My faint grin falls away. Tears gather in my eyes, my heart squeezing as her gaze shimmers, too.
I look down when the first tear falls, afraid that if I hold her soul-searching stare, I won’t be able to stop.
Lunaria’s hands slide to my cheeks, not forcing me to look at her but holding me closer. She continues to talk, her voice washing over me like a balm on my burning soul.
“Especially when it came to the men in the camp.” She pauses to swipe away a tear with her thumb before it reaches my chin. “I wore my mask like armor, pretending I was untouchable. And for a time, Iwas. No one could hurt me if I didn’t let them in.
“So, I pushed everyone away. For a long time, no one sawthe real me. Not Linnick or Opal, and certainly not Adrian.” She huffs a bitter laugh. “Thenyoucame along and ruined everything. You taught me what it meant to not do things alone, to lean on those around me when I needed help.
“You don’t have to be strong for me,” Lunaria whispers, each word filled with such tenderness that my tears begin to fall freely. “I can be strong for both of us.”
Slowly, her hands slip onto my shoulders, and she presses a light kiss to my cheek. I shudder beneath her touch, her words lingering in my mind.
“You have the weight of the world on your back right now.” My voice cracks. “You can’t be worried about me, too.”
I want to be strong for her—to prove to her that there’s nothing to worry about. That’s what Aegis do.
There was a brief moment tonight while we were watching the dancers when I feltnormal. I felt like me again.
And I’m not giving Vidaris the satisfaction of stealing my happiness forever.
The corners of Lunaria’s lips tilt up into a sad smile as she breathes, “There is always time for you.”
An empty laugh tumbles from my mouth.
“There was a time not so long ago that you swore you’d rather be anywhere but near me.” The words come out hoarse, my throat raw with emotion as the memories sweep over me. “In fact, you made it quite clear you hated our arrangement.”
“Of course I hated it,” Lunaria says with a soft chuckle. “You saw through my bullshit. When everyone else was content to see the mask I wore, you were able to see what was beneath the fake smiles or the furious glares.
“Just likeIcan see through your fake smiles tonight,” she adds gently.
Her gaze bores into mine, her eyes telling me how she could see past my teasing remarks tonight but chose to play along.
Earlier, I just wanted to be us again. The us we had found inthat small cave beside the fire my magic had provided. Before Vidaris tried to steal her away, before I went into the Vale.
But now that it’s just me and Lunaria, I can breathe a little easier. The pain of memories is still there, but at least now they don’t feel as if they’re about to crush me.
With her here, she makes me feel like I can be brave.
So I don’t hold back, don’t try to hide the agony rippling through me. What we talked about in the bath was only a scratch on the surface of what had happened, and now, I feel safe enough to let the words begin to pour out.
Forty-Eight
Chrysoprase
Every word isa dagger in my chest, twisting and stabbing as the stories pour out of him. Hearing these things—knowingwhat’s happened instead of the constant guessing—only makes my heart break more for him.
But I listen. To each and every word, I listen.
Graylen gave me the chance to get away; the least I can do is be here in whatever capacity he needs me.
The words flow out of him, all while I run my fingers through the thick, dark strands of his hair. I listen quietly as he tells me what happened to him—about the things he experienced while in the Vale.
He tells me about the tattoo—about Vidaris carving it into him as she laughed about disfiguring the Prince’s Snake. It takes every ounce of control I have to listen silently, to not react.
I don’t think he expects me not to have a reaction, but I think heneedsme to be a safe space for him to get all of thisout. So that’s exactly what I do. I take what he tells me—the rage that it stirs in my chest—and bottle it up, funneling it into a place tucked away until the person I want to unleash it on is in front of me.
Orpeople. Moros would do for now.
