Her lips thin into a straight line under the blood, and her eyes soften. She trusts me. Trusts my words. I won’t let her die here, even if I have to do the one thing she’ll hate me for to keep her alive.
Chapter 35
Lumi
There’s a pillow under my head. A soft, warm pillow cradles my neck instead of the damp, cold floor that bent my neck at an uncomfortable angle. And yet, my neck has never hurt more than it does right now.
I moan as I open my eyes, preferring to continue sleeping, but something isn’t right. I need to open my eyes.
Two pairs of dark eyes are staring back at me when I open them. Two devastatingly gorgeous, serious, scared shitless eyes.
“What happened?” I croak out, but gods, does my throat hurt.
“Just rest, my queen, you’re going to be okay,” Ambrose says at the same time Nyx says, “You tried to kill yourself.”
I turn to Nyx, needing the full story now.
Ambrose sighs in annoyance. “She couldn’t rest first before we told her?”
“No,” Nyx says simply. He turns his dark gaze toward me. “You sliced a gash in your own neck. It wasn’t magic. You weren’t spelled or compelled to do it by anything except Ambrose’s curse.”
Ambrose swears under his breath, like he still can’t believe his curse is the reason I almost died again. “I’m sorry, I—”
“Stop, it’s not your fault. You never asked to be cursed.” I look at him, at them both hovering over me, and then look to Ambrose’s wrists. “You’re unbound.”
He nods. “Isolde was terrified to see you almost die. She removed my chains. And unfortunately, she took away your blade as well.”
“Can you do magic?”
“Very little. I’ve tried helping your wound heal, but I can only manage to warm the tissues slightly, which I hope provides some minor pain relief.”
I put my hand on his. “I’m okay. You don’t have to worry about me.”
“You’re in pain. You almost died while I was tied up. I couldn’t help you. And Nyx—I was so scared Nyx was going to lose control and take out what was left of your throat.”
I look from Ambrose to Nyx cautiously. “You didn’t kill me.”
“It appears that way,” he responds.
I smile. “I knew you could do it.”
“My curse isn’t any more broken than Ambrose’s is. And Ambrose’s curse could come for me next. You’re not safe. None of us are.”
I move to sit up. “Easy,” Ambrose says, grabbing the back of my bicep to help ease me up.
Everything in my body is screaming at me in pain when I move. It’s agonizing and feels like I took a blade to more than just my neck. But I’m careful not to make a sound. I don’t want either guy to realize how much pain I’m in.
Both men are staring at me suspiciously, like they know exactly what I’m doing.
“So what happened when Isolde realized I almost died?”
“She lost her damn mind. It was almost worth it just to see her so frantic like that,” Nyx answers.
“I don’t think she thought she was risking your life, giving you a weapon, and freeing Nyx like that. But then, I’m pretty sure the curse is what convinced her to do it in the first place, so clearly she wasn’t in her right mind. She panicked, didn’t know what to do. Nyx had to bark orders at her to get her to realize she needed to use magic to put your blood back in your body and close your wound. Luckily, she’s a half-good healer and capable otherwise, a few more minutes of blood loss, and you’d be dead.”
I place my hand on my neck, feeling the bandage there. “Unfortunately, she didn’t bring in a true healer. And your body has been through a lot. It’s going to take a while for your neck and other wounds to heal.”
“Other wounds?” I ask.