Page 27 of Shadow Fall: Part Two

"Yes, you do," he argued, so, so softly. "You can't stomach bread or cakes, and you don't want anything we've had for dinner this week, but you ate those plums yesterday. So, tell me you need fruit, and I'll get every piece of it from the market across the mountains. Just—tell me what you need." He choked out, "Please."

"No," I whispered. I didn't want to talk about my stomach refusing everything I tried to eat and yet craving other foods. I didn't want to talk about any of this when we just lost Kaida.

Wane drew back, his expression shifting. Now he was the man who took control, who ordered me to obey and gifted praise in the same breath. I saw it in the hardening of his mercury eyes, the clench of his jaw and the way his mouth pressed thin.

"My instincts are howling at me, Haley. They scream until I can't hear anything else. So tell me. Name anything and I'll get it for you. Now."

I blinked fast, my bottom lip weakening. "I want—cheese, fruit," I breathed, the words so much more than a simple desire. They were an admission and a surrender. My body craved what it needed because a tiny life was growing inside it, and it killed me. Because I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, we'd lose this baby too.

Wane's shoulders slumped in relief. He kissed my temple, his arms lingering around me, and then drew back. "Haley."

I held up my hand to ward off this conversation, but something needed to be said. "Don't—don't hope." I couldn't meet his eyes. "We'll lose this one, too."

"I know," he whispered, surging back to me, hugging me so tightly that he shook. "I know. But I won't ignore your needs, itzaia."

My heart hurt as I brushed my lips over his in the softest kiss. "Wane?" I dared to look at him, to meet his eyes. "Please don't drink again."

He sighed, shame lowering his eyes. I smelled it on his breath, strong and terrifying. It wouldn't help him cope with our loss, wouldn't fix anything, wouldn't even dull the pain. It would be five times as painful when the haze wore off.

Wane curled his fingers around the knife at his hip. "I won't," he promised.

"I mean it," I whispered, leaning back against the sink and hiding the tremble in my hands. This was real, it was happening, and we were all falling apart. We couldn't handle a miscarriage now; it would kill us all.

"So do I," Wane swore, conviction hardening his voice. He looked me dead in the eye. "You were brave enough to tell me what you need, so I can be brave enough to endure this sober."

"I love you," I said, and flapped my hand, sending him away to get food, to soothe his instincts.

He ducked close for a swift kiss and left me to cry alone.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Two days later, I stood in the doorway of our bedroom watching Kai sleep for so long that it verged on stalking. He'd burned up all his rage, stopped starting fights at every opportunity, and now he just slept, rarely leaving the bed. I couldn't tell if he was asleep or faking, but my nightmares and Wane's woke us all at night, so he needed all the rest he could get.

I finally stepped back and closed the door, wrapping my arms around myself to pull my black and pink cardigan tighter around me. It was a new gift, along with an accompanying pile of gifts, from Wynvail. He couldn't talk about Kaida, didn't know how to help us deal with the loss, so he left most days and came back with bags full of presents.

My feet carried me into the garden, where Harvey and Verena spent hours every day, honing her raw magic skills into something just as raw but more skilled. I plopped my ass on the back step and wasn't surprised when Emlyn appeared a minute later with a steaming cup of tea, this one peppermint and fragrant.

Before he could vanish again, I reached up and hooked my fingers around his wrist and drew him onto the step with me.

"Just … stop for a minute," I said, resting my head on his shoulder. "Sit with me."

Em stiffened, but he didn't move away when I rested more of my weight against him, blowing my tea to cool it. He knew—about the baby. He might not have consciously known but on an instinct level, he knew. I sensed it in his reluctance, his panic to be so close to me.

Without a word, I entwined our fingers and squeezed hard, watching Verena thrust her hands at the trees, sending a burst of golden light into the forest. It was nowhere near as powerful as what she'd summoned on the island, but more controlled than she’d been days ago. I still wasn't sure if that really happened, or if it was part of the illusion. I'd certainly burned the eyes out of Iapetus's minions, though.

"What did you tell me when we left the timeline?" I asked Em, my voice low and gentle.

He didn't reply for a long time, until Harvey coached Verena into summoning another flare of sunlight, and Em finally murmured, "I said we'll be okay. But we're not, Hales. We're not okay at all."

I brought our joined hands to my lips, brushing a kiss to his broken knuckles. I didn't ask what he'd punched. He was hurting, and that was enough to kill me.

"Not yet," I answered finally, the only glimmer of hope I could find.

We both jumped, tea splashing over the rim of my mug, when Wynvail yelled inside the house. I couldn't hear what he said, only the volume of his voice and the panic in it. I threw the mug down and raced inside, Em on my heels and Harvey and Verena close behind us.

"What?" I demanded, skidding into the living room.

My heart skipped and I went cold all over when I saw that he'd turned on the TV. The news was playing, reporters no longer in the studio but reporting from their homes on current affairs. And on Cronus's rise to worldwide domination.

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