Page 221 of Crimson Promises
I had spent so much time pushing her away, convinced I was unworthy of her love. But now, as I gazed at her with her wings outstretched, I saw the truth.
She was an angel now.
And despite her trying to save me, I felt the call of Death coming to claim me. Now, I would never get the chance to love her for eternity.
Love was the most powerful force in the universe. It transcended vengeance, defied destiny, and had the power to transform even the darkest of hearts. Aurora had shown me that, not through words, but through her actions.
Tears welled in my eyes as I realized the depth of her sacrifice. She had seen something in me that I had been blind to—a goodness, a potential for love and redemption.
I wish I had had the chance to tell her that, for her to know that she gave me the greatest gift I could ever have. She taught me how to love again.
Seeing her now, her wings so resplendent, was all worth it, even if it ended like this.
ChapterTwenty-Nine
Aurora
Ilifted the covers over my head. In this cocoon, I was safe. Nothing terrible happened here. There was no reality to contend with. I wasn’t an angel. Ben would be back any minute with a matcha latte to try and pry me from my bed before my run. In here, I had never been to Hell, never felt desire for a monster who decimated everything he touched. In here, I was a mortal girl named Aurora James, who was just trying to pass her courses, fall in love, and figure out what I wanted to do when I went out into the world. I didn’t have the fate of worlds plural on my shoulders because of some ancient prophecy a seer once foretold. No wonder Atlas always looked like he was suffering from severe back pain. The future of Heaven and Hell and the role I was supposed to play had me snuggling deeper into my chrysalis.
Ben’s worn henley hadn’t left my side. I tried yelling deep into the void at Lucifer to bring me back to Hell. Somehow, I ended up back here without knowing what happened to Ben.
And now Lucifer had the Vision Relic without anyone to be a check and balance system for him. I should alert someone, move, get up, do something. But I couldn’t be bothered.
I regularly cursed the red-eyed demon with his beautifully chiseled face, made in the likeness of God himself, for putting me in this predicament. If it wasn’t for him, I would have gone on the date Ben had planned, and everything would have been fine.Would it, though?My subconscious shot back at me.
Here, in the steadfast embrace of denial, it would have.
Hadn’t I sacrificed enough? Given enough? Someone else can take on the mantle of savior. I was done. Those supposed Originals could handle it.
Initially, I couldn’t bring myself to look at our bond. But I had to know. It was the only way I could get answers.
I focused on the bond that always acted like a sentient being flowing between Ben and me. The point at which the bond connected me to him had vanished, enveloped in darkness. I could have sworn I felt the bond come to life, and I would check again, and the emptiness remained. A phantom limb had been removed from my body.
It had been the last shred of hope I had to convince myself that he wasn’t gone. That I had healed him enough before I left. That he was trying to return to me.
I closed my eyes and shut the world out.
* * *
The grief that coursed through me was a relentless torrent, pulling me deeper into its dark, suffocating depths.
The tears came and went like waves crashing against the shore of my consciousness. They blurred the room around me, turning everything watery and indistinct. But I didn't wipe them away. There was a strange comfort in their presence, a reminder that I was still capable of feeling something, even if that something was an overwhelming ache.
I should have gotten up, should have faced the day, should havedonesomething— anything—to distract myself from the gaping hole that had been torn in my heart. But the thought of facing the world without him was too much to bear.
There was a numbness that settled in, a strange detachment from reality.
I knew that, eventually, I would have to emerge from this cocoon of grief. Life would demand it of me. But for now, I was content to remain beneath the covers where I could pretend, even for a little while longer, that he was still with me.
* * *
My entire apartment was shaking. That was the first thought that stirred me from my hibernation. When I popped my head above the covers, I confirmed that the floor was indeednotcrumbling. I closed my eyes shut just as the pounding resumed.
What is that?
A deep voice reverberated throughout my condo into my room. “Aurora, I know you’re in there. It’s been seven days. You need to get up. I’m giving you two hours to pull yourself together.” A more aggressive knock punctuated his threats. “Don’t make me come in there. Or even worse, call your father.”
Vic.
