I quickly look away as nausea threatens to rise up my throat.
I've never seen Maven break the way she does now. In the shocked silence of this haunting forest, her first cry of grief tears my heart clean in two. For the first time since I met my resilient, strong keeper, she breaks down into heart-rending tears.
This was her caretaker. Her oldest friend. The only person who helped Maven survive hell before helping me survive my own version of it over the last six months. Maven just barely gotLillian back into her life. Out of all the things that motherfucking wraith could have done to hurt her, this is the worst.
For one horrible moment that seems to last forever, none of us knows what to say to comfort our devastated keeper.
I can't breathe.
Finally, Baelfire gets on his knees in front of Maven and pulls her against his chest, carefully blocking the ghastly view. I glance at the others for the first time and see that Crypt’s side is still healing from where I accidentally cut him with a spike of ice in the darkness. Otherwise, my quintet is unharmed as we face this new horror of Maven facing a loss so deep.
We need to get her to safety,Silas finally says through the bond, carefully leaving our keeper out of it as he glances at the spell around us.This will fade and that damned wraith will come back to taunt her.
Yes, get her to safety and I’ll hunt down that godsforsaken fucking wraith myself,Crypt grits telepathically.
You can’t kill him without blessed bone,I remind him before looking at Baelfire.
Bael nods and tries to brush tears off Maven's face without letting her see past his big frame. “Come on, Raincloud,” he murmurs softly, trying to move her. “Let’s get out of here.”
“No,” she resists, wiping at the tears that drip off her cheeks and chin. “I'm waiting for her.”
Silas’s expression is dark as he once again glances at the awful scene before us. “Her spirit isn’t here,sangfluir.”
“Not L—Lillian,” she manages, her voice raspy from crying. “My mother. I prayed, so she has to come. I have to fix this.”
Does she think Syntyche will bring Lillian back? I feel so fucking helpless, watching the woman I love in such pain.
And Silas is right. The light spell is slowly fading around us as darkness creeps back into this area of Everbound Forest. I don't want Maven anywhere near shadows right now—not whenthat piece of shit could try to get to her again. She needs time to mourn, but her safety is my biggest priority for the rest of my life.
Waiting for Syntyche isn't an option.
“Snowdrop,” I murmur, picking up the etherium knife she dropped. “It's time to go.”
“No,” she sobs.
“We'll give her a proper burial tomorrow, darling,” Crypt promises gently, crouching beside her to cradle her face. He looks as tortured as the rest of us to see her like this. “In the daylight. She’ll be laid to rest beside your headstone, if you like, but we need to get you out of here.”
“No.”
Even in the depths of mourning, she's the most stubborn person I've ever met. Baelfire is just holding her as she weeps. Silas has silently begun using magic to clean up the worst of the macabre scene, trying to spare her from seeing more of this tragedy.
One moment, Maven is inconsolable as she's wrapped tightly in Baelfire's arms. But just as her spell begins to finally fade and I hear fiendish, chilling laughter from gods know where, her rage takes over. Maven promptly rips herself out of Baelfire's arms, holding her hand toward me for her knife.
Silas sees and shakes his head. “No,sangfluir.Now is not the time?—”
“Now is the only time,” she seethes. “He came to carry out Amadeus’s warning. He’s only lingering to feed on my fear, and then he’ll disappear again. I’m not waiting to avenge her.”
“Maven—” I begin to protest, panic squeezing my heart at the thought of that twisted bastard getting anywhere close to her.
She silences my words with a look that shows me all the raw fury hiding beneath her broken exterior.
I let my argument die. After all, my keeper found a way back from fuckingParadisewhen the gods insisted she had to stay. If the gods themselves couldn't stop her from accomplishing what she put her mind to, how the hell do I stand a chance?
But I'm not leaving her side.
Never fucking doing that again.
We're all tense and silent as the last of her holy magic spell slowly evaporates, leaving nothing but the dim glow from Crypt’s lit-up markings behind. Maven holds her etherium dagger, twisting it slowly in her hand as she bides her time.
