Page 97 of Ashes and Lilies
A dark, heavy cloud descended over us before he could finish his statement, and even though, a moment before, I’d been surrounded by three others, the warmth of their presence disappeared.
“F-Finn?” I stepped to the left, where Finn had been only asecond before, but my fingers grasped nothing. “Brayden? A-Anthony?”
Where was everyone?
With my other senses dulled, I could only rely on my hearing—which wasn’t comforting at all. A sense of helplessness rose through me as the silence pressed in around me. The atmosphere held a smokiness that made it impossible to see, and nothing existed outside of the sound of my own labored breathing.
“It’s finally quiet,” James Cole said.
I turned, meeting his blood-red gaze, and the screaming in my mind fell silent.
My fear was erased as I watched him, and when he grinned—teeth flashing in the night—I was unmoved. Instead, the strangest sense of peace had come over me, as the fine line between his emotions and my own was finally crossed.
There was no need to be afraid.Hewas the one who had the most to lose. I wasn’t alone, yet he was almost entirely lost.
However, despite the madness, despite what I knew of Rosalie’s memories, there was something that I still quite didn’t understand. He stepped toward me, and I couldn’t help but ask, “Why didn’t you help her?”
If James cared for Rosalie as much as he claimed, to the point where it drove him to attack others in the afterlife, then why didn’t he help her when she was alive?
James paused, scowling as he backed away. “I didn’t ask for this to happen. He told me that we were helping!”
I moved, feeling as though I was walking through a dream, as I closed the distance between us. His eyes widened as I reached for him.
What was I missing?
“Stay away!” he said again, and a force knocked into mychest, throwing me back against the ground. The earth shook under me, and panic clawed over the short distance between us.
Beside me, a presence—one of the others—was approaching. I held out my arm, stopping them. “No.”
This was between me and James Cole. I’d called him here. I had to do this on my own.
I covered my nose to block the smell of sulfur. The swell of emotions pushed and pulled at me from every direction, and even though there was lingering darkness, I could see him clearly.
He’s lost, not evil. He’s not in control of his emotions—his reactions—and is a victim in his own way.
There it was, that voice once more—a light male tenor with a musical quality that, last time, had given me the wisdom and encouragement to set Rosalie free. This was what I’d been waiting for.
We can save him, but doing so in your current state will come at a personal cost.
My chest tightened as my trepidation increased. It would be so tempting to let things work out differently. But I had a responsibility.
Help him regain control.
I pushed to my knees—but Finn was suddenly kneeling in front of me.
“Bianca,no,” he said, and his steadfast refusal made me pause. “I told you before; you can’t rely too much on your abilities.”
Who was he to say what I could and couldn’t do? “I haven’t taken my medication for weeks,” I told him and pulled my arm from his grasp.
“That’s why!” he protested. “We don’t know what will happen!”
“It’ll be fine!” I moved to my feet.
“No.” Finn was glowering at me, and my chest tightened. Hegrabbed my wrist, halting my progress. “I refuse to allow it. You could die.”
I pushed my hands against him. “I’m not going to die!”
“Hey—” Brayden touched my shoulder. “Let me help.”
