Page 41 of Whispers of the Dead

I force myself to say it. The truth that weighs on my chest heavier than my own damn ribs. “If you get too close, you might leave. That’s not something I think I can handle.”

There it is. My pathetic fear out there for her to know.

“Or…” her thumb continues along my jawline and to my cheek. “Maybe I might stay.”

The words slam into me like a punch I didn’t see coming. It hits me harder than Eugene’s knee did.

I push off the cot and force myself to stand. She takes a step back, but I catch her chin between my fingers and tilt her face up. For the first time in my life, I truly hate the dark.

The darkness has been my shield, my refuge. It’s hidden my fears and my past, but now? Now I wish for the light. If only to see the look on her face and those electric blue eyes.

I lean down until my lips are a breath away from hers. She tries to close the distance, but I stop her, holding her still. “You’ll leave. They always leave.”

“Who?”

I hesitate, but the truth is already there, raw and bleeding. “Everyone.”

She doesn’t pull away like I expect her to. She doesn’t flinch. Instead, she steps closer. She lifts onto her toes and wraps her arms around my shoulders to avoid my ribs, pressing herself against me. Her warmth seeps into me and her body molds to mine in a way that feels too right for this broken world.

Her lips are gentle when they press against my collarbone, and her breath chases the chill from my skin. My arms wrap around her, locking her in place, like I can keep her here even though I’m telling her to go.

“Well, I’m not everyone,” she whispers against my skin. Her words thread their way into every cracked, damaged part of me. “And you are worthy. You are worthy of everything this life has to offer.”

Her words hit like a freight train. I tighten my grip and bury my face in the crook of her neck. She’s right here, healthy and alive, and I need her to stay that way. I can’t lose this. I can’t lose her. She’s too important to this world. “I can’t give you normal.”

“Cole, I don’t want normal. I want safety. That’s something I’ve never felt until I was taken captive, and that’s only because of your three.”

My fingers dig into her back. “We’re getting out of here, Zoey.”

Her hands fist in the fabric of my shirt. “I know.”

I don’t know how long we stay like that, wrapped in each other, tethered in a way I don’t fully understand. My ribs ache and my body is bruised and battered, but I don’t care. For the first time in what feels like forever, I feel steady. Anchored. It’s all because of this woman who can’t even see me yet makes me feel more seen than I’ve ever felt in my life.

A harsh beam of light slices through the darkness. Zoey jumps back. I hiss and recoil from the sudden brightnesswhile raising an arm to shield my eyes. Before I can react, a pair of hands reaches in and yank her away from me.

“Zoey.” I lunge after her, but the cell door slams shut in my face. Metal grinds against metal when the lock clicks back into place.

“Time’s up.”

Zoey stumbles against the dreg who’s holding her arm in a vise grip. She blinks against the sudden intrusive light. Her head whips around and her electric blue gaze lock onto mine.

I growl low in my throat. My muscles coil with the urge to tear them apart.

The dreg holding her sneers. “Oh, don’t tell me cold, distant Cole caught a case of the feelings?”

I don’t respond. He’s right, though, but I’d rather rip out my own ribs than admit it.

The second dreg shifts while glancing around uncomfortably. He’s the only one I don’t completely despise. Not because he’s decent, but because he’s too skittish to be truly dangerous. “Let’s get out of here. I don’t like spending this much time down here.”

See, there’s the reason I don’t fully dislike him. That’s right, scurry on out of here.

“Fine, Casper. Let’s go.” The first dreg walks by him and disappears into the dark.

“It’s Caspian,” Caspian says in a whisper, then follows with reluctance.

The flashlight disappears. The door slams shut behind them.

Once again, I’m left again. Except for the ghost of her touch that lingers on my skin, warm and soft against the cold reality of this cell.

---