Page 132 of The Demon Court

All she wanted was to say she loved him. She’d never gotten to tell him herself and suddenly it felt very important that he know. He deserved to know how much he meant to her, and how thankful she was that he’d helped her change.

But the cold didn’t release its hold on her, no matter how hard she struggled.

And then her mind drifted through the good memories of her time with him. She dreamt of his first lingering touch that wasn’t there because he wanted her body, but because he had found her interesting. She thought about laughing on a balcony while he looked surprised that he even could laugh. She remembered the way dimples appeared on his cheeks because he never really smiled unless he was with her.

All his warmth pooled in her chest around her heart, and she felt the ice crack just a little. Not enough for her to move or to whisper a single word, hoping that the wind would carry it to him. No. It was only enough for her to not feel so much pain.

Something moved against her. Not the snakes that had settled in her veins or the whispers in her ear that sounded like Minerva. It was a real touch, and she wasn’t alone. She knew that now. She wasn’t.

If only she could open her eyes. She’d know who was here with her in her last moments. Was it him? He couldn’t come for her this quickly, but she wanted him to know where she was. She wanted him to find her.

Taking a deep breath, she struggled to the surface of her mind. She used the warmth he had gifted her to push back the curse enough to open her eyes.

Minerva planted her foot at her side and glared down at her. And then Selene felt herself shift, and she knew what was happening.

Her mother was kicking her off the Tower. Nothing below her would soften her blow, and she would die where she had been laid as a baby in the hopes that Minerva would save her. The beginning of her life and the end, meeting in one poetic moment.

But she wouldn’t go out without a fight.

The last bit of her magic popped free from her body in twin orbs that flew up into the air as she fell. They both landed over Minerva’s eyes and then burst into light, like the sun. Twin supernovas that burrowed into Minerva’s skull and seared her eyes from her head.

The satisfaction of revenge didn’t last long. Wind whistled through her ears and Selene felt weightless as she plummeted down the Tower. It seemed as though time slowed as the white walls flashed by her. She remembered how beautiful this world was. And how lovely it looked from so high up.

She tilted her head to the side and watched the kingdom she loved come up to meet her. That’s what she told herself. The land she had loved so fiercely since the moment she was born had come alive. It wanted to hold her one last time and she would not deny it. There was nothing she could do other than enjoy the feeling of the wind in her hair and the rain on her cheeks.

She looked back up at the storm raging overhead and swore she saw him. He stood at the top of the Tower instead of Minerva and launched himself into the air after her. As though he could save her from this fate, even though it had been written since the moment she was born.

Selene had never been meant to kill him. She’d never wanted to hurt anyone, and she certainly wouldn’t have given him up to these wicked women who wanted to harm him.

But right now, she would go back in time and do it all again. The deception. The lies. The secretive plots to end his life. If only she could hold him in her arms one last time.

And then the ground hit her.

The sickening crunch her body made was not nearly as bad as she thought. Perhaps one of her sisters had softened her blow, but she knew it wasn’t normal to feel this numb. She could feel nothing at all, just the cold and how limp her body was against the snow.

“Selene!” A shriek echoed through the air, and she knew it was Ursula. “Please tell me I didn’t... I caught her! I caught her, didn’t I?”

She didn’t know. She didn’t think so. This wasn’t right. Her body should have some sensation, not just... nothing. Like she wasn’t there at all.

Another thud echoed beyond her, but she couldn’t tilt her head to look. Tears slid out of her eyes because she couldn’t stop them.

“Get back,” a deep voice snarled as a monster leaned over her. Horns longer than her arms arched over his head. His face had changed into something angular and frightening, and black marks covered his hands and shoulders. It wasn’t him, but it was.

He looked like he was in pain. His mouth twisted and his brows furrowed. Why? Who had hurt him?

Selene wanted to pick up her hand and cup his sharp jaw. She wanted to drag him forward and press their foreheads together so she could breathe him in. But she didn’t want him to look at her like she was broken and he didn’t know what he could touch.

“Selene,” he whispered, his voice breaking on the word. “I don’t... I don’t know what to do.”

Nothing. He could do nothing but be here, and he was here. She wasn’t alone now. Didn’t he know how wonderful that was? How much easier that made all this?

Lust snapped his head up, parting his lips on a snarl. “What did I say? Get back.”

“She’s hurt.”

“Take one step closer, sorceress, and I will tear your spine from your body.”

“I can help.” That was a different voice. Was that Bathilda? No, Sibyl. It was Sibyl.

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