Page 98 of The Bones of the Cursed

His exhale takes some of my own tension with it.

Pulling back, I wipe my face dry, embarrassed at my moment of weakness. He only smiles, thumb softly brushing my chin before he turns to survey the room once more.

“I haven’t given up. I will search every day for another answer. I will search until there is no time left.”

“Do you think the matriarch might be able to help?”

Malakai exhales sharply. “From what I know of her, she is a stubborn female. But she may just have the knowledge we need to save Alanis.”

I nod, and together Malakai and I sit, sifting through mountains of information in the hopes that something will help us save the woman we love.

My mind flits back to my sister. I couldn’t save her, and the pain of that knowledge eats away at me a little each day. I should have been able to find her. That is what I’m trained to do. Instead, I let her down. I let my parents down. My father made sure to tell me what a disappointment I was because of it.

I refuse to let Alanis down, too.

- ELION -

Nausea churning in my gut, I push through the door of my room in the castle later that night and sink into the plush mattress. The whiskey from the pub makes everything hazy. A laugh bubbles up in my chest, and I can’t seem to control it. I don’t think I want to.

A glimmer in the corner of my room draws my eyes to her.

“Elion…” Her voice is soft, pity coating her words. But Gods, do I love the sound of my name on her lips.

My laughter starts again. “Her father is the fucking God of Magic and the Land.” The laughing only escalates, as if this entire situation is absolutely hilarious. The Banshee stares at me with a look of confusion. She probably thinks I’ve lost my fucking mind.

Maybe I have.

“Her father is a fucking God and evenhesaid she is the key to this prophecy…” Tears now fall down my face from laughing so hard. “And not even he can give us another way to fulfill it without her dying in the process.”

The Banshee sits next to me, hesitantly grabbing my hand.

I brush the tears away as laughter consumes me. “Isn’t that just fucking ridiculous?”

She squeezes my hand but stays silent.

My laughter slowly subsides, a red-hot rage taking its place. I shove to my feet and grab a book from my floor, one I hoped would give us a way to save her, before tossing it against the wall.

“It’s fucking bullshit!” I scream. Swiping my arm across the dresser, I revel in the destruction. Glass crashes to the floor. Shards fly in every direction.

“He’s a fucking God! He should be able to fix this! He should be able to save her!”

I pull back, slamming my fist into the wall. My knuckles scream in protest, but the pain lets me know that this is real. That this isn’t a nightmare.

The Banshee comes to me, clasping my arm to stop me from doing any more damage.

“Elion…”

Hearing my name on her lips finally breaks me. “He should be able to save her,” I whisper, tears collecting in my eyes. “Ishould be able to save her. I’m her big brother. I should…I should be able to save her.”

The Banshee’s eyes soften, sadness lingering in her gaze as I collapse to the floor and weep.

37

- MALAKAI -

THE MATRIARCH

Waking up the following morning brings me a sense of rejuvenation. I know exactly what my plan is. I refuse to live my life the way it was before. We will find another way.

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