Page 66 of Curses & Kitsune

The doctor touches my arm. “Please sit down.” Her eyes are pinched with sympathy above her surgeon’s mask.

She sits beside me when I sink into the chair, knees shaking too badly to support me. “We cleansed the toxin from his body.” She speaks softly, like I’m a small child. “Stitched his wounds. However, the poison, his deep wounds, and the silver in his bloodstream had already taken a toll on his body.”

I don’t understand what she’s saying. Did she heal him or not? I try to ask, but the words are caught.

“I’m very sorry but your mate has passed away,” she says.

I can’t speak. Her words don’t make sense. Jinta’s not dead. He can’t be. We were supposed to talk. I was going to apologize to him, tell him I love him, finally claim him as mine so we could begin our lives together.

“No.” It’s all I can say, shaking my head. “No, that’s not true. That’s bullshit.” Before she can speak, I’m on my feet. “Where’s his room? I’m leaving and taking him with me. We’ll go to another doctor who can actually do their job!”

How dare she lie to me? Jinta’s not dead. She’s full of shit.

“Noboru!” She rushes after me.

I follow the scent of cherry blossoms and blood through the halls. “Jinta?” He doesn’t answer. “Jinta!” His scent disappears behind a door. This doctor is a moron. She doesn’t know what she’s talking about. Jinta isn’t dead. He’s not.

I throw open the door. “Jin—”

A pungent scent chokes out the sweet aroma of cherry blossoms. One I’ve smelled many times before. My throat prickles, but I swallow down my nausea. Jinta lies in bed, a white cloth placed over his eyes. My feet won’t move. The room is silent. There’s no heartbeat. I try to speak, but I have no words. My eyes sting and burn as a violent shudder racks my body.

No. No, he isn’t—he can’t be—

I make myself move toward his bed. “Jinta. We’re leaving. I’m getting you out of here.”

When I reach toward the cloth covering his face, my fingers won’t move. Come on. I have to move. Get him out of here. Get him help. Sucking in air, I grip the cloth and pull it from his face.

The light has left his eyes. They aren’t a sweet chocolate-brown anymore. They’re black. Empty. I choke on air. The cloth ripples to the floor as I turn away, covering my eyes as my entire world shatters around me. My pinky finger feels cold as the single thread connecting me to Jinta unravels and crumbles to ash.

I know what it means. But it can’t be. It isn’t true.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. We were supposed to have more time.

My cheeks are wet.

Everything hurts, every breath like glass in my lungs, every pulse of my heart is a stabbing pain.

I stumble to his bedside and fall to my knees. My chest heaves around a great wrenching sob as those empty eyes stare through me. Fingers trembling, I reach out and touch his cheek. The warmth is fading fast from his skin. He was always so warm, like sunshine in my arms.

“I’m so sorry,” I croak. I run my fingers through his soft hair. “I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t mean it. Any of it. I swear.”

I sniff hard and lean in, pressing my lips to his forehead. “I’m here. I’m here. I came back. We can go wherever you want. Japan. America. I don’t care. I’ll leave the yakuza. Open up a restaurant. We can cook together every day. I’ll make you so happy. I promise.”

My tears dampen Jinta’s pale cheeks, and I wipe them away. I kiss him everywhere, his cheeks, the tip of his sweet nose, and cover his mouth with mine. His lips are cold and unresponsive.

A shudder racks me. I’ll never feel him kiss me back. Never hear him say my name. He’ll never smile like a ray of sunlight and laugh.

I frame his face in my quaking hands, but I can’t see him through my tears. Stroking my thumbs over his cheeks, I kiss him again and again, nuzzling my forehead against his.

“I love you,” I whisper, three words I’ve never said to anyone in my life, three words I’ll never say to anyone but him. “I love you so much. You’re my destiny. My good fortune. My mate. You’re everything to me.”

I should have told him. God, why didn’t I tell him?

My wolf howls a song of anguish as I clamber into bed and pull Jinta into my arms.

I rock him back and forth, burying my face in his neck, and weep for the only man I’ve ever loved.

Chapter 24

---