Page 111 of Veiled Vixen

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX - VALOR

Her hand is still in mine. I squeeze it and she squeezes back. That’s the only clue I have that I’m still alive. Still real. Still…somewhere.

Because the world is nothing but white light. Endless and opaque. And silent.

The chaos of war—gone.

Just quiet.

Veila? I say it but I can’t hear it.

“I’m here.” And she is. Suddenly. Immediately. She is here with me and I’m here too. Just us two immersed in her brightness.

“What the hell just happened?”

“Whatever you do, just don’t let go of my hand.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. But I think… I think that might be the only thing connecting me to you at the moment. And if you let me go—”

“I won’t,” I say. “I won’t let go.”

“I think I did something, Valor. I think I did something bad.”

“Come here,” I say, tugging on her hand. And for a moment there is no resistance. No sign that her hand in mine is even real. I feel it slip away. I feel everything slip away.

“Veila,” I say sharply. “No.”

“It’s calling me, Valor.” Her voice is shaky and trembling.

“What? Who? Who’s calling you?”

“That place. The golden place. I want to go.”

“No,” I say. “You just told me to not let go of you. And I’m not sure I want to see the… golden place. I want to stay right here. And I want you to stay with me. Harem Station is in the middle of a war. Crux and Lyra and Serpint are about to be killed by psychotic princesses and we don’t even know where Luck and Jimmy and Nyleena and Delphi are.”

“I really want this to end,” she whimpers.

“I know,” I whisper back, still pulling on her hand, still trying to reel her in to me. “And it will. I’m going to make sure of it. But you can’t leave me. You can’t leave me, Veila. We’re stuck, remember? We’re in this together. I know you’re tired and you want it to end. I have a feeling that’s what this light is. It’s your… end. Your answer to all that pain they inflicted on you. But I want you to dial it back now, Veila. Pull it back so we can see what’s left.”

“I don’t want to,” she says. But there’s resistance to my pulling now. She’s here. With me. And when I tug just a little bit harder…

“There you are,” I say, putting my arms around her. “There you are.”

She wraps her arms around my middle and presses her face into my chest. “I don’t want to do this anymore. And the light is here, Valor. All I have to do is walk into it and everything will stop.”

“No, it won’t. Listen to me.” I push her away a little and look down into her face. Her eyes are all white. Nothing but white glow. But there’s a crackle of pink around the edges. A hint that she’s not gone yet. The silver hasn’t gotten all of her.

Just most of her.

“Listen, OK?” She nods. But I can’t tell where her eerie eyes are looking. At me? Not at me? I don’t know. “We can fix this. I think we’re stuck in a… pause. Or something. Just dial it back. Dial back everything you feel right now. Everything but me, OK? Just me. Look at me.” I shake her by the shoulders. “Look at me!”

She blinks. And everything goes black. Like we’re lost in space. Drifting in nothingness.

“Veila,” I say, more forcefully now. “Look. At. Me.”

She opens her eyes and pink light flows out like perfect sunshine. She blinks again, only this time the darkness is gone and in its place is a golden fog. And through that fog I can see Harem Station.