Hayle stepped up to her. “Youcando this, baby. Vox’s life depends on it. Viana’s life. Lierick’s life. You’ve got this.”
She shook her head vigorously, her eyes pleading with Hayle. “What if I go back too far? What if we never meet? What if I never come to Boellium?”
He pulled her out of my arms and kissed her hard. “Avalon Halhed, you are my Soul Tie. I will find you in every single lifetime. I love you. I believe in you unconditionally. You can do this.”
A shout from behind us in the small corridor had Hayle tensing. “We’ve got a group of them,” someone growled. “Get over here, by order of the Baron of the First Line.”
“Or what?” Shay yelled back, and I could hear them fighting.
Hayle kissed Avalon again. “You can save us, Avie. I believe in you.” Then he was off, throwing himself into the fray. I didn’t look over at the fight, the sounds of steel clanging bringing more and more soldiers.
This was it. This was the moment that would make or break us. I gripped Avalon’s face, her skin feeling cool and clammy beneath my fingertips.
“He’s right. We can do this. Together. Just like foresight, okay?” Fuck, I hoped I wasn’t lying out my ass, because I only knew the theory behind this. “Pull all the emotions in the air into yourself. The grief. The fear. The anger. Pull it into yourself and push it into that barren desert in your chest, until it feels like you’re going to explode. Then just let go,” I said softly.
Someone grunted in pain, and she tried to look, but I held her face tightly. “Don’t worry about that. It won’t matter in a minute. Concentrate on me. Just me. Feel the pull, Avie. And then think of an anchor moment. A time when you felt safe. Happy. That is your return point. Focus on that and only that.”
She closed her eyes, and I felt all the hairs lift on my arms. She was doing it.
Yes.My own fear bubbled up in my chest, but I pushed it back down. I had to believe that the Goddess knew what she was doing, that this was part of the plan. That she’d take us back to where we needed to be.
Light burst from Avalon’s chest, spinning around us like the stars had fallen to earth and gotten trapped, dragging down more and more stars until the power pushing against my chest felt like it would burn me alive. I looked past her face as reality literally just melted away like tinder in a bonfire. More and more lights, until the whole world was gone, and just Hayle, Vox, and I remained. And then they disappeared too, fading away like a dream just before you woke. It was just me and Avalon, in a world that no longer existed.
Her eyes snapped open, and I smiled down at her.
“Good girl.”
Then I was gone too.
Twenty-One
Avalon
Before
“Ihope the Goddess knows what she’s doing, because I’ll never give you up, Avalon Halhed.” Vox’s lips were so close to mine that I got lost in the declaration.
Something niggled in the back of my brain, an anxiety beating in my chest. Something was wrong, but it wasn’t Vox. I wholeheartedly agreed with his statement. He was mine, and I’d fight Fate itself to keep him.
I looked over at Lierick, who was frowning. “Do you feel it too?” he asked, and I nodded. Braxus whined loudly, which was all I needed to know.
We’d been here before.
“Get the book!” I told Lierick, and he sprinted out of the room.
“What’s happening?” Vox demanded, and Hayle sat up on the bed, frowning at Braxus and Alucius as they said… something to him.
“We’ve been here before. I’ve reset time. I don’t know why.”
Hayle shook his head. “The hounds don’t know either, but it was bad. That’s all they can tell me. Whatever happened was catastrophic, but they don’t know the details.”
Braxus whined again, and I squatted down in front of him. He licked at my face, and I scratched his ears. As Alucius paced, I reached out to stroke a reassuring hand down her coat. “It’ll be okay. We’ll fix it.”
Lierick reappeared in the room, holding the book. I felt Vox’s power settle over my skin, silencing this conversation from prying ears. Grabbing the book, I skimmed the pages as I read about my future. A future that would never come to pass now.
In its wake, there was only rage. “Fucking Eugene.He is adeadman.”
I passed the book to Hayle, and Vox read over his shoulder. By the end, his body was vibrating with anger.
