Page 65 of The Eternal Mirror
I shove my hands into my pockets. My fingers are shaking, so I hide them. Like maybe if I can’t see the physical manifestation of my fear, it can’t touch me.
The early light is soft and gold, bleeding over the hills like a promise I don’t believe in. I let the silence wrap around me—just me for now, and the thud of my boots.
My thoughts spin like a storm caught behind glass. I go over the plan again. Then rip it up. Rewrite it. Again. Again.
There are two things I do when I’m scared: I pretend it’s not happening, or I plan. I overthink. Obviously, pretending isn’t an option right now, so instead, I talk myself through it in my head until fear stops sounding like fear and starts sounding like control.
It sort of works.
Maybe.
I’ve made it half a mile when I feel him.
Not hear. Not see. Just feel.
Like the world behind me shifts with one breath. Like something just stepped into the wind. He waits for a beat. Then another. Then he’s walking beside me, matching my pace. Quiet. Steady.
Neither of us speaks for what seems like an age. We just walk. It’s as if he’s giving me time to armor up. Or watching to see if I’ll crack instead.
Finally, I can’t take the silence any longer. “Khaosti,” I say flatly. “How surprising to see you.”
“I waited a whole ten minutes,” he says. “Which I think shows remarkable restraint.”
I sigh. Loudly. “What part of goodbye did you not understand?”
He snorts. “You knew that was never going to happen.”
Of course I knew.
I keep walking.
Finally, the weight of all the unspoken words gets too heavy, and I stop and turn to face him. “You following me around like a lost puppy dog doesn’t make this easier,” I snarl. Yeah, fear makes me a bitch. And I hate that I made that puppy comment because it reminds me that Fury is gone, and that makes me sad.
Khaosti just raises an eyebrow and gives an infuriating smirk.
So I continue, “You know there was a reason I left you behind in Valandria, right?”
He gives a shrug. “I know you think you had a reason, but you were wrong.”
“No, I wasn’t. Your father will kill you. I’ve just risked everything to get Zayne and Josh out of your father’s clutches, and now you’re going to walk straight into them.” I cast him my meanest look, then reach out and poke him in the chest. “I can’t save the world and carry you.”
He snorts. “I think I can look after myself. And you as well, if need be.” He steps closer, right into my still outstretched finger. “Or we can look after each other. Together, we are stronger.”
He’s talking about the bond. At least I think he is. “You think the bond makes us stronger. It doesn’t. It makes us weaker.” Or at least it makesmeweaker. Maybe Khaosti doesn’t feel the same. Maybe he doesn’t feel like he’s drowning in gut-wrenching fear when he thinks about losing me.
“You’re wrong. Again.”
“Yeah, it’s a bad habit of mine. But in what way?”
“You’re scared of losing me. But you’re also scared of shouldering the responsibility of keeping me safe.”
“Too fucking right. I’m scared that your father will use you against me.”
“You watched Fury die and you didn’t break. Neither did I.”
“But my father didn’t ask anything of me. He just wanted to punish me for my mother’s death.” I was so close to breaking. “What if Khronus asks something of me that I know is wrong? Really wrong? And your life is the sword he holds above my head?”
“I—”
