Chapter 37
The Price of Victory
32 DAYS UNTIL DHALIA’S DEATH DATE.
Eldric sat by the bonfire and sighed. These were one of the rare moments they had to rest after a month on the road. He almost couldn’t believe that only thirty days ago, he was being tortured to the brink of madness. His body bore no signs of what he had been through; Alissa’s magic erased them all from his skin. But in his mind, all the pain was still fresh.
He almost gave up when the Iron Claw general would rip out all his nails, then wait for them to grow back just enough before doing it again. When he was forced to fill his mouth with boiling water, unable to spit it out, just for the blisters on the inside to leave him incapable of eating. Even the food they gave him was first trampled under the soldiers’ dirty boots. He had been abused for so long that whenever he was not being tortured, he would black out, but even in unconsciousness, the face of that man haunted his dreams. General Uldor was the true monster, the one he once believed walked in Bryniard but had, in reality, been hidden in plain sight within the capital all along.
Eldric had fantasized about killing the general so many times he’d lost count. He’d memorized every detail of the man’s faceto make sure he would be able to recognize him—and kill himanywhere. The growth of the general’s bushy beard had become the only marker of time passing in the endless dark. Day after day, he was kept in the shadows, with no sense of time except for the brief reprieve when they dragged him out to be exposed as a traitor in the city center once a week. Though the weight of the chains pulling at his limbs was excruciating, it was still a relief. For a moment, he was free from the general’s presence, free from the torture. It was the one time he could see the stars and feel the wind brush against his cheeks.
He almost begged for the mercy of death. He thought he would die, and he hoped for it, but thinking about Alissa and the moment they shared the night before he was captured saved his life. The only motivation to not give up was the hope of finding her again, even though his conscience had convinced him she would already be gone once he saw himself free.
Being reunited with the woman he loved was a gift more generous than he ever thought he deserved. Even if deep in his heart he knew that their time together was limited. He had tried to talk to her about it, but any time he brought it up, she would kiss him and pretend to be doing something else as if changing the subject would make it less true.
Alissa had been quieter lately. He didn’t know if she had changed from the grief, if it was the power that now ran freely through her veins, if she was simply exhausted from the travel, as they rested far too little, or if it was the guilt that ate away her spirit. Before it all happened, Alissa suffered from her daughter’s curse, but she made an effort to hide the pain. Now, any time Alissa was not practicing on improving her magic or on the road, he saw her eyes fill with tears and her lips tremble.
When she joined him by the bonfire, his hand found hers, pulling her closer to sit by his side. His gaze locked on hers,intense and painful. He gently tugged a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
“I can’t bear to see you suffer like this anymore, darling.”
Her lips touched his, but her eyes were still shimmering. “I’ll be fine. Everything is going to be fine,” she said, trying to convince not only Eldric but herself.
“We need to talk about it, Alissa. We can’t keep avoiding it anymore.”
“Don’t worry about it… I’ll find a way.”
He took a deep breath, his hands moving to hold hers once again. “You have been practicing magic for over two months now, Alissa. We have read every single note Mrs. Ilden had written about the curse a thousand times. If there was another way to end it, we would know.”
Alissa shook her head in denial.
“You know what must be done,” he whispered, his gaze somber.
“Don’t even think about it!” Her heart was tight under her chest, her voice wavering when she spoke in a breath, “I did not save you to lose you again, Eldric.”
His expression softened, his lips pressed tight as he held her face in his hands. “You know that’s the only way.”
In that moment, as Eldric looked into her eyes, his hands on her cheeks, she knew he would do anything for her—including surrender his life. Mrs. Ilden had said the only way to save Dhalia was to sacrifice someone she loved withZeitymagic in the place where a life was given all those centuries ago. Alissa had been avoiding the moment she would have to face the truth because it hurt too much.
“I’ll give my life,” she said, tearfully. “You don’t have to die for this.”
“You know that won’t work, Alissa. It has to be me,” Eldric whispered, sorrowful but not fearful. “Unless you don’t love me… then I guess it wouldn’t work.”
“You know that’s not it.” She implied the words he so desperately wanted to hear from her lips but was unable to say them.
She looked down, avoiding his gaze. The thought of Eldric losing his life was unbearable.
“Look at me, Alissa.” He held her chin between his fingers. “I told you once I believed we did not meet by chance.” He gave her a sad smile. “I was always meant to find you. To give my life for your cause. Besides… I owe you my life after you rescued me.”
Alissa wanted to say he did not owe her anything, not after saving her so many times in the past, but it was impossible to speak as she sobbed uncontrollably.
He wiped away her tears. “Please, let me do this for you. Let me save your daughter and your people.” He sighed. “It is the most honorable death one could have.”
How could this man be so sure, so willing, to give his life in exchange for the life of a child he never met? “I don’t understand,” she said between sobs. “Why would you do this?”
“I thought it was obvious.” He surveyed her, his eyes so intense they swallowed her in.
It was incredible what her presence could do to him. It was like his body had a life of its own; his skin, his senses seemed to readjust entirely to better absorb her essence. There was nothing Eldric wouldn’t do for her.