LUNA
Burrowing my head against Sebastian’s chest, I clung to him as he moved us through the shadows. He spoke, but I could barely hear his words, let alone understand them.
Visions of the horrifying scene in Julieta’s room—what should have been my room—flashed before my eyes until they were all I could see. The scent of her blood was all I could smell.
Her death would haunt me for the rest of my days.
Julieta was dead.
Time passed, but it had no meaning. Not anymore. I clung to Sebastian like he was the only thing keeping me alive.
Maybe he was.
There had been so much blood. How could one body hold so much blood?
And her wings. I would never forget the sight of those beautiful, blue wings, torn from Julieta’s back.
I should have been sobbing. Screaming. Yelling. I should have been trembling with rage and fear and anger. That was what any rational person would have been doing. But every single part of me was numb.
I had nothing left.
The feelings Sebastian had incited in me earlier had blown away like ashes in the wind. Now, I was hollow. My mind emptied as I came to terms with my fate. I should have cried, but I didn’t have any tears to shed.
I was frozen. It turned out my sisters were right when they called me the Ice Queen. That was exactly who I was.
Sebastian’s voice rumbled through me, and he tightened his arms as he spoke to someone. I couldn’t see them, his wings shielding me from the outside world.
Eventually, he lowered his head. “We’re leaving now,” he whispered.
He didn’t ask me if I was all right. That was good. I definitely wasn’t anywhere close to being all right.
His shadows swirled around us once more, and I closed my eyes. Pressing my face against the vampire prince’s chest, I let the numbness take over me.
My stomach churned when the dark wisps released us, but I didn’t look up. A wash of cold air came down my back and the sound of footsteps on stone filled my ears, but I kept clinging to Sebastian.
A hand cupped my cheek. “Look at me, Luna,” he whispered.
I tried to open my eyes, but everything was heavy. My head, my hands, my heart, and my feet all felt like they weighed a thousand pounds.
All I wanted to do was lie down and curl up into a ball. Maybe this was all a bad dream. Maybe I would wake up back home in Ipotha and spend the day in the sun with my family.
Even as the thought entered my mind, I knew it wasn’t the case. I was in Eleyta, and Julieta was dead. Winter Solstice was coming. It was Julieta’s favorite time of year. She loved the entire season, from opening presents to singing carols.
She wouldn’t get to do that anymore. Julieta wouldn’t get to do anything anymore.
“Luna,” Sebastian said again, his tone harder this time. More urgent. Part of me knew I should react. But I was so tired. “Look at me,” he commanded.
I sighed, slowly shaking my head. “I don’t think I can.”
A long moment passed before he shifted. Keeping one arm underneath me, Sebastian pulled on my right slipper. It landed on the floor with a soft thud, followed quickly by the other. Then, he lifted the strap of my book bag, and the whole thing joined my footwear on the floor.
Sebastian grunted, keeping his arms wrapped around me. I felt the soft mattress beneath my knees and registered the fact that we were on the bed, but still, I didn’t move. My head rested against Sebastian’s chest, and I could feel his heart beating as he held me. A warmth landed on my back, and he wrapped me in a blanket, rubbing my back as he murmured nonsense.
Numbness coursed through me.
Eventually, his hands landed beneath my thighs once more. Slowly, he picked me off him and placed me on the mattress. He tucked another blanket around me, but it wasn’t enough.
“Don’t leave me,” I whispered, shivering.