Page 118 of Iridian

He ate slowly while I told him what I knew how to tell him. About how he’d allowed me to carry the curse, how it had felt like we were one and the same wherever that dark place the curse had taken me to was.

How I’d heard the souls of the soldiers, had seen their lights, how I’d spoken to them. How they’d dragged me down, then let me go.

“I thought it would release them,” Taland said, his eyes darkening just like they used to before. I’d missed the way he looked with colors in his eyes, but now I missed how he’d looked without colors, too.

And that gave me a sense of calm. Made me not want to shy away when he looked at me. Because maybe he didn’t mind my eyes exactly like I hadn’t minded his. Maybe he, too, thought white eyes could be beautiful.

“So did I. I thought releasing them was what was killing you.”

He swallowed a piece of meat, looking down at his lap. “There is no way out. No way out of the curse. Releasing them means destroying them permanently.Undoingthem.”

“It does,” I said. “I felt it.”

He looked at me. “How many are left?”

“Sixty-one,” I reluctantly said. “The rest…”

The rest were already gone. We didn’t know exactly what happened beyond death, but we did know that our souls moved on, that they existed—whether in a different place or realm, or in a different shape—didn’t matter. Our souls existed, and that had always been my greatest consolation because I could handle life knowing that my parents were still somewhere. That I would still besomewherewhen I died. It made life worth living. It made waking up in the morning make sense. It madetryingmake sense.

But to think that I would be completely destroyed after this was over…why bother?

“Fifty-nine soldiers,” said Taland, shaking his head. “I should have known better.”

“We all should have known better—starting with the Council. Don’t you dare blame yourself. You were trying to set them free.” Knowing him, guilt would be the first thing he’d feel, and guilt just might be the most dangerous feeling in the world. A silent killer. Merciless.

He smiled bitterly. “And instead ended up giving them toyou.”

“You did. We survived, Taland. And now we figure out how to set them free for real,” I said, reaching out for his hand. He took mine on his lap and inspected my fingers.

“What if we can’t?”

“There are ways. It’s magic—there are always other ways.” This I believed in with my whole heart. “We won’t rest until we find one that works.”

“Had anybody else said that to me, I wouldn’t have believed them—but you?” He pulled me by the arm, and I leaned over the tray on the bed to kiss him. “My stubborn little criminal. You, I believe.”

I grinned. “Smart guy.”

“Just lucky.” He kissed me again.

“So, now what?” I asked when I sat back again and urged him to keep eating.

“Now, we go to Headquarters to see my brothers, I guess. Understand what they are up to. See what their plans are. Tell them ours.”

I arched a brow. “We have plans?”

“We do. To figure out ways to release these soldiers once and for all. To make sure the world will always remember their sacrifices. And we’re going to help them build this new world, too. It’s only fair, don’t you think?”

Shivers rushed down my back. That definitely sounded like something I’d want to do.

“With great power comes great responsibility,” I whispered, looking at the soldiers standing by the walls, their eyes closed at my request.

“True,” Taland said.

But… “What if I fuck it up?” Because these soldiers werepeople.It wasn’t just mylife on the line, or Taland’s—it was their souls.

“Sweetness, there’s a reason why they chose to submit to you willingly. A reason why they’re not screaming in your head right now,” Taland said. “They see beyond the physical, deep inside of us, too, and they chose to trust you.”

It all sounded amazing, and I thought I might even believe it one day, but right now…

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