She’s trying to hold it all in, but I feel the tremble beneath her skin, running through my veins. I forget the chaos I’d left. The fear ebbs away.
Because she’s safe.
She senses me, drawn by our blood, by our bond, and when she turns, I close the distance in three strides.
“Oh, you found me,” she murmurs, sniffling, dragging a rough hand beneath her eyes. “I was about to make my way up.”She gestures vaguely over my shoulder.
I know what she’s pointing towards. The Council Building. Its gates loom in the distance, visible for miles by deliberate design. It would have taken her hours on foot to reach it.
“But I…” Her voice falters as I step closer, her head tipping back to meet my gaze.
“I willalwaysfind you,” I vow, catching her hand before it rises again.
Her cheeks are streaked pink from cold and tears, her eyes rimmed red, her lips kissed with the faintest blue. And yet, she is beautiful.
In every form. In every colour.
But her hands are freezing. Not the soft, soothing coolness her touch offers me, but a cruel, bone-deep cold.
I shrug off my suit jacket and drape it around her trembling shoulders, lifting her into my arms without pause. I cradle her to my chest, urging my warmth to bleed into her.
“I didn’t mean to flit,” she whispers, relaxing into me, fingers curling in my shirt.
I wish I wasn’t wearing it. I wish we were both bare, skin to skin, so I could engulf her in my heat.
“I know,” I say softly, lifting her cold fingers to my lips. “Although, it was impressive.” I smile against her fingertips, and it brings some colour to her pale cheeks.
“Can we…” Her eyes flit around us. “Can we just have a moment? Before we go back?”
I study her, tilting my head. “I promised them I’d find you and—”
“You did.” She smiles with her interruption, small and sweet. “Good job, by the way.” Her slight praise warms me. “I just need more time to… think.”
Now probably isn’t the time to tell her how the brothers reacted to her sudden departure. How they were willing to tear the district apart to find her. I know they’d destroy this land, their home, burn this entire realm to ash if they deemed it necessary.
But I also can’t deny her. She wants time, and we promised we’d listen, give her what she needed.
Anything.
Still holding her with one arm, I pull my phone from my pocket and tap Sai’s name.
It rings once.
“Tell me you’ve found her, because the fuckingdogsare out—”
“I have her.” My words are met by silence, then muffled sounds.
A scuffle, some grunts, a sharp hiss, a few curses and foreign words.
I quietly apologise to Jasmine as the sounds of a struggle continue. When it doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon, I sigh and lower the phone to her. “Speak to them, ease them.”
She wets her lips. “Hi.” Everything goes quiet. “Sorry about the whole… flitting thing. I didn’t mean to, it kinda just happened—”
“Where are you?” Kane’s voice is dripping with the dark.
Jasmine’s eyes widen at the sound.“Why does he sound like that?”she asks only me.
Because your name alone dragged them back from the edge of madness.
