Page 30 of A Castle of Broken Memories

Her words cut like glass—razor-sharp shards that pierced my soul with each callously-tossed syllable. I was going to puke. Either that or hit something. Possibly both. Still, I scrambled to hold onto that last shred of reason. “You thought I’d left. You were hurt.”

She dipped her chin, and my heart squeezed at the slight quiver in her bottom lip. That tiny fang peeked out again, pinning the plump flesh in place. “I was,” she whispered. “And I feel horrible, knowing what I do now. But”—she lifted her head, her eyes finally meeting mine—“I’m not going to apologize for the people I’ve slept with. I did what I had to to get through the pain.”

I nodded slowly, even as the thought of her entwined with someone else made me want to retch. “You had every right to seek comfort in whatever form it took. I understand.”

“Good.” She hesitated, glancing across the floor toward the stage. “That’s not all that happened while you were gone, though. I, uh, did some things I’m not proud of.” Her arms folded over her chest as if to shield herself from whatever she was about to say. “I went a little… feral, I guess you could say. I officially accepted my position as alpha of the forest pack, and proceeded to use that power to raise as much hell as possible—raiding villages, getting in fights, or just generally messing with people’s heads. I didn’t care who I hurt, so long as it was a distraction.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “But what’s worse, I… I turned Lyall into a werewolf against his will. I was so afraid he was going to leave me too, that I ended up driving him away altogether.” She shook her head, her voice barely audible now. “I’m not the girl you left behind, Jack. And I don’t think I ever will be.”

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. The raw pain in her expression made any words I might say seem utterly inadequate. What could I say, anyway? She was right—from the sound of it, she’d done some pretty shitty things. And yes, she had changed. A lot. But then, so had I. I was angry almost all of the time. The tiniest little things could set me off. I was bitter and tired and so fucking jealous of every bastard who got to spend even a moment in Mari’s presence. Those were supposed to have been my moments.

So yeah, we were different now. But that didn’t change how I felt about her.

And I wasn’t going to give up until she believed it.

18

Jack looked like a kicked puppy, and it was all my damned fault. Why did he have to be so ridiculously loyal? He’d been trapped up here, all alone, for ten fucking years. Clinging to the memory of someone who no longer existed. Who never would exist.

It was time for us both to move on.

And if it took bearing my shameful past to make him see me in a different light, then so be it. It’d only be a matter of time before he heard talk of it anyway, assuming we ever made it back to the forest. Better to rip the bandage off now and save him the added heartache. Especially seeing how epically my attempt at fake-dating Tenebris was failing to keep him at bay.

I bit my lip, searching my brain for something to say that might disperse the awkward silence that was growing between us, but before I could come up with anything that wasn’t complete shit, Jack’s entire face seemed to brighten. Almost as if a lantern had been lit inside his head. His eyes glittered with determination, and he held his hand out, saying, “Come on. Let’s go wake up Harp.”

I stared at the proffered hand, half suspecting him to snatch it away and laugh ha! Just kidding. But he didn’t, and I couldn’t think of a good reason not to take it. So I did. And for a brief moment, I was seventeen again, and everything around me was cast in a rosy hue. I glanced up at Jack and found him watching me with a smile so tender it made my heart ache to see it.

And just what do you think you’re doing? Love may lift some people up where they belong, but you’re not those people. You know full well what would happen if you went around holding hands with Jack. Bad things, Mari. Bad things would happen. Now, stop it.

I looked down at our joined hands, waiting for mine to move away. Only it didn’t, and my heart did an embarrassing little trip-trap when Jack’s thumb brushed my knuckles.

Shut it down, Mari.

Gods, his hand was big. It practically swallowed mine whole.

Damn it, Mari. Abort!

I jerked my hand back and tucked them both inside my cloak for good measure. “Should we, um, call out from here? Or…?”

It took Jack a beat to respond, the intensity of his gaze making my cheeks burn, and when he did, his voice was gruffer than usual. “I’m sure she’ll wake up once we’re closer. ” He started toward the stage without attempting to take my hand again, and I pretended I didn’t miss the feel of his rough palms layered against my own while I followed along.

Our footsteps echoed softly as we crossed the dance floor, the sheer vastness of the room making me feel unusually small and vulnerable. Unlike the outdoor space we found ourselves in last night, where the stream and trees all felt normal in their natural sizes, everything about this room was big. The width of the floor, the massive chandeliers, even the stage was huge, the edge looming a good four feet above my head.

I prepared to jump up, but stopped when Jack headed for a narrow set of stairs built into the far right side of the stage—a courtesy for visiting humans, I imagined. I narrowed my eyes at his limping gait, recalling the way his pace had slowed out in the foyer. The Jack I knew should have been neck-and-neck with me the entire time.

He squared his shoulders as he stepped onto the stage, almost as if he could sense my scrutinizing gaze on his back. “Harp? You have visitors.”

The instrument’s eyes fluttered open, a whisper-soft yawn slipping through her rose petal lips. “Jack?” She blinked sleepily, her gaze drifting in our direction. When it settled on me, she snapped to attention with a startled, “Oh!” A brilliant grin lit her face, and I fought the urge to shield my eyes. “You must be Mariana. Jack’s told me so much about you.”

Even her voice sounded like music—like she was a breath away from bursting into song. It should have grated on my nerves—I’d never been able to tolerate the bubbly types—but it didn’t. All I could think as I stared into her crystal blue eyes was, She’s the reason Jack still smiles. While I’d been doing everything in my ability to stomp out Jack’s memory, she’d been here, keeping him sane.

Thank you. The words stuck on my tongue, and I cleared my throat while I slowly stepped around Jack’s side and approached her. I held out my hand. “I am. It’s nice to meet you.”

She accepted my hand, her long fingers wrapping around my own with a gentle squeeze. “The pleasure is all mine. I’ll admit, I didn’t expect to meet you so soon. I assumed Jack would keep you to himself for as long as possible.”

Jack flushed. “We’re here because we need your help.”

“Oh?” Harp arched a painted brow.

“We need your help with the curse,” he explained. “Mariana thinks she might be able to contain it. She just needs a powerful enough vessel to hold it in.”