Page 81 of The Bones of the Cursed

“You were dying,” she whispers.

I swallow hard. “Yes. I was.”

Her eyes meet mine once again. “I felt it. Your pain. I could feel your heart slowing.”

I carefully climb onto the edge of the bed so I don’t jostle her healing body. “I’m here, firecracker. I’m with you. It’s all right.”

I try to soothe her, but her pain is palpable. I know the feeling. In the moment, even with my fatal wounds, I feared for her. Ifeared the possibility of never seeing her again, but more than anything, I feared she would also fall to the Amorak.

The world needs her.

Gods,Ineed her.

Looking at her now, she needs me just as much. Not to protect her or coddle her, she is quite capable on her own, but to be her partner.

To love her.

Her tears fade and her body sags with exhaustion. “We should probably get some food into your system.” I go to get up, but her grip tightens.

“Please stay with me.”

I nod. “I will, I’m just going to stick my head into the hall and call for a few friends. They haven’t strayed far since we got here.”

I stride to the door, quickly calling out to Kailu, who I know has been living in the library across the hall these past three days when he’s not at Alanis’s bedside. He peeks out, concern etched across his face.

“What’s wrong?”

I give him a bright smile. “She’s awake.”

He doesn’t pause, just sprints across the hall, so fast I hardly see him move. I hear Alanis giggle and I think my heart skips a beat at the joyful sound. Gods, please let him have a bond with her. I fear if not I may lose them both to grief.

And then Hannah turns the corner as if summoned, her eyes snapping up when Alanis lets out another soft laugh. Hannah stares at me in shock.

“She just woke up,” I say. Hannah more than anyone has been an absolute wreck this entire time.

She walks slowly to the room, peering in through the crack in the door. Tears fall from her eyes as she lifts a shaky hand to cover her mouth. I place a tender hand on her shoulder.

“She’s all right,” I whisper, trying to offer comfort to her.

When we came through the doors of the palace, we were drenched in blood and barely standing for our wounds. Siveral and Hendrix were carrying me, the blood loss sending me in and out of consciousness. Kailu carried Alanis. I remember a gasp drawing my attention. Hannah and my parents stood in the foyer, eyes wide in horror. My mother raced towards me, Hannah towards Alanis. Shockingly, my father also went to Alanis. I’m still unsure why. I haven’t had much chance to talk to him.

Thankfully, Hannah is useful with healing remedies. She worked alongside the healer to treat all those who were injured, including myself.

She tentatively steps into the bedroom and I follow, spying Alanis and Kailu sitting close, their noses almost brushing. Then Alanis looks up, locking eyes with Hannah.

“Hannah.”

Kailu moves back to make room for her.

“Alanis Bowman, I should throttle you,” Hannah says in anger. “You promised not to do that to me again. Youpromised! I thought you were…I thought—” She looks at the wall, letting her sentence hang in the air.

Alanis reaches for her, grasping her hand. “I know. I will make it up to you, I swear.”

Hannah scoffs. “Yeah, better be something good. I think you took ten years off my life.”

Alanis smiles. “Something good, huh? Like helping you mend your garden that is probably pretty screwed up right now?”

Hannah grimaces at the thought. “Yeah, that and more.”

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