She waskillingme.
I roared at the universe as I rocked her in my arms. “Don’t go. I’m begging you, Rook, I can’t do this without you.”
I didn’t care if I’d made all of this up. I didn’t care she wasn’t real. I didn’t care I’d been making love to a ghost or living in a dream because I couldn’t exist in a world where she was gone.
This was all I had.
I didn’t want anything else.
I just wantedher.
A whip of black wrapped itself around Rook’s waist, wrenching her out of my hold.
“NO!”
“Lucien!” She tore at the darkness, reaching for me. “Don’t let it take me. I want to stay here, with you!”
Flinging myself toward her, I caught her hand—just as a shadow caught me.
Two tendrils wrapped tight around my wrists, wrenching my arms back and keeping me pinned. “Rook!”
Her body fragmented, glowing with inner light as more shadows wrapped around her legs and arms. Her frost ignited, ice flinging out in all directions. But the shadows looped around her neck, strangling—
“Stop it!” I thrashed and fought, kicked and smashed, but I couldn’t get free.
Ashfall Cliff broke apart into a million pieces.
With a loud boom, everything detonated, leaving us in an empty void with no sky, no ground, no light.
Rook screamed as the shadows reached her mouth.
“I’m here,” I yelled. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m right here.”
The darkness crawled over my own body, sucking me further and further away from her.
I couldn’t go.
Couldn’t save her.
“FUCK!” I turned feral, bucking and kicking, punching and slashing.
And the shadows just thickened.
Fire shot from my flesh, casting the void in golden power.
Darkness just snatched it.
I couldn’t win.
Couldn’t fix this.
Rook caught my eyes as the rest of her dissolved piece by piece, her beautiful skin fracturing into snowflakes. Her voice changed again from pleading to sorrow. “I need you to wake up, Lucien. Please wake up. Before it’s too late.” Her eyes blazed completely silver as her power erupted with icy daggers. “Wake up, Lucien. Wake up. You have to wake up. Wake up and let me go.”
“Never!” I lunged for her. “I willneverleave you!”
“Wake up.” Her arms flung wide as shadows poured down her throat.
Silver dust and black frost detonated.
