Page 80 of A Ballad of Phantoms and Hope
Jericho grins and folds his arms thoughtfully as he says, “We couldn’t leave one of our own behind. He’s searching for you. His heart breaks more each day you’re not with him.”
The tears fall freely, crashing against the back of my hands.
“He’ll never let you go, Ophelia. And he’ll never find you here,” Yelina adds softly.
My voice is choked with emotion. “I love him. But the darkness… it won’t leave me. I fear it will hurt him.”
Elanor brushes my hair back behind my ear and presses a warm kiss to my cheek. “You must return; you cannot stay in this purgatory you’ve created for yourself. That darkness you speak of, I’d not seen it at first, but I do now. It isyourfear that gives it life. Your own agony that feeds the beast and gives it power. You have to let it go, sweet one.”
“My fear?”
She nods, eyes looking past me toward the dark they pulled me from. I turn my head and find three shadows standing behind me. Father. My stepmother.Him.
“You are the phantom, my dear, but still they haunt you. Chasing you with their poison. It’s time to stop them. Time to sayenough.” Elanor takes my hands and for the first time I see the shadows for what they really are. Three pitiful memories.
All this time. This is all they were?
“We create our own whispering darkness, don’t we?” I say sadly as I meet all four of their gazes. Yelina gives me a sombernod. “No more then. Not when he waits for me.” I blink the tears away and wipe my eyes.
“He loves you unbearably,” Jericho adds, tipping his hat. I notice it’s Lanston’s and my smile grows. The four of them look at me with kindness and warmth, and in this moment I feel something shift inside my heart.
“He loves me?”
Yelina rolls her eyes and Jericho chuckles as she says, “You two are the biggest idiots. Find him, and once you do, never let go. We’ll be waiting for you two.”
She hugs me and I return the tight embrace.
“Are you leaving?” I ask, crying still.
Jericho nods. “But it’s not goodbye forever. I’m just borrowing this hat, you see.”
I watch as the four of them walk away, leaving me behind, but not forgotten. They found me for Lanston… and I won’t make him endure the world alone any longer. We’ll banish our demons. Together.
A deep breath coils in my lungs as I take a step out into the void. I shut my eyes and focus on Lanston.Take me to him. Please.The next moment, I’m standing atop a skyscraper, far above the city lights. My eyes widen with the explosion of stars and cold air that stings my skin.
He stands at the edge, his light brown hair blowing in the wind without his baseball hat, his hands tucked into his pockets. His head is lifted to the sky.
“Lanston,” I say breathlessly. Chills spread across my arms.
He turns his head quickly. The most heart wrenching expression is painted across his lovely features. His hazel eyes take me in. And the universe rejoices loudly, silently, colorfully.
He runs to me. “Ophelia.”
Together we collide. The stars our witness as he lifts me into his arms and presses feverish kisses to my cheeks, my lips. Our laughter warms my chest, and his tears mix with my own.
Lanston lowers us, still gripping me tightly in his arms, “I searched for you until there were no corners left to be sought. Until my heart ached and sores grew on the bottom of my feet.”
I thread my fingers through his hair, memorizing his sullen, handsome face. Beauty such as his should be framed, stared upon, for he is of the gods.
The sob in my throat threatens to blur out my words as I sputter, “I’m so sorry, Lanston.” I bury my face into his chest and cling to him like the reaper himself will tear me away. “I’m so selfish for leaving you. The thought of the Those Who Whisper catching you was too much to bear. I-I—” My weeping gets the better of me.
“Shh.” Lanston presses his lips to my head, stroking my hair in long, languid motions. His soft touch is enough to put me on the edge of madness. No person should ever be deprived of love as pure as his. “I’m just happy you’ve returned to me. I think I would’ve suffered for the remainder of time, alone and wandering, walking this plane of sorrow, until I reunited with you.”
I lift my eyes to his. Both of us are sobbing.
“I don’t deserve your affection.”
“You do. So deserving, yet you don’t even know it.” Lanston nuzzles his nose to mine. The warmth of his breath makes my heart yearn to beat alongside his for an eternity. “I want my love to haunt you. Until the stars die—until all the water in the ocean dries and we’re all that’s left in this cruel, dark world.”
