Page 83 of Broken Star

Zoey and Riven—lifeless.

Blood pools beneath them, dark and endless, soaking into the earth like a wound that will never close. It coats my hands, slick and warm, staining my skin with something I can never wash away.

In the vision, there’s no grief in my eyes. No rage, no sorrow, not even satisfaction. Just a monster wrapped in my skin, staring at their broken bodies as if they’re nothing more than pieces of a puzzle.

A sob rises in my throat, choking me. Strangling me.

But before it can escape, strong arms wrap around me, pulling me back into something real.

Into something solid.

Intohim.

Riven.MyRiven.

He’s alive. Solid, unmoving, and steady in a way I desperately need him to be. I clutch at him like if I hold tightly enough, I can anchor myself in the firmness of his body and erase what I’m seeing in the Tides.

His arms tighten around me, his breath cool against my temple. “I’m right here,” he murmurs. “What we’re seeing—it’s not real.”

But I can’t look away as future-me kneels beside Zoey, checking her pulse with cold, precise movements. Like she’s performing a routine inspection and not kneeling over her best friend’s corpse.

Then, as if satisfied, she brushes a strand of hair from Zoey’s face, but her expression doesn’t change.

No pain. No grief.

Justnothing.

She turns to the Riven in the vision next, her fingers trailing across his bloodied cheek. Her head tilts, studying him with detached curiosity, as if he were nothing more than a broken artifact.

A shudder rakes through me, panic clawing up my throat. Wind whips around us in chaotic spirals, and droplets of water rise from the cosmic void, suspended and trembling like the tears I can’t seem to stop.

How could I be finally starting to get him back, only to have him die on me? To be the one to kill him?

This can’t be right. It can’t betrue.

“Look at me.” My Riven’s voice is urgent now, edged with something close to fear as he turns me to face him, forcing my gaze away from the horror before us. “That’s not you. I know you, and that’snotyou.”

“But it is,” I choke out, my voice breaking. “That’s my face, my hands—covered in your blood and Zoey’s. I killed you both.”

“No.” His grip tightens, fierce and unyielding. “You haven’t killed anyone. Like you said, this is apossiblefuture. It’s not a certainty. And I won’t let that happen to you. I won’t let you become…that.”

But the fear is already spiraling, swallowing me whole.

What if this is what I’m destined to become? What if the vampire blood in my veins, the fae magic in my soul, and the star touched magic in my heart is leading me toward this monstrous version of myself?

What if the lead arrow didn’t just make me hateful toward Riven? What if it’s been poisoningeverythingabout me all along?

And what if I can’t stop it?

My body trembles, and I fist my hands in Riven’s shirt, clutching at the cool fabric like it’s the only thing keeping me from breaking apart.

“Don’t let me become that.” I press my forehead against his chest, needing to remind myself that he’s here—strong and solid—and not… there. “Don’t let me hurt you or Zoey. Promise me you’ll stop me?—”

“No,” Riven growls, and suddenly, his arms wrap fully around me, crushing me against him. “I won’t make that promise, because it’s not going to come to that. Because the Sapphire I know would never hurt the people she loves.”

Love.

The word hits me like lightning, splintering through me, raw and electric.

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