Page 93 of Shackled to the World
She bit her lip, cursing herself for even asking.
It was selfish, but she couldn’t help feeling like he abandoned her.
Edgar grabbed her hands as if he could stop her from slipping away. “She wasdying. Dying for a phantom is beyond frightening. We don’t just die—we’re sent to the afterworld to be hunted down. I couldn’t let her face that alone.”
His voice cracked, and she felt like an ass. He had been alone for so long in the abyss, and no one went after him. Of course he couldn’t let her die alone. She dropped her forehead against his shoulder, feeling like an idiot for not figuring it out sooner.
“Why didn’t she heal?” She pressed her hand over his heart, only relaxing when his arms wrapped around her.
Edgar rubbed the back of her neck, the touch soothing both of them. “She doesn’t have an affinity for the afterworld like you do. The sword that cut her was created with dark matter, making the wounds burn deeper, the injuries more severe. The combination was catastrophic for her.”
He ran his hand down her back, cuddling her closer, almost as if she was the one he nearly lost. “What you did was absolutely amazing…but it’s going to attract the attention of your father. He’s going to come for you now.”
She shivered at his certainty, then brushed it off. “He was going to come after me either way.”
His arms wrapped around her, crushing her to his chest. “You risk getting captured if you go help her.”
“Not for her, you idiot…for you.” Annora pulled back to look up at him, needing to know how he really felt. “But are you sure this is what you want? You could have your old life back, everything you lost. I—”
“I’m sure.” He buried his face against the crook of her neck. “I can’t lose you, not after I just found you. I can’t go back to that empty life—I won’t. We’re in this together.”
Her heart seized at his conviction. While his vow should’ve thrilled her, she was terrified instead. She didn’t want sole responsibility for his happiness. She was toxic to those she loved. People would keep coming for her, targeting them to get to her.
But she was too selfish to let them go.
She pressed against Edgar, vowing to do everything in her power, even break the veil separating them from the afterworld, if that’s what it took.
Edgar straightened and kissed the top of her head. “Your men are waiting for you.”
Upstairs.
In her bed.
She should be nervous about the prospect of sleeping next to them—touching them—but it felt odd not to have them close. She craved their touch after so many years of being isolated. Pulling away from him, she turned toward the stairs, then reached back and held out her hand when he didn’t follow. “You coming?”
He straightened, his shoulders going back, his eyes suddenly blazing with emotions, and he grabbed her hand. His grip was tight, a silent promise that he would never let her go again, and the cage holding her emotions in check creaked open a little. As they reached the second floor, she paused at the bottom of the steps, suddenly worried about her welcome.
Edgar squeezed her hand, standing quietly at her side to give her time to shore up her ragged emotions. When she released a heavy sigh, he brushed his thumb along the back of her hand. Touching was still new for both of them, and she glanced at him to see his dark blue eyes staring at their joint hands in wonder.
As if sensing her attention, he glanced up and gave her a gentle smile. “You have nothing to fear. Your battered heart is safe with them.”
“How do you know?” she asked, her voice hoarse. She could survive a beating and swallow pain with a laugh, but just the thought of her men turning away from her was enough to destroy her.
Edgar lifted her hand to cover his heart. “Because if they feel even a tenth of what I do, the thought of blaming you never entered their minds.”
She searched his face for the truth and saw what she had been too afraid to look for earlier—and her breath caught in the back of her throat. “You love me.”
“Always.” He gave her a crooked smile. “With everything that I am.”
Wonder and joy bubbled through her, and she reached up to cup his face. He leaned into her touch, his eyes closing, as if he’d finally come home.
“How do phantoms pledge themselves to each other?” Her heart skipped a beat at the very idea of someone taking him from her now she finally found him.
His eyes snapped open, and he gazed down at her with the pure afterworld blazing in his eyes. He searched her face, then released a shuddering breath. “You’re sure?”
“Absolutely.” Annora placed her hand directly over his heart. “We almost lost each other once. I want to be your anchor, so you’ll never be lost or alone again.”
He wet his lips, his hand trembling under hers. “If you have any doubts, we can wait. Once done, it can’t be undone. You’ll never escape me.”
