Page 50 of Blood

She needs to, I agree.

So, I remain there, kneeling beside the woman I love, watching her life drain away and helpless to do anything to stop it. Hux rages inside of my head, a volatile beast waiting to be unleashed, and Dimitri has gone perfectly still. I imagine the others are just as frantic at the moment. I can’t even imagine the carnage and bloodshed that will occur when they arrive.

Violet, my love...

You need to wake up.

Because if you don’t, it’s not just Zeus the world will have to worry about.

It’s all of us.

CHAPTER 18

MASON

The second she takes a step toward me, the sunlight glistening across her golden hair and her blue eyes wide and guileless, I remember everything.

Who I am.

Who she is.

What happened.

And I know, with unwavering certainty, that she’s not supposed to be here.

As I take her in, a strange mixture of despair and happiness swirls inside of me like a whirlpool. She hasn’t noticed me yet, so I allow myself to study her unobstructed.

She’s exactly as I remember her—an angel sent from Hell to destroy me, sew me back together, and somehow make me whole. She’s both my greatest sin and most wonderful salvation. She saved me when I didn’t even realize I needed saving, reforming a broken man into one worthy of her love.

A tiny tendril of electricity curls through my chest as her head swivels in my direction. I doubt she recognizes me—I’m on the opposite side of the clearing, crouching behind a row of bushes—but I allow myself to believe that she does.

“Where am I?” A tiny trickle of fear edges itself into her normally unflappable voice. It breaks my heart to hear.

But I can’t let her see me, no matter how selfish I want to be.

She needs to go back.

This isn’t her time.

God, I want nothing more than to run to her, pull her into my arms, and kiss her senseless. But I’m afraid if I do that, I’ll never allow her to leave again. Maybe the old Mason would’ve taken what he wanted, regardless of the consequences, but the new one loves his pinkie more than life itself.

Violet.

My mate.

My love.

Confusion and disbelief warring with betrayal clouds her brilliant blue eyes as she studies the clearing—the place between life and death that all souls travel to before crossing over.

I’d been watching her for days now, completely unaware of who this striking woman was to me. All I knew was that I needed to protect her however I could. And then I saw her fade away, her spirit drifting from her body as her blood and power were used to free the Fomorians.

Fear started to edge in over the shock as I watched her life trickle away.

No. Not yet.

It’s too soon.

But now, she’s here, set loose from my greatest nightmare and come to rip me from the reality I’ve come to accept.

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