The unspoken words hung in the air between us: we didn’t know how much time I had tomorrow.
I closed the gulf between our bodies, wrapping my arms around him as I pressed my face against his chest. “Don’t risk that, Elwin,” I whispered against his shirt. “I’ll work on buying as much time for myself as I can tomorrow. Promise me none of you will come tonight.”
His voice deepened as he growled. “You can’t ask that of us, love. You can’t expect us to wait around and do nothing. We have to come to you tonight.”
I pulled back, steel filling my spine as I stared into his eyes. His own determination reflected back at me, leaving me feeling like we were in a battle for dominance right now.
“I have nothing to live for if you three are killed!” I yelled, throwing my hands in the air. “If you die tonight, what stops me from just handing myself to Zeus on a silver platter tomorrow? My life was worthless before I had you three, and I can’t go back to that! I can’t!”
His voice rose to match my own as he loomed over me, biting back, “And what the hell do you think our lives would be like without you, Alexandra? Sunshine and rainbows as we happily think of the few memories we were able to make together in the short time we got?”
My lip curled in a quiet snarl at the sound of the sarcasm dripping from his tone. I wasn’t joking around.
His hands were on my face suddenly, gripping me tightly as he swooped down.
Amidst the turmoil of impending doom, his lips met mine with a fervor that spoke of urgency and love beyond measure. As our mouths came together, it felt as if time froze. The world around us faded into insignificance. His kiss was a bittersweet fusion of desperation and tenderness, a passionate embrace that conveyed our unwavering commitment to see each other on the other side of this.
The thought that this could be our last kiss left me feeling like someone had punched me in the chest, cracking the cavity wide open. The thought that this could be the last time we held each other flitted through my mind.
No. It couldn’t be.
“I won’t give up,” I bit out between kisses, my eyes burning from the tears welling in them now. “I will give them hell, Elwin, as long as you don’t come tonight.”
The taste of salt on our lips mirrored the bitter reality of our circumstances, though the fervent press of his mouth against mine spoke of a love that defied the constraints of time and fate. In this life and the next, what remained true, was that all of our souls were fated to be one.
As his lips moved against mine, every brush, every press, carried the weight of his love, his longing, and his heartache.
“I love you, Alexandra.”
His fingers moved to tangle into my hair as all the breath was stolen from my lungs with his deepening kiss.
I don’t know how long we lost ourselves in each other’s embrace or when the tears had finally dried. However, when I heard Maria calling my name very forcefully, with a note of fear in her tone, I knew our time together in this ink and paper world had to come to an end.
ALEXANDRA! WAKE UP, NOW!
I broke our kiss, quickly explaining, “I’m going to be pulled from this world any second. The person keeping an eye on me while I called for you is demanding that I wake up, and she wouldn’t do that if it wasn’t dire.”
His eyes flashed with fear once more before leaning forward to rest his forehead against mine. “We will come for you tomorrow, Alexandra. Give them absolute hell until then, love.”
My whispered promise to do exactly that was ripped from me as I slammed back into my full consciousness, staring at the parchment full of smeared ink beneath me.
All at once, the sickening feeling in my stomach that a curse was nearby pressed into me. I rushed to my feet, whirling around and shoving a wide-eyed Maria behind me as I took in what I knew to be the final curse I’d yet to meet. Casus.
A shiver immediately coursed through my spine, signaling the presence of something downright sinister in my presence. While Zora and Elias had given off an eerie and disturbing aura, there was just something…different about Casus.
His entire being emanated an aura of malevolence that seemed to permeate the very air I breathed.
I felt Maria shaking behind me as she grabbed my hand and squeezed.
His long white hair cascaded over his shoulders like a frozen waterfall, offering an eerie contrast against the shadows that clung to the corners of the room around him. Those pure black eyes, devoid of any discernible emotion, fixed upon me with an intensity that sent a chill down my spine. His face, both delicate in features and sharp with angles that defied human beauty, was like a masterpiece carved from ice and darkness.
“So,” his deep voice echoed as he took steps toward us, “you are hope personified.”
I didn’t let my voice shake as I answered, “That would be me.”
I could feel his gaze dissecting my every thought as he prowled closer, his full black suit standing out starkly amongst all the white of this room.
“It seems we have much to talk about and not a lot of time to do so,” he surmised as he took a seat in one of the chairs in the middle of the room. Gesturing to the other, he demanded, “Sit.”
