Page 132 of Bound By Roses

He gasps as horror-filled eyes settle on me and then flick down to Merrick’s lifeless body. “No no no no no.” he grabs at his head, repeating the word over and over as if this is the first time he’s seeing him.

“What’s the matter with you?” Void growls, but I can’t focus on him. Not when Kaylee shouts a single word that nearly stops my heart.

“Quinn!”

CHAPTER FIFTY

QUINN

Jade betrayed us, and I didn’t see it. I chose to trust him, blinded by his willingness to sacrifice himself for me. But that was another Jade. Not the dragon standing before me now, clutching at his head like he’s only just realizing the damage he’s done. And perhaps that’s exactly what’s happening, but it’s too little, too late.

I should kill him, but what good would that do now? We failed. Lunae was massacred, just as it was always meant to be. The only difference is that I wasn’t leading the charge. They’re all dead because I put my trust in the wrong person. Whatever blood is staining Jade’s hands now also coats mine.

Wraiths spill out of the tear in the veil, but they don’t notice me. Even now, this form offers protection I don’t deserve. This scene is the beginning of the end. My grandmother said it would happen. Said her sacrifice was only going to postpone the inevitable. Void would release his army and unleash it upon the world because history always repeats itself.

“Quinn!”

My name fills my eyes and my head snaps towards the sound. My sister is staring me down, desperation filling her gaze andtears pricking in her eyes. She knew this would happen. Knew we were on this path, just as Arabella did. Whether or not she could have stopped it, I can’t be certain, but judging by her mate’s appearance, I’d say she made a choice.

I’d probably make the same choice if Abby’s life was the cost. Though if there was any other option, I’d scour the lands to find it. No price would have been too great, even if it meant trading my life for hers.

My sister’s lips move and I can’t tell if she’s mouthing the words or if the wailing wraiths are drowning her out. Regardless, I understand her all the same. “Live for her.”

My blood runs cold as the silent words spoken by Evan so many times now float just as silently from her lips. There’s no other explanation for it unless she’d seen my encounters with him and knows the curse I carry. The curse that has the very same creatures slipping through the veil and into our world wanting little more than to devour my soul and make it as if I never existed. As if my lungs never drew breath, my mind never heard thoughts, and my heart never loved the woman staring at me from across this small clearing.

Abby.

Live for her.

Gods, that’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. Even before Evan said those words to me for the first time. From the moment I met her, my world shifted and I no longer wished for death. I longed for life. A life at her side, in whatever way she’d have me.

But I won’t force her to live in a world of nightmares. A world where our enemies win and all that is good is sucked dry by faceless creatures that exist only to harm.

There’s still a way to fix this, and when Arabella nods to me, I know she sees it, too. The answer was in my grandmother’s journal all along. If history is going to repeat itself, then I may as well make sure it gets every last detail right.

‘Don’t.’The single word flitting through my mind nearly splits my heart in two. A tear runs down Abby’s cheek and I’d give anything to wipe it away and tell her that everything is going to be fine.

‘I’m sorry.’Those two words will never make up for this, but they’re all I can give her.

‘You promised.’

I don’t know which promise she’s referring to. The promise to stay with her, the promise to fight at her side, or simply, the promise to live. It doesn’t matter, because I’m about to break all of them.

All I can do now is give her the words I should have on that terrace after she’d said she loved me. Before Arabella woke. Before the dragons brought us here. Before all hope was shattered.

But I still have hope. Hope that she’ll live on in a world worth fighting for. That she’ll come into her powers, bring light to the darkness, and bring back what was lost. And then, one day, I’ll find her in the veil and make the crossing to whatever comes after with her at my side. I’ll wait for her there, however long it takes.

‘I loved you first.’

And then I shift.

My bones break and reform as fur tears and new skin emerges. I’m running. First on four legs, and then two. A wraith screams—sounding different this time—and then they’re all screaming as they rush after me.

“No!” Void shouts as shadows whip towards me. The rose on my chest glows brightly, shielding me from his attacks. Even my own shadow can’t penetrate the light enveloping me, far brighter than it ever had before.

The wraiths are gaining, but I don’t let myself believe I won’t make it. Not for a single heartbeat, because Iwillmake it. I won’tlet them take my soul because I may have been robbed of this life with my mate, but I won’t be robbed of the next.

I jump, throwing myself over the last few steps that separate me from the veil. Abby’s scream rings in my ears and it’s the last thing I hear before I slip into nothing.

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