by Boone Brux
The lump in Jade’s throat swelled, making it difficult to speak. “Let us try and heal you.”
A smirk tugged at the corner of her sister’s mouth. Yellow eyes peered at Jade with a mixture of amusement and desolation. The creaking and grating of iron against iron was Rell’s only reply.
“Why won’t you let me help you?” Jade’s voice cracked, her heart aching from the memory of what Rell lived with every day. “Why won’t you let us help you?”
The demon lifted her head and smiled more sweetly than Jade could remember. Despite the wings and horns, the expression made Rell look entirely human again. “My little sister, always ready to champion a lost cause.”
“You are not lost.” Jade took a step forward. “Please let me help you.”
“Don’t you understand?” She leaned her head against the bars again. “There is nothing left for me in this life. I’ve been banished from the Shadow World and the only way to get back in Vile’s good graces is to betray you.” She looked away. “Allow me to pass through the Veil.”
“You have me and our mother.” Jade swiped at the escaped tear. “We’ve only just found her again. And there are healers who can save you. Please Rell, live for us.”
The door to the barn opened and Luc stepped inside. He paused, his gaze darting between her and Rell and then settling back on Jade. “Are you all right?”
Unable to speak, she shook her head. From the time she and Luc had concocted their plan to enter the Shadow World, never had the possibility of Rell giving up on life been one of Jade’s imagined outcomes.
Her sister waved a hand toward Jade. “She cannot accept that I no longer wish to live.”
“Nor can I.” He moved to stand beside Jade and slid an arm around her shoulder. “We have a chance to save you, Esmeralda.”
“Not save me, merely assuage your guilt.” She straightened away from the bars and pointed a black talon at him. “You have each other now. Let’s put the past behind us and not play games. Our mother will never forgive me for lying to you and I no longer have a place in this world.” She leaned her forehead against the bars. “Sister, let me go.”
“Mother loves you and you kept me alive.” The fight returned to Jade. “For that she will always be grateful.”
“Grateful?” Rell gave a humorless laugh. “To build a relationship on gratitude is like building a house on shifting sand. With every swell and dip the foundation erodes and the house crumbles. Soon all traces of what was built are swept away by the waves.”
“You prefer death over the chance to be healed?” Jade glided forward. “You would put your family through more pain when there’s a chance at happiness?” She grabbed the bars and shook the cage, her voice growing louder. “You will sentence me to a life of wondering what if?” She leaned toward the bars and glared at Rell. “When did you become such a coward?”
Yes, trust had been betrayed, sister pitted against sister, lies uncovered, but they were family and those bonds were strong enough to bring them through any storm. Why couldn’t her sister see this? It took every ounce of Jade’s self-control not to shake Rell until she agreed to be healed. After all they’d been through, why would she give up so easily?
“I grow weary of fighting the darkness.” Rell lifted her hand and caressed Jade’s cheek. “It creeps around me, stealing my reason and compassion. I’m not afraid to die but I am afraid to live like this.”
“But we can heal you.”
“You have faith where I have none. If you release me, I will betray you.”
Tears continued to flow down Jade’s cheeks, burning an icy trail in the morning chill. She covered Rell’s hand, holding it in place, drinking in its rough feel. This was the hand that had protected and provided for her. The hand that had brushed her fevered brow when she was ill. The hand that had soothed her when nightmares had stolen into her dreams. To accept her sister’s choice and give her the freedom of death would be the ultimate act of love. She peered into the yellow eyes, wishing things could be so very different.
“Most of all, I will miss you.” Rell brushed a strand of hair from Jade’s face. “Please, free me.”
An anguished whimper escaped Jade. She swallowed, blinking back the tears that blurred her vision. She gathered her strength and did the hardest thing she would ever have to do—she nodded.
A deep voice spoke from the open door. “Giving up so easily?”
Jade spun to see Siban standing in the doorway. His eyes were fixed on Rell and her human body lay cradled in his arms. Jade’s impulse was to step into his path to protect her sister, but the look on his face kept her rooted in place. Determination? Anger? Passion? Never had she seen the man so animated.
The iron cage creaked as Rell inched herself upward into a crouched position, her gaze fierce, and leveled on Siban.
Luc stepped aside, giving the Tell room to enter. Tension crackled between the demon and the Tell, making the hair on Jade’s arms stand on end. This was the first time Rell had seen her body and Jade chided herself for not thinking of the ploy before now. She watched her sister, realizing that it wasn’t her old body Rell stared at, but Siban.
Luc bent to whisper in her ear. “Do they know each other?”
She wiped her tears away with the palm of her hand, sniffed and shook her head. “I have no idea.”
Rell pressed her body against the bars, as if to get closer. “Si?”
“I guess that answers my question,” Luc said.
So much emotion filled Rell’s one word that new hope spread through Jade. She watched, unable to tear her gaze from the two.
Siban slowly approached, stopping inches from the cage. He held Esmeralda like a baby and angled the body for Rell to see. The demon’s gaze drifted from his face to the limp form. Her hand reached through the bars and caressed the arm that had once belonged to her.
Tears spilled down Jade’s cheeks, her breath catching in her throat. It was almost too much to hope that Siban could change her sister’s mind. Family ties, loyalty, gratitude, duty—none of those could spur Rell to choose a chance at life, but this was something Jade had never considered. Rell was in love. The very thought almost made her laugh. She pressed her folded hands to her mouth and leaned into Luc. He pulled her against him.
Pieces of the mystery surrounding Siban tumbled into place. Years before, Rell had cryptically spoken of a man but refused to explain who he was when Jade had questioned her. Siban had been held prisoner in the Shadow World—that must be their connection. The night on the ship when he’d almost captured Jade, he’d called out to Rell because he had recognized her, not as a ploy to lure them back. He’d practically jumped at the chance to bring Willa to Faela and Jade would bet her life that it was in hopes of finding Rell. It all made sense and from the way he stared at Rell now, he obviously loved her too.
Rell’s caress drifted upward and she cupped Siban’s face with both hands. She tilted her head and pressed against the bars. Siban leaned forward, meeting her halfway. Ever so gently their lips touched, lingering as if drinking in the feel of each other.
Siban pulled back and looked at Rell. “Please don’t leave me again.”
Rell’s yellow eyes swirled to green. “Never.”
Jade looked at Luc. A half smile played at the corners of his mouth, his head shaking ever so slightly in disbelief. He looked at her and flicked a glance toward the door. She nodded. Tonight she would sleep well, wrapped in the arms of the man she loved and knowing that for these few short hours all was right in her world.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First and foremost, I’d like to thank my fabulous editors, Kerry Vail and Erin Molta. You guys complete me. Thanks to CJ Ellisson, who tirelessly gives her support in every aspect of my life. Friends like you are hard to find. And to Heather Howland, you have my undying gratitude for the fantastic covers you continue to gift me with. You are a visionary.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Acknowledgments