“No.” I rushed over as he sank to his knees, placing her on the ground. I dropped hard next to her, my hand slipping into Tamil’s as her gaze fluttered. “No, Tamil. Please.”
Tamil coughed, black blood bubbling over her lips. The blood vessels in her eyes were turning black, matching the ones creeping up her neck. “I’m sorry,” she croaked. “I tried to hold him off, but he was too strong.”
“Don’t speak.” I squeezed her hand, trying not to let the panic show on my face. “Just hold on. I’m going to save you.”
Minutes passed as I tried to draw on the golden light from before. But it was nowhere to be found—I’d used everything I had on Einar.
“Adara.” Einar’s hand curled around my shoulder, and I looked up to see him staring at me. A lump swelled in my throat at the heart-wrenching look in his eyes. “We have to end this for her.”
One of the soldiers handed a dagger to me. I stared at the blade in my hand for a long moment, then down at Tamil’s chest.
Tamil’s eyes fluttered open, her gaze locking on mine. “Do it,” she whispered.
I nodded, then sank the dagger into her heart in one swift motion. Her eyes opened wide as she let out a last gasp, and tears coursed down my cheeks.
“Goodbye, my friend,” I murmured as her eyes slid shut for the last time.
A tomb-like silence settled over the cavern, and everyone bowed their heads. The memory of Tamil’s fiancé and sisters greeting her with such joy flashed through my mind, and white hot pain lanced through me. How would they look at me once they’d realized Tamil had sacrificed herself to save me, and that it was all for nothing?
“I failed you,” I rasped, dropping her lifeless hand. Tears dripped from my face and onto hers, but she didn’t stir as the cold droplets hit her skin. “I’ve failed everyone.”
“No,” Einar disagreed. He took my shoulders in his hands, offering me strength and comfort I didn’t deserve. “It’s we who’ve failed you. We should have planned for this, should have had more soldiers guarding the cave, should have fought harder to keep Dune from reaching the inner sanctum. None of this is your fault.”
The tortured sound in his voice tore at me, and I shook my head, anger and despair clawing at me from the inside. “There must be some way to make this right,” I insisted. “Some way I can still complete the ritual and defeat Nox.”
“There is.” Quye’s shadow fell over us, and I looked up. The Oracle’s expression was uncharacteristically grave as our eyes met. “But it’s not going to be easy.”
“What do I have to do? Should I go back to Lady Axlya and ask?” Maybe I could still convince her to let me marry Prentis…
But even as that thought occurred to me, the bond between Einar and me pulsed softly, as if in reminder of what we shared. It was stronger now—I could feel the current of energy running back and forth between us, melding our abilities. It was why I was able to draw on his strength when I needed it, and why he was now immune to the effects of shadow magic.
How could I marry Prentis, when I was practically bound to Einar already?
“Oh no,” Quye said, and the next words she spoke tilted my world on its axis. “You’re not going back to Axlya. You’re going to Mount Furian. And you’re going to ask the dragons.”
To be continued…