Page 131 of Dark Bonds

The air crackles with residual shadow magic, making my skin tingle and dance. It’s like a thousand tiny spiders crawling beneath my skin, their icy legs leaving trails of fire in their wake. I shudder, the conflicting sensations a maddening itch I can’t scratch.

There are so many lives in my hands, the responsibility is dizzying.

“Frankie?” Leo’s voice cuts through the haze. His hand on my shoulder is warm and grounding, his calloused fingers providing a stark contrast to the chill seeping into my bones. “We need to get everyone out of here.”

I nod, forcing myself to focus and be the leader they expect me to be. “Right. Can you and Matteo start organizing the evacuees?”

As they move away, Leo’s easy grin a beacon of hope in the gloom, I turn my attention to my brother. Finn’s eyes are huge, and damn if they don’t almost appear purple. He looks as freaked out as I feel.

“I’m sorry,” I say softly, the words barely a whisper in the cacophony around us. “This must be overwhelming for you.”

I can’t stop thinking about everything Finn has missed and everything we’ve both lost. It’s like a weight on my chest, making it hard to breathe.

He manages a shaky smile, revealing a ghost of the boy he must have been before Blackwood’s twisted experiments. “A bit, yeah. I’m... I’m Finn, by the way.”

He told me that, but I’m not going to remind him. I think he’s in shock.

“Finn,” I repeat, tasting the name again now that the threat isn’t looming over us, feeling it settle into a space in my heart I didn’t know was empty. “I have so many questions, but they can wait. Let’s get you somewhere safe first.”

A brother.I have a brother. The thought echoes in my mind, foreign yet somehow right.

As we make our way through the crumbling facility, the whole place creaking and groaning, I can’t help but marvel at how quickly everything has changed.

Just hours ago, I was grappling with Valerie’s betrayal, the taste of it bitter on my tongue. Now, I’m reunited with my long-lost twin and facing a future I never could have imagined, one filled with both terrifying darkness and blinding possibility.

Once outside, we regroup in a nearby clearing. The night air hits me like a slap, crisp and biting after the fetid miasma ofBlackwood’s lair. Pine and damp earth mingle with the metallic tang of blood and the acrid stench of fear.

This is the scent of victory, and it terrifies me.

The moonlight streams through the trees, making weird shadows move around us. It’s kind of creepy. Matteo approaches, his face etched with concern, those dark eyes that have seen too much fixed solely on me.

“How are you holding up?” he asks, his voice low and steady, a rock in the tempest of my emotions.

I let out a shaky breath, feeling the weight of the night settle on my shoulders. “Honestly? I’m not sure. It’s all so much to process.”

Matteo pulls me into a gentle embrace, mindful of Finn who’s still leaning heavily on me. His arms feel like home, like safety in a world that’s been turned upside down. “I’m so damn proud of you.”

A blush creeps up my neck, and I bite my lip.

That makes one of us.

As we stand there, the events of the past few hours crash over me like a tidal wave. The battle, the revelations, the weight of responsibility... It’s all too much.

How many years have I bottled up my emotions, kept them on a tight leash, and now… They bubble and bubble until a dam somewhere inside me shifts and I fucking break.

I don’t just break for my past, but for everything that’s been stolen from me—my family, my brother, and hell, even the friendships I could have built over the years.

I. Fucking.Break.

I shatter into a thousand little pieces, scattered to all corners of the earth.

Strong arms catch me and hold me close as I sob into Matteo’s chest, my body shaking with the release of decades ofpent-up emotions. The fabric of his shirt is rough against my cheek, damp with my tears and the sweat of battle.

Leo appears at my side, his hand finding mine, our fingers intertwining with a familiarity that belies the short time we’ve known each other. “Let it out, Echo,” he murmurs, his usual playfulness replaced by a gentle understanding. “You’ve been so strong. It’s okay to break a little now. We’ve got you, always.”

Dorian steps close. “We’ve got you,” Dorian echoes softly, his hand coming to rest on my shoulder. The warmth of his touch seeps through my clothes, a stark contrast to the chill of the night air.

I lift my tear-stained face from Matteo’s chest and meet Dorian’s gaze. His eyes, usually so guarded, are filled with a mixture of concern and something deeper, something that makes my breath catch in my throat.

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