AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Fury lit my veins on fire. He wanted to live, I could see it in his eyes, but my desire for his death was far greater. He blamed himself for losing his son, he blamed himself for the fall of my court, that was why he’d faced the sandworm and almost let it devour him. He knew he was to blame for all of this. “It’s all your fault, Draven.”
His eyes widened. “Arin—”
“Youwantto die. So let it happen, let me finish what I began in my court. Just give up, it’s all you’re worth.”
Hurt and knowing softened his snarl.
“You’re a liar, a coward, and a traitor. A shame on the Court of War.”
His wide eyes shone, wet with tears.Yes, hurt, feel the pain, and know my agony.
“You’ve ripped my heart out, Draven.” The knife’s point wavered near his whiskered skin. He’d weakened; just another push, and I’d thrust the dagger into his neck.“Bleed for me.”
“Arin! Stop!” Noemi’s cry stalled my descent.
Draven shoved, but I shoved down again. “This does not… concern you…”
In the corner of my eye, I caught her blue cloak rippling as she rushed forward. “Stop, Arin, this isn’t you.”
“It is now!”
“Please…” She swept in, grasped Draven’s shoulder and filled my vison with pleading, green eyes. “Lark asked Draven to help him!”
What? Uneven tremors tore out my strength, trying to undermine me. “No, that’s lies. Draven did this. He did it before, and he’s done it now.”
“I don’t lie, you know this!” Noemi said, as fierce and true as any blade. “Draventoldme. Lark made him swear to keep it a secret.”
I blinked and peered deep into Draven’s eyes, so deep I might find the truth buried there. Lark wouldn’t lie to me again, not like this. He wouldn’t carve out my heart, knowing how its every beat lived for him. He’d told me he loved me. He’d never betray me. “You’re lying.”
“No,” Draven said, still holding me off. “It’s the truth.”
“No, he’d… He’d have told me.”
“Arin.” Noemi got to her feet and came closer still, her hands clasped together, pleading. “He knew you wouldn’t allow him to go. You’d stop him, because it’s who you are. You’d stop him, and War would march, and thousands of people would die. Lark believes he can prevent that. He thinks he can stop Razak alone.”
My chest tightened, heart squeezing. “He would have told me.” But saying the words aloud made the truth clear. If Lark believed he could save thousands of lives by sacrificing his, he would. Of course he would. I’d always known it. He believed he wasn’t worth anything, thought he was a gutter whore, not meant for love or the likes of love. But he was myeverything. And if I had to sacrifice the shatterlands to prove it to him, I would.
My heart stuttered, stealing my breath. A dreadful regret yanked on my wounded soul. Our last night together, the tears in his eyes… His body never lied, and his body had said goodbye. Lark had chosen to go.
I swallowed the sob trying to crawl up my throat. Tears slipped down my face. I wanted to rage and scream, but it wouldn’t change anything. It wouldn’t bring him back.
“Cut me, I deserve it,” Draven snarled. “But if I die, who is going to help you save Lark?”
I dragged my glare back up to Draven’s face. He hadn’t betrayed me. Lark had, but the worst of it was, I understood why. I shoved Draven off, threw the knife down, and stumbled from them both.
Noemi rushed in to help Draven. I’d almost killed him. I’d been seconds away from killing a man for all the wrong reasons. And I would have killed him; I’d been mad with it, and still was.
The room tilted, or the world did. If I’d killed Draven, I’d have been the same as Razak. The letters…
Razak had gotten inside my head, made me doubt everyone, doubt myself. Even now, with him atop a throne in a faraway court, he’d dug his claws in and manipulated me.
He’d sent the letters to shatter us. And it had worked.
I swayed and stumbled onto the balcony, then clutched the rail. The moon had surrendered the night to the sun, turning into a ghost in hazy red skies, barely there at all. In a few days, it would be full, and we’d all be out of time. Because, if Razak had Lark, then the Prince of Pain had everything he wanted. When War marched, people would die. But Razak didn’t care about that, or the lives of his own people. He didn’t care about his court. He never had. He had Lark, and he had power. And in his mind, nobody could stop him.
Lark had known all this.
And he was right. He’d done the right thing.
