Page 43 of Riot

I don’t want to voice that fear, but it’s rolling around in my mind on a loop.

“There won’t be.” It’s a bold promise, considering I can still hear her screaming.

“But what if there is?” I press.

“Then we’ll deal with it.”

We.

He didn’t tell me I’d deal with it alone.

Riot reaches out, capturing one of my tears and wiping it away. My heart seizes in my chest, but this time for a different reason.

This is a different side of him to the one I usually see, different to the man who faced down Jackson too.

“I’m sorry I dragged you away from whatever you were doing.”

“Ivy, I’d drop my entire life if you needed me,” he says, unfurling from his crouch to sit next to me.

It’s a declaration of intention, and if I wasn’t unravelling, I might stop to consider what it means.

“You don’t need to stay if you have somewhere to be. I’m sure Maylie will pick up my messages soon.”

His brows knit together above that dip in the bridge of his nose. “You’re crazy if you think I’m leavin’ you here alone. It ain’t happenin’. Unless… unless you want me to go.”

The weight of the words hangs between us. This is a crossroads, and I know I should pick the safe path, but I can’t.

I don’t.

“I don’t want you to go.”

He breathes a little easier. “Then I’m stayin’ right here.”

I swallow down the lump in my throat.

“I’m so scared.”

He pulls me against his side, and that safety blanket that seems to fall over me when he’s near settles around me.

“I’m scared too,” he admits, “but she’s gonna be okay. Seren has her mother’s spirit.”

Broken? Shattered?

Some spirit.

The minutes stretch into hours and the hours into eons. I don’t know how long we sit there for, but I can’t breathe as we wait.

Please be okay. Please be okay.

Riot keeps his hand on my thigh, and I cling to his touch like it’s a rope dragging me out of the water.

“Ivy!”

My eyes snap up as Maylie rushes to me, her face crumpled in sheer terror. The second she’s close enough, I’m dragged up out of my seat and into her arms.

Her warmth and love for me oozes from every part of her as she holds me tight, and I cling to her, letting all my fear and anxiety seep out of me.

“Are you okay?” She pulls back so she can scan my face. “I’m so sorry I didn’t answer your call.”

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