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“Princess,” he chokes.
“Shh. Shh. Don’t. Speak.”
“You shouldn’t… you shouldn’t be here.” He swallows before coughing, more blood blooming across his lips.
“My beloveds are here. You are here. You all make up my new home. I’m not leaving. I’m here to take care of you.” I run my palm over the top of his head, hoping it brings him comfort. My vision becomes hindered with tears, and I refuse to let them go to waste. “What is your name?”
“Ock… Ockard,” he stammers, his eyes beginning to glaze over with the promise of death.
“Ockard. I know you.” I force a smile. “You took care of my beloved.”
He nods slowly.
“Let me take care of you now, Ockard. Trust me?”
“With my life, Princess.”
I hold his face in my hands, look into his eyes, give him the best reassuring ‘everything will be okay’ smile, and tilt my head, placing my cheek right over his mouth. Tears drip freely, rolling off my jaw to his lips.
He gasps for air as my tears begin to heal him. The wounds on his body stitch together one by one.
“You… You…” he is left without words, sitting up without pain. His hands pat every inch of his body to double-check for wounds. “Holy shit, you healed me.”
“Yes, but let’s try to keep that between us and the other elves. So many creatures want vampire tears, and they don’t care what they will have to do to get them.”
He stands, kneeling and crossing his wrists to me, a promise that he is bound. “I promise to protect you and your secret.”
“Great. Help me find the injured, okay? The dead…” My breath is strangled and choppy from the thought. “I… I don’t know what to do about them. I’m not sure my tears will work for them.”
The weight of the horn in my hand reminds me that I need to find Nyx. “Will you be okay without me for a little while?” I dig through the rubble, trying to find a glass that isn’t broken or completely shattered.
“What? I need you here. I need… you know,” he whispers out from the corner of his mouth.
I lift a wine glass in the air. The stem is broken but the round part that holds the liquid is okay. “I’m going to give them to you. Listen to me, it doesn’t take much. One drop, maybe two, that’s all you need, okay? Dip your finger in, rub it on their lips. That’s it. Okay?”
“Okay.”
I hold the glass to my cheek and let the tears roll freely. “Repeat it to me. “
“One to two drops, dip my finger in, rub it on their lips.”
“Good. Good.” The roars of the dragons, the crash of rocks, the shouts of elves, and the pounding of the trolls have the tears falling faster. Cailian and Nyx are still alive yet all I can think about is seeing them dead, preparing myself, and the thought of them lifeless punches me in the gut.
I’m able to fill the glass enough with about three inches of liquid. I hold it out to him, the light piercing through the hole in the ceiling shines on the specks of glitter. They reflect off each individual piece. Ockard carefully takes the glass from my hand and holds it to his chest.
I grip the material of my dress at the thigh and lift it, so it is easier to walk. “Remember, it doesn’t take much, Ockard.”
“Your tears will be honored, Princess. I will be very careful.”
My gaze bounces around the room, the reality setting in when I really take in the damage. I can’t believe barely an hour ago, this place was alive with laughter. Elves and dragons were dancing. Everyone was getting along. Wine was being poured. Ale was being drunk. Reuel was surrounded by Woodland Elves who were bonding with him, getting to know him, and I swear, his silver veins pumped brighter with every greeting.
Happiness filled this room.
And now, half the mountain is in a crumble. Mounds of rock are piled in every corner. I can see out to the landscape now, a chunk of the side of the mountain gone. Two huge feet thud against the ground before a giant roar escapes, the hammer swings in the air followed by a blaze of fire.
I can also smell the blood. I can hear it dripping from the tips of the rock, pooling onto the floor. The scent of death is heavy in the air. Even though my tears will save some, it is too late for so many.
So many that were here to celebrate me, Cailian, and Nyx.
