The magic seems to visibly drain it—its skin paling, chest heaving with effort, like it has been saving all of his energy for this moment. Then, with a scream that splits the air—high-pitched, guttural, inhuman—the creature hurls the orb straight at me, through the bars of its prison.
I don’t have time to scream. Only to brace for impact.
But then someone shoves me back hard. I hit a solid chest before arms wrap around me, pulling me against firm muscles.
“Niko!” someone—Zephyr?—screams, just as the blast of immense power combusts around us.
We’re thrown backward by the blast. He somehow keeps his arms around me as we crash to the ground in a tangled heap. My body lands on top of his, and I see Zephyr for the first time. His chest rises sharply with a grunt of pain as he takes the full impact against the unforgiving stone floor. In front of us, the Nephilim staggers unsteadily, then collapses in a crumpled heap. Dead? Unconscious? I can’t tell; only the eerie stillness follows.
I don’t even get a chance to breathe. Zephyr is already on his feet, dragging me up with him.
“Niko!” he shouts, only this time, his voice cracks. It’s raw and desperate. A kind of anguish I’ve never heard from him before, and it cuts deep. My body locks up, cold with dread. I don’t want to turn around. I don’t want to see what’s behind me, knowing whatever happened to Niko is my fault. But I have to.
Swallowing the fear rising in my throat, I force myself to look and immediately wish I hadn’t. I desperately want to go back to this morning with Niko and me tangled in bed. I wish we never left, never came down here. A strangled cry leaves my lips, and my legs give out. I fall to the floor, eyes filling with tears.
Because lying on the ground, barely clinging to consciousness, is Niko. His chest rises in shallow, ragged breaths, each one a struggle. Inky black tendrils creep up his arms and neck like living shadows, curling over his skin as if trying to claim him. The magic pulses with a sick, unnatural rhythm, spreading and consuming him rapidly.
Niko jumped in front of the blast, saving me. And now the curse is spreading rapidly through his body.
Chapter 31
Zephyr
Iscream his name until my voice is raw. The damn scene plays on repeat in my mind, like my own personal nightmarish torture. The Nephilim summoning magic, ready to blast Evangeline. An invisible barrier blocking us until our combined magic took it down.
I was prepared to take the full force of the magic, but Niko was faster. He pushed Evangeline back against me,hard. I wasn’t expecting it and lost my footing. It was just a small mishap, but the consequence proved monumental and disastrous.
I could only watch, helpless, as the orb of dark magic struck Niko square in the chest. The impact launched him across the room—his body crashing to the stone floor with a sickening thud that echoed off the walls. I winced at the sound, but horror quickly swallowed the pain. Because then I saw it. Black tendrils of magic slithering across his skin, crawling through him like poison.
The curse.
“No!” The scream that’s ripped out of me sounds like a wounded animal. Pain lashes through me, but not my own. This is Niko’s, and it’s all-consuming. Even Evangeline shudders, possibly picking up bits of his pain. Their bond is still new, still forming.
He twitches on the ground, groaning softly. His eyelids flutter before his eyes roll back in his head. He’s breathing far too fast and shallow.
I barely register Evangeline beside me as I race toward Niko. From this close, the sickness spreading through his body looks much worse. I’ve only ever seen this in patients who have been infected for weeks and are close to death. Those who are closer to death than they are to living. Niko writhes in pain, shocking me out of my frozen state.
I lean down and gently get my arms under him to hoist him up. He’s dead weight, barely conscious as I pull him to my chest. I feel Evangeline behind me, but I can’t turn to face her. Can’t provide her any comfort. Perhaps that makes me weak—I most certainly feel that way—but acknowledging her would also acknowledge the fact that this is all my fault. I was the one who pushed and put this idea in his mind. Niko wouldn’t be hurt if I just fucking let it go.
But I can’t. I’ve never been able to. And now Niko has paid the ultimate price.
“Zephyr…” Evangeline’s voice rings out in an otherwise silent chamber. The Nephilim lies unconscious or dead in its cell—I don’t know which and, frankly, don’t give a shit. I’ll deal with that later. There should be guards monitoring it, but as it is, we’re stretched too thin to spare any.
“We need to get him upstairs.” I avoid her gaze, even though I feel hers burning into my back. I take the cowardly way out and start up the stairs, moving as fast as my legs will allow. The soft footfalls and quiet gasps tell me Evangeline is following. Niko stirs in my arms, alert as he tilts his head back. He offers Evangeline a tight-lipped smile before turning toward me. I know what he’s going to say before he says it.
“I can walk.” His voice is hoarse, as if he was the one screaming down there and not me.
I ignore him, of course. Niko would rather suffer in silence than be a burden to anyone, especially me. That’s just who he is. Always selfless. Always hiding the pain. I catch a glimpse of color returning to his face, and for a split second, I feel a flicker of hope. But it’s gone in an instant when I feel his pain. When I see the curse still pulses like poison beneath his skin, a cruel reminder of what I failed to protect him from.
My arms tighten around him as I pick up my pace. I have to move. I have todosomething. Because standing still means facing the truth: this is my fault. And if I can’t save him now, then what was the point of any of it?
“Wait, please, Zephyr,” Evangeline pants from behind me. It’s cruel to leave her behind, especially knowing she’s probably just as scared and confused as I am, but I can’t bring myself to stop. I slow…barely. “Please let me see him.”
We’re nearly at the top of the winding staircase now. The air shifts, no longer as cold as it was below. I pausemid-step, guilt clawing its way up my throat. Niko isn’t justmymate. He’sherstoo. I should never forget that.
The hesitation anchors me in place, but before I can decide what to say—or if I should say anything at all—the door at the top of the stairs bursts open with a bang. Blinding light spills into the narrow passage, forcing me to squint against it. When my eyes finally adjust, I make out the silhouettes of Lady Thalia and Finnick, waiting for us at the top. Their expressions are tense. Scared. And suddenly, the weight of everything I’ve failed to prevent feels even heavier.
“We heard screams and came—” Lady Thalia’s words get caught in her throat as she notices Niko in my arms.
