“I saidfix her, Tristan! Do what you promised Mara! Take me; I don’t fucking care! Just fix her!”
“I can’t fix her!” He looked up at me in bewilderment. “The deal with Mara only works on mortals, and now that we’ve completed the soul bond, there’s no mortal part of her left!”
Before I could yell at him again, someone dragged him back. I looked up to see Eris climbing over him before landing a punch straight to his face. “You did this!” he screamed down at him.
“N-No… K-K…” I heard Morrigan’s muffled voice in my lap and ignored what was happening around me as I tried to console her.
“Tell me what to do, Morrigan.Please… I can’t…I love you.”
Then, she began to choke, like the blood had hardened in her throat, taking away her ability to breathe.
I left her last night… She was begging for me to understand, and I didn’t even give her a chance… The same chance I had begged for her to give me after learning about Mara.
Her body jerked, and I saw her arm reach out like she was pointing at something. Following the line, I found Dez pushing Cassius off of him and running toward us.
He fell onto the floor as he slid to her side. “Princess,” he panted, bringing his face down to hers. “Morrigan, don’t go.Please. I’ll do anything. Tell me what to do.”
I helped reposition her head, even as her lips were beginning to form a slight, blueish hue. She… She was dying… She was going to die, and there was nothing we could do to stop it. I had to let the reality of that hit me, and then shove it down in order to remain calm enough to let her see him. He needed to be the last face she saw, even if it was going to shatter him completely.
Dez had never loved someone before. Hundreds of years, and Morrigan was the first to truly capture his heart. And though she had never said it, I think he washerfirst love, too.
She moved her mouth to speak, but couldn’t form the actual words. Dez began to sob against her cheek. “I’ll be better,” he cried. “I want to be worthy of you, princess. Please…”
Morrigan stared up at the ceiling with actual tears in her eyes, now mixing with the blood that continued to spill out. Even if she couldn’t speak, I knew what that look meant. It was the same look she gave me last night before saying the words, “I love you.”
Slowly, her eyes turned to me, and I grazed my fingers over her face, smoothing away strands of her hair as the color in her cheeks drained.
“We love you, Morrigan,” I promised her. “You need to stay. If anyone can do it, it’s you.Chooseto stay. Stay with me. Stay withus, little dove.” My voice started to crack as the fire in her eyes slowly dimmed, and I lowered my forehead to hers, letting it rest just beside Dez. “I’ll erase the line for you. You can have whatever you want—whomever you want. Just don’t leave me, Morrigan.”
Suddenly…
The jerking stopped.
Even though I knew what that meant, the hopeful part of me wanted nothing more than to lift my head and see the warmth returned to her skin. But her face felt like ice. So… I didn’t. I remained there, frozen in time, because I knew the second I pulled away, my world would come crashing down. And I didn’t want to be in that world right now. Not yet. Not ever.
But Dez… He didn’t wait. I felt him lift his head slowly, and detested every second that passed before the most blood-curdling scream left his lips. He screamed, over and over again, and I had to close my eyes at how loud it rang in my ears. Eventually, I felt someone pulling him off, and heard Cassius speaking to him, but he clung to Morrigan’s hand.
I took on the most impossible task in that moment.
I lifted my head, reaching over and releasing Dez’s grip on her as he began sobbing uncontrollably. When I returned my gaze to her, I saw the lifeless, limp body in my arms. Her eyes were open, and her head hung slack toward the floor—her face pointed toward Dez as Naaz and Cassius dragged him away. The way her arm hung at her side was as though she reached for him as well.
Morrigan…
Morrigan was dead.
Part Four
A SEA OF STARS
Chapter 47
MORRIGAN
Dez’s screams still echoed in my mind, but with the reverberation of a deep, hollow cave.
I’m dead,I thought to myself. While all I could see was darkness, a strange sense of peace washed over me that I hadn’t expected. I chose this. Tristan’s fate was tied to mine so long ago—a decision not of his own making. If anyone truly deserved life, it washim. I just didn’t know where that leftme. Was I worthy enough to be with my mother again?
“Open your eyes.”
