Page 6 of Soul of Thorns
Rev steps forward, eyes softened. “Caelynn,” he whispers.
I close my eyes at the intimate way he says my name now. I could die like his, just near him. With my name on his lips.
“I’m sorry...”
“Don’t.” I wave away his pity. “You have nothing to be sorry for. This is my reality. I don’t dare feel sorry for myself, so you don’t either, got it? I’ll face my nightmare if that’s what I must do.”
I’ll do it all over again just to save you,I think. I’d take the world on my shoulders, the hate and pain, and fear of a million years, just to know he is okay. Because my hope was lost long ago. There has to be a reason for all of it. If I let him die or fail or become trapped, then it was all for nothing.
Right now, what Rev needs is me alive. Me fighting. And so, that’s what I’ll give him. But when the time comes that I know that’s not enough, things will change. I’ll break his heart to save him.
Rev
Istare wide-eyed andhelpless at the beautiful shadow fae. Her face crumples, exposing her pain and fear for only a moment before she hides behind that shield of indifference once again.
The creature that captured and tortured me as an adolescent...
Her words ring through my mind, sparking a fiery rage in my chest. Beyond a rushed explanation during the trials—before I knew she was my mate— we haven’t talked about what happened when she bargained with the Night Bringer. A bargain that resulted in her stabbing my brother in the heart.
That creature tortured her.
And I hated her for her choice.
I see her now, though, and I marvel at the depth within. She’s broken and scared but also bright and hopeful. I only wish I’d seen it sooner.
The truth is, it’s me I’m most angry with. Because I was so blinded by my hate that I never saw what she was. She was my savior. My fucking soulmate. And I’d condemned her without thinking twice. I’d tried to kill her, even while she was still working to save me.
Over and over and over again.
I thought she was evil, but now that I know the full truth, I can’t help but feel like I’m the bad one. My soul is dull, cast in shadow, compared to the luminesce of her spirit.
Could I really allow some evil creature to take that away from me without fighting for it?
I can see the resignation in her eyes.
Caelynn still plans to die when the time comes. She’ll drive the dagger through her own heart if she has to.
