“Mama?” My voice was little more than a whisper, and tears lined my eyes.
The ghost’s lips tilted up, and she smiled. “You’ve made it, my son.”
Something hot ran down my cheeks, but I didn’t stop to wipe it away.
“I couldn’t save you,” I said.
She shook her head. “That was never your job, Elyx.”
I moved toward her, reaching out as though to touch her. My hand went through the air, and my heart broke. She wasn’t real. I knew that, but somehow, having it confirmed for me was worse. I thought… I supposed it didn’t matter. I was wrong.
“I tried to keep Saena safe,” I whispered. “For many years after you died, she stayed with me.”
“I know,” my mother replied. “You did a good job, my son.”
I grimaced. “No, I didn’t.” My voice cracked. “At the end, I—”
“Your sister has made her own choices. She is Mature, Elyx. You cannot bear the weight of her decisions on your soul.”
This time, those words hit differently. They struck a chord within me, and I realized they were right. Mama, Aileana, Daegal, they all knew this wasn’t my fault.
Maybe it was time I accepted the truth.
Part of me was still broken and hurting over Saena’s betrayal, but it would heal. I would heal.
“Mama, I—”
“I have always loved you, Elyx.” The apparition wavered. “Never forget.”
She disappeared, and silence fell upon me once more.
A fiery hand landed on my shoulder, and I turned.
Inferna placed the amulet in my hands, and I stared at it as she said, “One more thing before you go.”
What’s Taking So Long?
AILEANA
Hours had passed since my bonded mate first climbed the steps. Ryllae and Kysha both napped, while the Fortune Elves spoke quietly between themselves.
I paced and paced and paced.
If it had been possible to wear a hole in the stones beneath my feet, I would have done so by now. I couldn’t keep still. Not while Xander was off doing the gods only knew what.
The constant sizzle and pop of the swirling lake of fire was my companion as I walked back and forth. My magic had replenished faster than ever, and its song was a heavy beat in my veins, echoing the steady pounding of my heart.
The nausea had returned, and this time, it wasn’t going away.
Taking low, shallow breaths, I walked back and forth. Again and again.
Time marched on.
“Aileana, do you think you should take a break?” Daegal called out from where he rested against a large rock. The Death Elf leaned against him; her eyes closed as she slept peacefully. She’d woken a while ago, but now she slept once more.
I shook my head. “I can’t. Not without him.” Moving my dagger from one hand to the other, I attempted to reach out to Xander again through our mental connection. I felt him, but every time I tried to speak to him, there was no response.
Gnawing on my lip anxiously, I groaned. “I don’t understand what’s taking so long. It’s one amulet.”