“Guard it with your last breath,” I warned anyway. “For if it breaks before the ritual is complete, his soul will have no vessel.”
“And he’ll wander forever. I understand, Liam. I won’t let that happen.”
“Emilio is lucky to have you as a friend. As am I.” It was all I’d dare to confess. I held her unwavering gaze for the span of one more breath, and then I turned back toward her wolf. “And now we begin.”
Twelve
GRAY
The moonglass felt as delicate as a soap bubble, and I held it close to my chest, my skin warming at the contact.
Liam had said this was the most important thing we would ever do together, and I couldn’t deny that. But the last thing? No. Neither of us knew what the future held, what the price of our actions tonight would be. But I had to believe this wasn’t the end. Not for any of us.
Because I had to believe this would work—that we’d succeed in saving Emilio. And if we could do that, whatcouldn’twe do? What challenges couldn’t we overcome? What price couldn’t we pay? What rules couldn’t we break and re-write?
Love made all of that possible. And Ididlove Liam, I realized now. We had a lot to work through together, a lot of trust to rebuild, a lot of pain to heal. But that didn’t change how I felt.
“Are you ready?” he asked, kneeling down beside Emilio’s body.
I nodded, kneeling on the other side, careful to keep the moonglass safe.
“I will drain the poison from his body and attempt to heal his physical wounds,” Liam said. “But you must do the rest. You have a bond with him—one that goes far beyond the physical. Your souls are connected as flames lit from a single candle.”
“We are,” I whispered, feeling a tug low in my belly, a warmth that stretched outward toward the sphere, longing to feel Emilio’s touch.
“Gaze into the moonglass,” Liam continued, his hands already moving over Emilio’s wounds, assessing the damage. “Call on your love for him, your connection, and reach out to his soul. You must be as a beacon for him, Gray, for even with our guidance, if he loses his way back to his physical form, we won’t be able to revive him. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” I said firmly.
“Once he’s found you, you must guide the soul precisely back into his body. That is done with intense focus, precise visualization, and your magic. You must imagine his soul as a river of light, and your magic as the gentle but immutable force of gravity that guides it along its path. It will require more magic than you have ever expended, more concentration than you have ever commanded, and above all, unshakable faith that you can complete this task. There isnoroom for error on this, Gray. Not unless you want to turn him into something… else.”
“Bean,” I breathed, and a memory flickered behind my eyes—a young girl in a unicorn hoodie, blood pooling on the pavement, her life force leaving as I held her in my arms. It was before I’d learned about my powers, about being Shadowborn, about any of it, and I’d brought her back from the dead with no clue what that would mean for her.
I’d turned her into something terrible, an undead monster, cursed.
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I nodded again. That wouldnothappen. Not again. Never again.
“I can do this, Liam. I know I can.” I cleared my throat, then tried again. “I will do this. I’ll guide his soul, bring him home. There are no other options.”
Liam stopped his ministrations and smiled, catching my gaze. “I have complete faith in you, little witch, or we would not even attempt it.”
His smile was brief, but his confidence bolstered me further.
“I have complete faith in you, too,” I said plainly, because that was the truth. Just as I wouldn’t create another cursed soul, Liam would never disappoint me again. I knew that like I knew the taste of Emilio’s brownies, the scent of his skin, the feel of his wolf’s fur on my hands.
“His body is almost mended,” Liam said. “There will likely be scarring, but that is better than the alternative.”
“Agreed.”
“Call upon your magic, Gray. It is almost time.”
Letting my eyes drift closed, I sought the magic within me, urging the gentle warmth to a flame, pushing it outward through my limbs. In my mind’s eye, I saw the black streaks cover my hands, slowly igniting into the blue flames I’d come to associate with my Death magic. It was hard to remember a time that I’d feared this power, that I’d recoiled from it in shame. It came so easy now, as natural a part of my being as any other.
“Good,” Liam said. “You’re doing great. Continue to follow my voice. I will guide you through the next steps.” His voice was soothing and calm, easy to follow, like drifting down a warm and lazy river in the summer. “Use your power to tap into the source. Draw more magic into you.”
I did as he asked, just like I’d done earlier when I’d been struggling with Jonathan. It took even less time now; the source seemed to be expecting my return, and eagerly connected with my magic, filling me to the absolute limits. My physical body began to vibrate, my heart racing, my teeth chattering, but I held steady.
“You’re incredible, Gray,” Liam said. “Now, you’ll soon reach a point where you feel as if you’ll absolutely burst if you take in even one more modicum of magic. Are you close?”
