Her body feels boneless. Spineless. Weak. “Why are you being so cruel?”
“Because this realm made me a monster, and you’re supposed to free me. But instead of focusing on that, you’re fooling around with a MacLeod.” He draws his mouth back in a snarl. “You need to be reminded.Iown you, Claudia Jolicoeur. Not him.Me.And you will do whatIsay, or you will suffer the consequences.” When he cups her cheek, she’s sickened by his touch, but she can’t move. She’s in his world now. Here, there is nowhere to run.
“I gave you so much. I got you into Cygnus. I gave you the key to this realm. I blessed you with power that should have stayed beyond your reach, and this is how you thank me? Crawling to another man while I rot here? I will give you nothing else. Until I decide otherwise, you will not see me again.”
“But what if I need you? What about the killer? You’re supposed to keep me safe.”
“You’re supposed to keep your promises.”
Her voice shakes when she says, “You can’t leave me to face everything alone.”
“Oh, Starling. Don’t you understand? My side of the bargain is fulfilled. I owe you nothing.” He grips her by the shoulders.
“You owe me everything,” he growls, and then he pushes her off the ledge.
When Claudia opens her eyes, she’s not in her bed.
She’s standing on the ledge of her balcony, toes curling over the balustrade. Frigid wind snakes around her limbs, pulling her down. Her hair whips in the wind like a torn flag. When she realizes her position, her gasp is so forceful that she loses her footing, and with a night-piercing scream, she falls.
Above her is the stone lip of her balcony. Below her, the courtyard, black and waiting. She screams again, her handsoutstretched to the sky, her fingers uselessly clawing the air. She tries to grab on to her balustrade, but she’s too late. Her fingers can’t take hold.
There is nothing she can do.
Her scream erupts through the wind while she tries to hold on to something—anything—but there is nothing but empty air.
When she’s seconds away from death, a hand reaches from the balcony below hers and catches her wrist with nearly enough force to break it.
Claudia looks up.
Cassius.
He meets her panicked gaze, his face twisted in terror.
“I’ve got you,” he yells, squeezing her wrist as it slowly starts slipping from his grip. “Give me your other hand.”
She flings her arm up, and he snatches her other wrist. In one swift movement, he pulls her up and over the balustrade, and the two of them crash together on his balcony. Her palms are flat on the stone while she tries to steady her breathing. Relief, confusion, and fear fight in her chest.
Her panic consumes her when she tries to piece together what just happened.
She was sleepwalking. Dorian danced her to the edge of her balcony on purpose.
And hepushed.
The world blurs around her. Her entire body trembles. She presses her hands over her thundering heart. She can’t stop screaming.
Cassius gathers her into his arms, cradling her. “Shh, shh, shh.I’ve got you, my Star Girl. You’re safe.”
“I—” she starts, but she can’t speak. Her breathing is too labored, too sharp.
“You’re all right.” He strokes her hair. “I’ve got you,” he says over and over again. He stands, carrying her in a bridal hold.Kicking his door open, he brings her inside and sits her on his bed, still holding her close. She curls into him, tightening her arms around his neck. She cries on his shoulder for what feels like an eternity.
Eventually, she looks up at him. He smiles at her, but there is still so much fear in his eyes.
“There you are,” he says. “Take a deep breath for me.”
Together, they breathe in, then out. Slowly, intentionally, in perfect time with each other.
“Good girl,” he says, wiping away her tears with his thumb.
