I heard the voice of Melania.The dreamworld.
I placed my shaking hands on Feyra’s temples. Maybe she wasn’t fully dead? Maybe she hadn’t fully left our realm?
But I felt nothing.
There was no brain wave.
No wolf sense.
Nothing…
I screamed at the storm above, roaring until my lungs burned. Then, pulling down more moonlight into the talisman, I held her head and pressed all of my power into her. But nothing happened. I snatched the locket up and pushed everything into her via her medallion.
But she remained gone.
Dead.
I began to cry. The power wasn’t enough. The talisman wasn’t enough. Being the alpha of prophecy wasn’t enough. Being her fated mate wasn’t enough. I held her, my tears mingling with the rain, and kissed her. I pressed my lips against her cold ones and hoped beyond hope that a part of her deep inside could feel it.
I pulled away.
I’d killed Lady Skol, but at what cost?
I held onto Feyra, crying into her chest. This wasn’t how it was meant to end. This wasn’t how–
My dream! I was the man in the dream. I was the man above the bloodied and pale Feyra. But the knife hadn’t been in her chest!
I took the knife out and lay it next to her. I hugged her again, then channeled my surge into her. I tried the wolf sense. I pressed my lips against hers and gave her all of my power. All of my love.
And I felt a brainwave.
A heartbeat.
Dion…
Lightning struck and my hair rose. I felt a presence behind me and turned just in time to hear the hiss of Lady Skol, in her reptilian form, lunging at me with a sword. She flew through the air with wings like that of her hideous beasts.
I clapped the sword with two hands and stopped it pressing into my chest, the point digging in my flesh.
Lady Skol’s face of victory was now surprise. I turned back, Feyra was propped up on her arm. I turned back to Lady Skol. Her lip was twitching. Her tongue beginning to flicker inconsistently.
A knife had blossomed in her chest. The knife that had killed Feyra was now killing her. She hissed, but the hiss lost its power. She tried to stand and collapsed to her knees. Her wings fluttered and turned to ash. Her skin turned black and she began to fade into nothingness too, drifting into the wind and disappearing in the rain.
“But I’m immortal…”
Then she was gone.
Dead.
The screeches of thousands of merls and Singers went up. All of them dying at the same time as they lost their leader. Howls joined the air. I heard the wolves celebrating.
But it didn’t matter. All that mattered was the woman before me.
I pulled her tight and hugged her. Minutes passed, hours, the sun rose and then set and seasons changed. Eternity passed and yet no time did at all. She was in my arms, her heart as strong as ever.
She wasn’t dead.“I love you,” I said. “I love you. I never want to lose you again.” I pulled away. “Promise me?”
Feyra smiled. “I love you too. But is that a promise like the one you did to me?” She winked.
