Page 13 of A Heart of Midnight (Dark Fae Academy 2)

“Right.” Dread dripped down the bond, pouring into Bree’s mind and making her fear ramp up another notch. “Here is what you need to do. Go over, stand by his side, and place your hands directly over his heart. Once you are certain that your hands are where they need to be, close your eyes and tell me that you are ready. I will then send my healing powers through the bond to heal Rafe’s body and soul. If we are lucky, this will work, but I have never tried to heal through anotherfae.”

“Well, you’ve never had this kind of bond with someone before.” Bree clutched his arm and squeezed tight. “This is special. This is different. If you’re ever going to be able to do something like this, it would be now, and it would be withme.”

Bree felt a slight smile travel through the bond. “It is not like you to be the one full of optimism, but I am glad for it. Now, go. Prepare yourself as best you can. I do not know how this is going to feel foryou.”

Bree gave a nod, and she let go of Taveon’s arm, even though she hated breaking the contact between them. Ever since they’d made the bond, she felt the constant desire to be close to him, especially now. She strode across the room and dropped to Rafe’s side. Her knees dug into the stone ground, but she ignored the pain. Following Taveon’s instructions, she lifted Rafe’s shirt to reveal his chest. And then she placed her trembling hands directly over hisheart.

His chest was slick and cool underneath her shaking fingers. His heartbeat was rapid but weak at same time. He groaned and shifted against the sofa. Heart beating wildly in her chest, Bree took in a deep breath and let out a long exhale through hernose.

“Are you certain this is a good idea, Bree?” Rafe asked, his voice just as weak as his heartbeat. He tried to shift up onto his elbows and pry her hands off his chest, but his usual unending strength had left him. Bree had to push her fear aside. It had taken them far too long to get here. It had taken her far too long to talk Taveon into attempting this feat. “I worry what will happen to you when you try to heal me with Taveon’s powers. You do not know the truth about him. He is far stronger than you realize. And it is not natural for his abilities to churn through your mortalbody.”

“I don’t care,” Brady said, her heart racing. “You look like you’re on the edge of death. If this weakens me, then it’s worthit.”

“I am not worried about it weakening you, Bree.” Rafe shuddered as he drew a deep breath into his lungs. “I am worried about it killing you. You do not know how his power will transform yourbody.”

“Well, we’re about to find out.” Bree took in another deep breath, filling her lungs with the sudden cool of the room. She closed her eyes, and she called out to Taveon through their bond. She’d left all the walls down between them. And he’d been listening to every word of her conversation with Rafe. She knew that he could see his old friend’s current state through her eyes, and she could feel his fear pounding deep within hischest.

“I will not let this kill you, Bree,” Taveon said, his voice rough with emotion. “Just hold on tight. Let the power fill you. And then let it go. Let it flee your body, even if it feels like every part of your essence is leaving you behind. Let it form in your hands. Let it fill Rafe’ssoul.”

Strange magic took shape in her gut. It started in the very center of her, right within her core. Slowly, it began to spread through her body. Her stomach churned with bright sparks, tingling her lungs and then her chest and then her shoulders. It traveled down her legs, reaching out until it touched the very edges of her toes. And then it filled her head with the sweet, sweet scent of the morning after rain. Bree shattered against the sensation, her entire body trembling from the intensity of its fire. She felt alive. She’d never felt this alive in her entire life. Every part of her was full of him, full ofTaveon.

And she didn’t want to let it go. She wanted to reach out and hold it close to her, forever trapping his essence inside herform.

Rafe moaned, snapping Bree back into the present. Another deep breath. Another long exhale through her nose. The sparkling filled her head, lighting up the back of her eyelids with visions of a bright sun that filled the world with the sweetest kind of light. For a moment, she hesitated, curious about that bright light. There was no sun in Underworld. Only a moon and the darkest of nights. Andyet…

“Let the healing go, Bree,” Taveon whispered into hermind.

Shuddering, Bree focused on Rafe’s uneven heartbeat. She focused on her hands, on her fingertips, and on pushing every part of her out through the very edges of her skin. The magical, sparkling rays of light pooled into her hands, and her head felt light from the sudden absence of it. Her arms crackled and shook, and the magic poured out of her body and into Rafe. He began to shake underneath her, his body now feeling the same sensation shehad.

He was healing, taking the magic from both Bree and Taveon. His skin began to warm, and his heartbeat grew stronger. So strong that she could feel the force of it pounding through his skin as she pressed her hands as tightly to his chest as shecould.

“You did it, Bree,” Taveon whispered into her mind, and then the sensation snapped away as he pulled himself away fromher.

Shaking her head, Bree opened her eyes to find Rafe gazing up at her with eyes full of an emotion that she was far too scared to name. His hand reached up to her face, and he trailed a finger down her cheek, stopping to catch the tear that had fallen from her eyes. She was crying. But she hadn’t realized it untilnow.

She didn’t even know why she was crying. Nothing was wrong. Quite the opposite in fact. She had used Taveon’s power, and Rafe had been healed. His wound had begun to stitch itself together, and he was no longerbleeding.

And Bree was fine. Taveon’s power hadn’t killed her. It hadn’t even harmed her. She just felt… impossibly empty now, as if she had just lost a very important part ofher.

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