He crawled to her, gathering her against his chest with shaking arms. She buried her face in his neck and breathed him in.
"I thought I lost you," he murmured against her hair.
"I'm here. I'm not going anywhere."
Around them, the clearing filled with people. Someone was restraining Jasper's limp form. Someone else was checking Corin's injuries. Freya was explaining what had happened, her voice high and fast with adrenaline.
But Chloe couldn't focus on any of it. The exhaustion was crushing now, the aftermath of channeling more magic than she'd ever touched in her life. Her blood felt thin, her bones hollow. She'd given everything she had.
"Stay awake," Corin said, his hand on her face, tilting her chin up. "Chloe. Stay with me."
"Tired."
"I know. But you need to stay awake until Freya can check you over. Can you do that for me?"
She wanted to say yes. Wanted to be strong, capable, the woman who'd just faced down a dark druid and won. But her eyes were so heavy.
"Chloe."
Rest,Wendy's voice whispered, distant now, fading.You did good, little sister. Rest.
She let go.
The last thing she felt was Corin's arms tightening around her, his voice calling her name, and the gentle pulse of the land beneath her, welcoming her home.
33
CHLOE
She woke to sunlight and the smell of honey. For a long moment, Chloe just lay there, letting her senses catalog the world around her. Soft sheets. Warm quilt. A pillow that smelled like cedar. Corin's bed. Corin's room.
She let herself sink back into the safety of her surroundings but her body still felt hollowed out, like someone had scooped everything vital from her bones and left only the shell behind. But she was alive. And judging by the golden light streaming through the window, she'd been asleep for a while.
"There she is."
The voice came from the chair by the window. Familiar, but wrong somehow. She hadn’t heard it without a static signal in years.
Chloe turned her head and found her sister sitting three feet away.
Wendy looked exactly like she always did in their video calls. Dark curls tumbling over her shoulders. Warm brown eyes that seemed to see through walls. The silver crescent moon pendant that matched Chloe's own, hanging at her throat.
Except now she was here. Real. Solid.
"You came." Chloe's voice came out scratchy, barely a whisper.
"I got on a plane the second my visions cleared." Wendy leaned forward, her hands clasped between her knees. "You scared me, little sister. Really scared me."
"How long have I been out?"
"Three days."
Three days. Chloe let that sink in, her mind sluggishly processing the information.
"Corin?"
"Downstairs. Freya finally convinced him to eat something about an hour ago. He's been glued to this room since they brought you back." Wendy's lips quirked. "That bear of yours doesn't do anything halfway, does he?"
"No. He doesn't." Chloe pushed herself up against the pillows, her arms trembling with the effort. "Wendy. Why didn't you tell me?"
