Page 104 of The Lands Defying
“He’s scared. Stay down there,”I reply, my gaze moving down and to the other side of the river.
Darius bursts through the tree line with Leo and Damian, his body practically vibrating with rage. I can’t see his eyes clearly from up here, but I know they are hard and cold as he looks up and sees me. I sense his eyes scanning me from head to toe, and I can almost feel his displeasure and concern as he takes me in.
He is definitely not happy with what he sees, and Darius knows no bounds when it comes to me, apparently.
He needs to stay there, he needs to stay away.
Just as I think it, he moves, Leo and Damian hot on his heels as he gets closer to the male statue on his side. When he reaches it, he looks from me to the cliff wall on his side, and to the top of it.
He’s not. He wouldn’t.
But he does.
I shake my head wildly down at him as Darius puts his foot on the stone, and then starts to climb.
Shit.
I shuffle forward, moving closer to Kade who tenses at the arrival of the Elites. The gap between our side of the cliff and the one Darius is climbing is too far to jump across, but Darius doesn’t need to be close to intimidate.
Ignoring how clumps of dirt fall off the edge as I get closer to Kade, I reach out a tentative hand to him.
Kade turns sharply, and I nearly tumble back from him, not expecting him to face me so suddenly.
I really take him in, my eyes watery as I look upon a face I know so well, yet seems so different.
He’s changed. I feel it in my soul.
“Carzan,” I whisper, biting my lip as he looks over my face.
“Butterflies, they aren’t here,” he mumbles to himself, frowning.
My brows furrow. “Butterflies?” I ask gently, not daring to move any closer just yet. “Let’s just get down from here, okay?”
“They were supposed to be here, waiting for me.…” He shakes his head, looking around. “What are you doing here?” he asks me, voice gruff, and just the sound of his voice makes me want to launch myself at him. To hold him tight and never let go.
Runa makes a sound of agreement within me.
“I came to look for something and then I saw you,” I tell him, making a move to take a tiny step closer, but halt when he takes a small step back.
I let out a shaky breath as I see how close he is to the edge, how close he is to falling down into the water, never to be seen again. You don’t come out of the sea, it’s unforgivable to those that enter it, swallowing them down in its depths.
“Be careful—”
“You shouldn’t have come here,” he cuts me off, and my eyes move back to him at the dead tone in his voice now. Oh no. “Or maybe you should have.” He tilts his head and his features turn…cold. So cold that it sends a shiver down my spine.
I let out a shaky breath as his eyes have this faraway look in them, just blank.
This is not the boy who would cry out for me when he had a nightmare and cling to me as I soothed him. This is not the boy that would have the brightest smile on his face as he showed me his drawings he did for me. This is not the boy who would come to me and tell me everything he was thinking and feeling.
No.
This is the male he has turned into over the last few months. The male theymadehim.
What happened? I want to ask him. What did they do to you?
I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you, I love you. Forgive me for letting them have you.
I want to say all the things to him, but the look in his eyes stops me.
