the hitch in his breath as Pablo, whining softly, laid his head on my husband’s shoulder. I joined them, placing my cheek against his other side.
Blowing out a shaky breath, Matthias laid his mother down, brushed her lids closed and kissed her bloodied forehead.
Running my fingers through Pab’s fur, I tilted my head as Matthias removed a chain from her neck.
Whatever jewel she’d worn was crusted with blood.
Matthias turned, grasping my hands and placing the jewel within.
‘It has to be you. Only you,’ he said, swallowing and closing my fingers around the jewel. ‘The ruby. The control. It’s yours, Sorrow. I’m yours.’
The jagged edges of the jewel sparked within the cocoon of my hand.
Ruby? Control? Something flashed red within my hands, and I suddenly understood what it was that I held in my hand.
Warmth invaded my being, flew through my veins and my pulse thundered as I nodded, placing the chain over my head.
Isbeth’s ruby fragment – the heart of a God – pressed against me.
A sliver of vengeance, of fury and ire, and it belonged to me.
And with it, I’d been granted a gift beyond anything the Gods could bestow.
Matthias.
I laced my fingers with his, his ragged breaths blowing the wisps of my hair, my eyes shut so tight stars burst in the blood red mist of my sight.
I refused to look at the jewel again. I may not have seen eye to eye with Isbeth, but she’d loved her children with a savage devotion.
I’d witnessed the pain flickering over her face each time she’d bid her eldest son farewell, every time she visited him at the Keep.
I ran my thumb over his hand, forcing my eyes to open.
Matthias trembled slightly, his wide gaze set on his mother as though he waited for her to sit up, ruffle his hair, pull him into an embrace.
The moments passed and silence pressed in.
A lone tear rolled down Matthias’s face.
I should say something, anything. But no words could soothe the rawness of his grief.
Pab laid his chin on Isbeth’s tattered chest, his amber eyes set on Matthias. Matthias’s quivering fingers left his mother, absently scratching the wolf’s ear.
‘I…’ he dragged back a harsh breath. His voice barely a whisper. ‘I didn’t tell her I loved her. I… didn’t…’
The king broke. A ragged cry swept through him and I clutched him, pulled him close. Pablo nuzzled his neck and Matthias grasped him, grasped us both.
I should stay here, allow him his grief.
Matthias needed this moment to say his final goodbye to the woman who’d borne him.
But fate was determined to play a fickle hand in our lives.
The violet threads within me grew restless at their confinement.
Here was a fresh body, and they slammed, writhed and bucked, eager to reach it.
I clutched my chest as though I could hold them at bay.
Isbeth may have found me lacking, but she deserved dignity. She deserved—
‘Matthias,’ my voice broke as the threads erupted, eager to raise the fresh corpse at my feet. He tilted his head, brows knitted until he saw my hand at my chest. ‘My power… We have to go. We have to go now.’
For a few moments, his mouth worked. Pablo sprang up, slipped beneath my fingers as Matthias’s gaze hardened.
Dragging in a shattered breath, he leaned down, pressed a final kiss to his mother’s head.
I was desperate to get away – the threads swirled and clawed.
The violet darkened, furious that I’d dare deny them, before slamming against me and I stumbled.
Matthias’s hand was at my elbow, steadying as the threads demanded their freedom.
‘Let’s… let’s go.’ His voice broke as he dragged his gaze away from his mother, leading me forward. I clutched him tighter. Then a thread, plum and shivering with ire, escaped. I gasped, realising it had broken free as Matthias slammed face first onto the path.
‘Matthias!’ He groaned, his hands slipping in his attempts to rise. ‘Ma—’
A hand grasped his boot. I shook my head, blinking furiously as Matthias’s startled eyes met mine. My body froze and Isbeth jerked. My soul screamed for the thread, demanded it return to me, while Matthias scrambled to his feet.
But I’d not balanced. The thread was as rogue as the fog. His mother’s bloodied fingers dug hard into his calf. Her face twisted, her skin sallow, exactly as Mama’s had been. Hollow, murky eyes locked on my husband.
And as I scrambled for the man I loved, Isbeth Elmswood rose from the dead.