Every second we spend searching for Fynn is another moment slipping away, bringing us closer to being trapped here forever. I’m not leaving the boy, but I can’t help but think about how Leigh and I should be at home, waking up as joyful as can be on our wedding day. It’s also another moment where the rift remains open, possibly allowing more nightmares to enter our realm. If the number of daemons coming through cannot be controlled, the Blades and the Council won’t be able to keep the rift a secret for much longer. There’ll be widespread panic.
My chest tightens with each shallow gasp.
“Wilder, it’s okay,” Leigh reassures me. “Fynn isn’t down here, but that doesn’t mean we should give up.” She wraps her arms around me from behind, resting her cheek against my back. “We still have options.”
I squeeze my eyes closed. “You sound so sure.”
Leigh tightens her grip. “I am.”
We are out of our depth. Neither of us knows enough about this realm; the ghosts only answer to Kosac, who wanted Leigh to attend his party, but for what purpose? Why is he celebrating? And what does Leigh have to do with it? Nothing good.
“Leigh. Maybe we should come back?—”
She releases me. “No.”
I frown at the loss of her comforting touch.
“Fynn isn’t staying here. He’s probably scared and confused. Besides, he has no one—no family waiting for him. He deserves to know he isn’t alone.”
Leigh’s shaking. She must be tired, yet she refuses to acknowledge her needs over others’. This lack of self-care will ultimately be her downfall; she works herself to the bone, ignoring the signs of exhaustion.
“We’ll come back,” I say again as I extend my hand to her. She looks at it with hesitation evident in every line of her body. I let out a sigh. “Please. You need to rest. We can regroup?—”
“You’ll have them close the rift the second we step through it.”
I keep my hand outstretched. “We don’t belong here.”
“No,youdon’t belong here.”
I drop my hand. “Back to that, are we?”
“You shouldn’t have chased after me, you?—”
“What did you expect me to do, just sit around and wait for you to come back? When have I ever done that?”
She frowns. “You wouldn’t be sitting around if you were working with the Blades.”
“I don’t want to work with them,” I yell. Why won’t she accept that?
Her scowl deepens. “Liar.”
“Takes one to know one.”
Leigh’s jaw drops, and I instantly regret my retort. But then she smiles. “Are you ten?”
“No.”
“Could have fooled me.”
We both glare at each other, but after several tense breaths, we burst into laughter. Our brains no longer able to process our bleak reality. Leigh doubles over. The situation isn’t funny, but laughing is a better alternative than crying.
Mirthful tears stream down Leigh’s face. “We are so screwed.”
I laugh even harder in disbelief. “And we might get stuck here.”
We keep laughing as I reach for her. She presses her face against my chest. At least, if we get stuck in this terrible place, we’ll be together. It’s not the life I imagined for us—no kids or summer vacations with our families—but at least we are still together. Leigh takes a deep breath, and I finally manage to regain my composure, ignoring the feverish chills running through my body. Like a parasite, this realm is already feeding on me, stealing my vitality moment by moment.
A heavy silence blankets us.
