“I thought I may have lost you forever,” he says. “How can you find forgiveness for me?”
“No matter what comes at us, you always find your way back to me,” I breathe. Seeing him like this, I know he’s still the man I fell in love with. Despite all the pain he endured—and inflicted—over the last few months, I still have hope in him.
Ezryn blinks up at the ceiling, eyes shining. “Then I shall do it again. I will come back to you, Rosalina. I swear.”
“I know.” I smooth down his hair, feeling my own throat tighten. “You’ll protect those girls, and you’ll find the Huntresses and bring aid to Hadria.”
“What if I cannot do it?” His voice darkens. “What if only the Prince of Blood can?”
I grab Ezryn’s chin and hold it tight. “You are a good man, Ezryn. A strong man. You, not the Prince of Blood, will find a way to do this. If you don’t trust yourself, then trust me when I say I believe in you. Can you do that, Ez? Can you trust me?”
He collapses his head into the crook of my neck. His voice almost sounds boyish. “I suppose.”
“Do you remember what I said to you when I first saw you without your helm?”
He pulls back to stare at me, words near reverent. “I know you.”
“I know you,” I repeat. “Iknowyou, Ez.”
I hope he understands exactly what I mean within those three words. That I know his wounded soul, the one desperate to be the perfect leader, son, brother. The perfect mate. The soul that feels like it’s never good enough. Yet, I also know the man who would do anything for his realm, including giving up his magic because he thought it was right. I know the man who would do anything for his mate, even fighting to the top of the tallest tower in the Vale. The man who would turn into a monster for love.
“I know you, Rosalina,” he responds.
“You don’t need the Prince of Blood or your beast. You don’t even need your helm. Trust this.” I place my hand over his heart. “I do.”
“Rosalina.” His rough hand caresses the side of my face. “There are no words in any of the languages I know that could convey the depths of my love for you.”
“Your heart knows the words. I feel them through the bond.” I trail kisses up the side of his jaw before landing on his scarred ear.I wonder if, one day, he’ll let me heal his scars, as he once healed mine. I don’t think he’s ready for me to ask him that yet, so I settle for a feather-light kiss on the jagged tip instead.
He wraps his arms around my waist and tugs me even tighter to him. “It’s going to be a long road, Rosalina.”
“I know. But I’ll be here at the end of it. I promise.”
I stay chest to chest with him for as long as possible, treasuring each heartbeat, not knowing when I’ll once again be held in the sanctuary of his arms.
CHAPTER 44
Rosalina
Ezryn’s kiss still bruises my lips, even as he fades into a speck in the distance, heading into the wilds of Summer with Delphia and Nori. Our bond feels like a string pulled too taut—we’re not meant to be this far apart. I’m not meant to be this far apart from any of them.
Only when I can no longer see the shape of him do I let go of the ship’s railing.
Wrenley looks like a cat who got all the cream, sitting cross-legged behind the wheel, pointing her pretty face up to the sun. Guess she’s over her seasickness. The late afternoon sun glistens off her dark hair. She opens her eyes and meets my gaze, her own blue as the ocean. I swear I’ve seen that color blue somewhere before.
“We’re starting course to Hadria,” Dayton says, interrupting my thoughts. “We’ll dock at one of the bays outside the city and sneak in. This ship would be too noticeable in port.”
He’s talking to me without looking at me. It’s the first thing he’s said since I accidentally walked in on him and Wrenley kissing.
The thought sends a wave of nausea through me, and I quickly push it away. Of course Dayton would kiss his mate. Of course he should.
“I don’t love the look of the sky,” he murmurs, teal eyes narrowing. Wispy gray clouds cut across the horizon.
Dayton leaves to speak with the crew, to get us on course, and do whatever it takes to sail a ship. I need to find some space to think. I head to the bow and sit on a crate beside the railing. Misty water sprays up to coat my heated face.
I feel so far away from so many people I care about. Farron, Caspian, Kel, and Papa are in the Below. Ezryn, Delphie, and Nori are in the desert. I can’t do anything to protect them.
Heavy footsteps sound, and I look up to see Dayton walking toward me. He’s lost his shirt, skin glowing bronze in the orange light. A striped bandana is wrapped around his head, holding back the tangles of his golden hair.
