I beg of you, dear Moon.
I shortened the distance between us, pushing the torch closer, yet my legs froze when Kane forced Caleb in front of him anew.
Spare my family.
Only a few yards separated me from setting Kane on fire, only a few yards separated me from killing an injured Caleb in the process.
Only a few yards separated me from ending my own life, for if I were to send the torch free, Kane’s mere touch would take me with him.
Take me instead.
“I had given you a choice, remember?” Kane crooked his head to one side, forcing his blade against Caleb’s side; Caleb’s eyes met mine before he glanced at the torch in my hand. “I allowed you a chance—something I don’t give out often,” Kane continued, unbothered by the fire I had pointed at him. “For Mories, oh dear long–resting Mories, vouched for you. Too bad you couldn’t deliver what she had promised, revealing her blatant lies to me.”
Please, dear Moon, grant my dying wish.
The strength at which my heart beat could not compare with the strongest of storms; my mind drowned in a hurricane, my mind calmed in the morning breeze.
One last wish.
The fire of my torch slowly started to ease: soon enough it would cease at once.
One last, dying wish.
My hand shook as I studied Caleb’s features—the ones that reminded me of Brian. I searched my brother’s eyes one last time.
So many things could go wrong, so many—I’d lost count.
The vulnerability I would be forced into once the torch left my hand... I only had one chance.
“The Moon has a humor of her own, doesn’t she?” Kane laughed, taking a step closer; the tip of his Royal steel sword pressed against Caleb’s side. Kane’s hand tightened around Caleb’s shoulder, keeping him in place.
Crimson covered every inch of Caleb’s face when his lips tugged upwards; his shoulders rose and fell in even rhythm when he offered me a barely visible nod.
Forgive me for the sins.
“The Moon had given me three children that I longed for,” Kane continued. “And yet, every single one of you betrayed me in the end. Every single one of you deserve what I—”
I’m sorry,I mouthed to Caleb; my hand ready to let the fire free—
My body stilled. My heart stopped.
The long–forgotten torch—stuck in my grasp, for the blade that sparkled golden pierced Caleb’s side, freezing his silent scream for eternity.
Chapter 44. Poison.
