Page 61 of Broken Star

“The sunrise walk,” he says, his voice lower now, more certain. “We snuck out before dawn, just the two of us. We walked around the lake, and I told you?—”

I suck in a sharp breath, my throat tightening.

“—that I was scared,” he continues. “That I was afraid I was never going to leave Presque Isle. That I was going to get stuck in that town forever, watching my dreams get smaller and smaller as I wore myself down fixing cars at the shop.”

My fingers curl into fists as the memories of that morning slam into me like a semi-truck. Because I never told anyone what he said to me at the lake. Not even Zoey. Because he was vulnerable with me that morning—something he rarely was—and I appreciated it. I didn’t want to betray his trust.

“You told me I’d find my way out,” he continues, and I swear there are actual tears in his eyes. “That I’d get my second chance.”

I exhale sharply, the weight of those words crushing me. Because I’d believed them. I’d wanted them to be true. I’d hoped that even if his future didn’t end up being with me—which by that point, I was already questioning if it would be—he’d still find happiness.

But now, standing here, staring at his ghost, I know that second chance will never come.

And then, suddenly, there’s a hand brushing mine.

Riven.

The rush of pain brings me back from the haze of grief setting over me at the fact that my ex-boyfriend is dead and I’m talking to his ghost.

Because it’s no longer Matt I’m thinking about.

It’sRiven.

“Get off me,” I snap at him, yanking my hand out of his as he’s a poisonous snake.

Darkness flashes over his eyes, but he just steps back, his hand returning to the hilt of his sheathed sword, and nods.

“Trouble in fae paradise?” Matt asks, glancing back and forth between me and Riven in amusement.

“It’s complicated.” I brush it off, needing to change the subject. “How did you die? And what does it have to do with Zoey?”

After all, ithasto do with Zoey and the Night Court. They were what I originally asked about. Why would the Underworld have sent Matt if he can’t answer my question?

“That’s also complicated,” he says wryly. “Let’s start by saying that when your ex-girlfriend and her best friend disappear, the ex-boyfriend tends to be on the top of the suspect list.”

“No.” Horror rises in my chest. “Matt…”

“They tried to pin it on me, Saph,” he says. “I could feel it—how they were looking for anything that could make me the villain of your little vanishing act.”

I swallow hard, my mind racing. Of course people would have been looking for me and Zoey, but I never thought about what that would mean for Matt.

No matter how toxic our relationship had become at the end, he deserved better thanthis.

“I had to get out,” he continues, his voice tight. “So, I got in my car and drove north, as far as I could go. But the roads were icy, and I thought I saw something in the woods. A light. Or maybe I was just exhausted. I don’t know. But I lost control. The car went off the road, straight into a ravine.”

I suck in a sharp breath, and my stomach twists.

“Is that what killed you?” I ask, even though it wouldn’t explain what Zoey had to do with this.

“No. But it was bad.” He shakes his head, thinking back on whatever happened next. “And when I woke up, Ravenna was there. The queen of the Night Court. She brought me to the palace and gave me the potion that healed me. I thought I owed her everything.” His gaze flickers, the edges of his form shifting like smoke. “But whatever I thought she felt for me… it wasn’t real. It never was.”

“Of course it wasn’t,” I mutter. “Winter fae aren’t capable of love. I doubt night fae are, either, since they were winter fae before they were turned.”

Riven flinches, but he says nothing.

Matt simply nods. “She fed from me a few times a day,” he says, his eyes hollow as he thinks back on it. “I thought I loved her. But now, I can see clearly again. I was just another human plaything to her—another soul to feed her power. And right now, the same thing is happening to Zoey. She’s under the same spell.”

“The queen has Zoey, too?” I ask.

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