Chapter Twenty-One
Emelyn
E xhaustion clawed at my limbs, a relentless beast that sought to drag me down into its depths. For days now, if I wasn’t practicing my bending, I was healing Ace until I was spent. At least I was persistent.
All of his bleeding had stopped. I’d watched as the angry, red burns had transitioned to tender scabs then scars.
Broken bones and wounds had knitted under my touch.
Luana fell asleep in the chair next to his bed.
I told her to get some rest because she was going to fall over if she didn’t.
Before she went to bed, she helped me wrap his chest and back to support the small stumps starting to appear.
Hopefully, his wings would grow back completely and he wouldn’t have any issues flying again.
Despite how well the healing sessions had been going, though, Ace was still asleep.
His silence was a void, swallowing my hopes whole. I yearned for his eyes to flicker open, for his hands to sign something to me. I craved the sight of that infuriating, endearing grin that could cut through the gloom of any bad day.
Darkness crept into the edges of my vision. I blinked rapidly, fighting it off. How long would this take? Would he wake up at all? Had we been too late all along? Would his mind remain lost?
"Damn it, Ace, wake up," I growled, my voice a raw edge of frustration. His chest rose and fell, but he still didn’t stir. Tears threatened to spill over.
I clenched my fists, nails digging into my trembling palms as if trying to anchor myself to something solid amidst the chaos of emotions happening in my chest. Everyone had lied.
Shay kept the rebellions secrets and so did Atreya.
And then Kade left, then lied and left me again.
In that charged moment, as if summoned by my thoughts, I sensed Kade's presence slicing through the haze of my exhaustion.
I could feel his Hollow on the other side of the tent.
A burst of raw energy surged through my veins.
With a cry torn from the depths of my soul, I unleashed it at Kade.
The force of my power sent him tumbling backward out of the tent, a grunt escaping him as he hit the ground.
My breaths came in sharp gasps. I closed the distance between us, standing over him where he lay sprawled in his shadows.
"Get up," I spat, darkness curling at the edges of my vision, but I pushed past it and let the well of power in me open and swell.
"It's about time you acknowledged me," Kade quipped, a lopsided grin reclaiming his lips as he righted himself. "Not exactly how I imagined it going, but I think you need to get it out—so come on. He readied for me.
My fingers curled into fists, and a torrent of power erupted from within me, cascading outward as my eyes ignited with that otherworldly glow.
The Peacebringer. Lunging forward, I struck him clean across the jaw—a satisfying crack that honestly made me feel better.
I lunged again, but Kade twisted and turned, his movements fluid shadows around me.
He wasn't retaliating, merely dancing away from each of my blows.
He had left me. Lied to me. Come back promising to stay and then left again.
What if he hadn’t come back? What if Valla had hurt him like she had Ace?
What if I’d lost him too? I was so fucking angry, but I knew this wasn’t fueled simply by all the betrayal.
It was fear. Valla had taken so much from me already—ripped apart pieces of my soul until I barely recognized the person left behind.
If she had taken Kade too, if she had stolen one more person I loved, I wouldn’t have been able to bear it.
Tears blurred my vision as they streaked down my face.
The wind howled through the camp, a vicious, roaring thing that bent the trees and sent embers scattering from the firepits.
The ground trembled beneath my feet, answering the rage that coursed through my veins, and in the distance, the river ran wild, its current a deafening rush against the storm that was me.
Flames licked high into the night sky, burning so hot they turned blue, the heat searing against my skin.
And then I broke.
I pounded my fists against Kade’s chest, each strike fueled by grief, fury, and everything I had held back for too long.
With a ragged sob, I tore down the mental barrier between us, letting our bond flood open.
Every emotion, every thought, every shattered piece of my heart crashed into him all at once.
The anger, the betrayal, the longing, the love, every messy piece of it.
Kade staggered back, his breath hitching, his eyes widening as my raw and untamed heart funneled straight into him.
Then, fingers wrapped around my wrist—stopping me.
Not Kade’s. His touch was familiar, something I knew better than my own heartbeat. No, this was weaker, shaking slightly. My breath caught as I turned, the world around me fading into nothing but the person in front of me.
Ace.
He was awake and standing next to me. Gripped my wrist to stop me from unleashing any more on Kade.
My power still pulsed through me, glowing in my veins, but my anger crumbled like ash in the wind. My chest caved as I lunged forward, slamming into him, my arms wrapping around him so tightly I thought I might never let go. He was warm. Solid. Alive.
A sob tore from my throat. Ace held me as tightly as he could despite his condition. His body was shaking against mine, but I didn’t care. I buried my face in his shoulder, inhaling the scent of him, the proof that he was here, that I hadn’t lost him too.
"I know he’s an idiot, but if anyone’s taking him out, it’s me," he signed with his free hand.
A watery laugh broke through the tension, and Kade chuckled from somewhere behind me, but I just clung to Ace, my fingers digging into his wrapped back as if letting go would shatter me all over again.
He’s alive. He’s alive. He’s alive.
"Oh, shut up," I murmured, a half-hearted reprimand drowned in relief. My grip on him tightened, as though I needed to continue to prove to myself that he was awake.
Around us, the camp quieted as the wind slowed, the fires went out, and the river stopped roaring.
Ace was alive, awake, and here, cradled in my arms. That was what mattered.
The rest could wait. For now, I clung to my brother, the steady thrum of his heart promising that some battles, at least, had been won.