“I’m well aware,” she spat. Her boot rose again, and this time she broke a rib. The crack sounded in my ears as I heldin another sob. “Lucky for you, just like that mother of yours, spreading your legs is the one good thing you have done.”
My brow furrowed but anger boiled in my veins at her bringing up my mother.How dare she.
“Thanks to your recent activities with my son, the bond between you is stronger than ever. I had been afraid it wasn’t solidified enough, but Atticus proved you haven’t been as useless as I thought.”
My eyes widened in surprise. I thought Atticus had sought me on his own. “You sent him after me?” I couldn’t stop the shock rippling across my features. The sharp inhale as my gaze slammed into hers.
“Of course.”
“Atticus was your best warrior, why did you—?” My vision darkened, but I fought to stay conscious.
“Atticus was proving to be a liability,” she bit out, a sneer on her lips. My ears rang and my eyes squeezed shut. I heard Morgana’s muffled voice, “Get her a healing tonic. We are late.”
I forced my eyes open again and found that Morgana was now crouched in front of me. Her cruel, icy gaze was pinned on me, a look of disgust peppering her features. “You are lucky I still need you.” Her hand reached out, her palm stroking down the side of my bloody face. I flinched away from her cool touch, and she laughed maniacally as she licked the blood off her fingers.
She leaned in so close I could feel her breath as she whispered, “Remember, dear, your fate is in my hands. There's no escaping it.” She smiled, and I couldn't stop the tears from falling as I tried to shake my head. “I'll erase every memory youtwo have of each other, and when I have what I need, I'll give them back, but only so you can watch him die.”
A chill ran down my spine, and my chest felt like it was cleaving open.
“No,” I breathed and I reached for Xavier, pounding against the barrier through our bond. That thing in my chest tightened, and Morgana stood, laughing as if she could sense what I was doing, and maybe she could.
Xavier didn’t respond, that door between us sealed so tightly I didn’t think he could even sense I was on the other side begging to be let in. A hand plunged into my hair, yanking my head back while another pried my mouth open. I screamed, a sharp pain shooting through my nose, my head, my ribs as warm liquid spilled down my throat.
It tasted sweet, like honey and lavender, with an earthy, pungent aftertaste.
Agony erupted across my face as someone reset my nose, fresh blood gushing down my face once more. Someone helped me up and then guided me to my feet. Blinking through the blood in my eyes, I saw Freya looking at me. Her expression was serious, the charms in her hair tinkling as she gently pulled my arm, urging me to walk.
Freya tossed me a rag, which I promptly drenched with my own blood. She rolled her eyes and, with a disapproving look, ordered someone else to fetch more. I scowled back, shoving the wet cloth into my pocket, and my fingers brushed against something small and smooth.
I might have mistaken it for a rock or pebble, but the raw power that jolted through me had my pulse racing. That thing in my chest purring. I swallowed hard, nearly tripping over my feet as I realized what I held in my pocket.
Morgana looked over her shoulder at me curiously and I quickly withdrew my hand, the swelling sensation in my chest extinguishing as my skin lost contact with the pendant… with the souls Morgana desperately searched day and night for.
Morgana faced forward again, and I nearly sobbed with relief.
Freya shoved more rags into my chest, and I shakily ran them over my face as I tried to figure out what the fuck Xavier was thinking.
Chapter 35
Lana
I was already dead.
My future, my dreams were already taken from me before I even had a chance to fight for them. I could no longer promise or provide Lex with the life we dreamt of. How could I? How could I have a life with him at all? If Morgana survives… I was still dead.
Even if I took Lex and ran, where would we even go? It wouldn’t be a life.
I wouldn’t be able to give him any children. She would just take them eventually… their souls. And what a cruel, selfish thing to let happen. The thought stung, and grief for a future I would never see washed over me. I would never get to feel their small hands holding mine, see their tiny smiles, hear their cries. Would never get to see Lex teach them to fight or tuck them into bed.
That wasn’t an option for me, for us, any longer.
The branch rustled as I shifted, leaves swaying on the wind as they floated toward the ground. I climbed up here to watchthe sunset, but that was hours ago now. The sun had long since dropped below the horizon.
Tomorrow was the battle. Lex and his men were already hidden within our ranks in the camps below, and I felt he was searching for me through our bond. I kept the icy barrier between us firm, just as I had since discovering the truth. I convinced myself that it was better for him not to know. If I told him, he would have just convinced me to run. He would have convinced me that there was another way. I would have seen the hope, the desperation, in his beautiful pale eyes, and I would have run—for him.
But I knew that would have been a mistake, knew I was doing the right thing.
Lex would feel my death, and that’s the only thing I would regret. I only hoped that he wouldn't be exposed when it happened. That he would be safe. Because I didn’t care what happened to me, but he needed to live.
