Page 75 of Shadow & Stars
Break his neck. All I had to do was break his neck.Theirnecks.
Tanith opened her mouth. “This is what you get for not aiding me willingly, Xavier.”
“Why aren’t you dead yet?” Roman snapped at her.
“You first, human.” Her forked tongue flickered in his direction.
I tensed, ready to pull it from her mouth.
Roman ignored her.
Ismael stepped closer, an explosion rumbling somewhere in the distance. “Did you hear that? Do you smell it?” He sniffed theair, the faint trace of burning making its way to us. “It is the end, Xavier. Everything will fall to make way for the new.” A breeze caught his hair, his silky tresses rippling in the breeze. “You can either follow me, this folly forgiven, or you can die. No matter what parts of you hide within your handsome shell, I will not allow you to draw breath if you side with the witch.”
I love Ismael so much,Past Me said.I have to… I can’t betray him.
He has to be stopped,I countered.You know this. You feel this. The last thing I ever wanted was to be apart from him. It hurts seeing his face. But our love died.
Then it can be resurrected,Past Me tried.
No. You feel what I feel.
Roman…
Yes. Roman. He is our future.
“Kill me,” Past Me suddenly blurted. “Kill me, Ismael. Please. I can’t stand this. I can’t love you with this poison inside me.”
Whatever emotions had brought Past Me here to help Roman, they were slipping away.
No!I cried.Fight this. You?—
“Get out of me!” he bellowed, sending me hurtling back into my body.
I gasped, unsteady on my feet. “No…”
“What happened?” Teenage Roman asked.
I tried to get back, drowning out the voices around me, fighting to return. He couldn’t give up like that. If he died, he might destroy everything. I wouldn’t let this be the end.
Let me in. Let me in. Let me in.
I didn’t move.
I tried a different tactic, asking my other self to reach out.
He failed to make a connection, too bemused to focus.
My frustration sent ice into my veins. I battled more of those doom-laden visions, desperate to tear through space and time to get to my witch.
“There’s got to be a way to reconnect,” Darcy said. “What if I try a spell?”
“What kind of spell?” Roman asked. “I can help.” He cracked his knuckles.
“Let me think for a moment.” Darcy stroked his chin like a fictional detective. “There isn’t a lot at our disposal.” He tapped his foot. “I’m going to need ten minutes.”
I kept trying to reconnect to Past Me, hopingIwould see reason.
Three cars with tinted windows sped down the street, breaking my concentration. Four human witch men exited the front and rear vehicles, each of them wearing black suits. A witch woman, also in a black suit, got out of the middle car, holding the door open for Queen Margarite.
