Page 104 of Between Imminent Fates

Derikles scrunched his nose before his expression turned to a grimace, and Celeste lost any hint of smugness. Instead of letting him go, she walked back to his kitchen and grabbed a towel for a cold compress. Back once more in the darkened room, she shifted uneasily as she clutched the cool fabric.

When she saw Derikles had already finished the tea, she chuckled. The man had been thirsty. “Lie back and I’ll put this compress on you. It might help with the pain.”

“Dutifully playing the nurse maid to a man you just met?”

“I’m feeling charitable.”

He lowered himself back down on the couch. Gently placing the cold compress on his forehead, she hummed. For a few minutes, they simply sat in companionable silence. Her guilt at abandoning him last night continued to pit in her gut, and she finally worked up the will to speak to it.

“I’m sorry about yesterday.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about, Celeste. I was the one who kissed you.”

“And I was the one who left without an explanation.” Shame stole through her. “My best friend is laying comatose, and I found a bit of happiness with you last night. I felt guilty. Like somehow, I was betraying her and my clan.”

Removing the cold compress, emerald eyes opened to meet hers with a solemnity she well knew. “I’m perhaps the only other person who can say that I totally understand how you feel.”

“I can only imagine.” Celeste bit her lip. “But you were his second, and he …”

She stalled, and Derikles finished that train of thought. “Isaiah’s my best friend, and he left me the burden of the sovereignty.”

“Are you angry with him?”

“Iwasangry with him. How could I not be?” A belabored sigh, and he pushed up to his elbow. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t understand why he did it. If he had died, the clan bonds would’ve evaporated. The psychic shock might’ve killed the clan’s children.”

Derikles grew morose, the distant look in his eyes defining his next words. “At his heart, Isaiah was always the protector, the one to lay himself down on the line. By ensuring the net around their minds was still strong, he saved lives, even if he couldn’t save his own.”

Slumping back onto the carpet, Celeste wrapped her arms around her knees and thought about their sacrifice. It was unfathomable—but exactly what she would’ve expected of her own sovereign.

“To do what they did, even knowing what was coming for them?” she whispered. “I can’t imagine.”

“I must’ve been the worst burden to bear. They weren’t even able to tell their own mates.” Derikles rose to a seated position and gently reached out to where Celeste sat. “Come on, don’t sit on the floor.”

She locked eyes with him, attempting to decipher his intent, but linked her fingers with his on impulse. And instead of seating herself far away from him to maintain distance, she did just the opposite.

She curled into him, dissolving into the coffee and chocolate scent while he protectively folded her into his side. Her head settled on his shoulder, and his cheek pressed into her pink hair. They sat silently, content in the other’s presence.

“You must feel lonely,” she said softly.

“How so?”

“Being sovereign of a clan where you’d been the second. Before, you were one of them. Now, you’re at the top, in a position where your former comrades now depend on you. It’s lonely by yourself.”

Derikles didn’t immediately respond. When his fingers tightened on hers, he said, “It’s different. When I first watched that video, I didn’t know what to make of it. He’d offered me an out—find someone else who’d be willing to take on the sovereignty so I could escape it.

“Now, I’m not sure I want to. I don’t think Icouldhand the clan over to anyone else. I feel like no one else would care about it as much as I do.”

“I can understand that.”

He shifted to look at her. “You said it’s lonely by yourself. It sounded like you know what that feels like.”

Celeste stared at him. Revealing such a tender topic in a vulnerable time meant opening herself up. Sometimes, it was easier to hide behind humor and a corset. As she searched his gaze, she realized that he’d already invited her in by being honest about his own feelings. It gave her the courage to share her own.

“My parents were murdered by clanless Raeths when I was a few centuries old. Nina and Blair adopted me, for all intents and purposes. Or maybe I adopted them,” she chuckled. “The past couple of years have been lonely. Nina, Blair, and Remmus all found their mates, and while I’m outrageously happy for them, it feels like I’m the outsider looking in. Now that Nina’s sleeping, well, it’s only magnified that feeling.”

“Their perspectives changed—as they should. But I’ve struggled with it, too.” Derikles frowned. “Is that why you volunteered for the clanless initiative?”

“Partially,” she said. “A good friend of mine was hurt by several clanless during his upbringing, and I never want anyone to go through that again. I want to ensure that no one feels abandoned like we did. If Zia, Jeremiah, and I can make strides on that front, then I’m more than happy to lead the charge.”

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