Page 51 of Avaritia
But it was too late.
With a petrified scream that would haunt me for the rest of my days, Verity fell down the rocky embankment, landing hard on her back, her head bouncing slightly as it hit the ground.
“Verity!” I shouted, hovering above her, having followed her the full way down. “Verity! Open your eyes immediately!”
She didn’t open her eyes. Her chest rose and fell, and a small trickle of blood seeped from somewhere beneath her hairline, soaking into the rocky earth.
“Verity, my love,” I said, lowering my trembling voice, aiming for a more soothing tone. “I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have brought you here, you were right. I’ll take you home now, and you can rest. I will care for you. Just open your eyes, my love. I need you to walk a few steps for me. I will guide you back into the in-between and carry you the rest of the way. Just stand for me. Open your eyes, my love, and stand for me.”
Silence. Except for the sound of that treacherous wind blowing, there was nothing. Verity’s eyes didn’t open. Her limbs remained splayed at awkward angles in the dirt. The sun persisted in rising.
“I’ll take you home and care for you, and you will be well. I’ll never ask anything of you again. Please, Verity, wake up for me.”
The fear was paralyzing. I’d never struggled with indecision before, but this situation felt so helpless. There was no good outcome. Not even the possibility of one.
“I will return for you, my love. I’m getting help. I am getting help. Just… just don’t die. I will be very cross with you if you die. You will come home with me, and I will love you as you should be loved. Do not die.”
I floated up the embankment and into the cool darkness of the cavern, immediately passing through it and reaching for the darkness of the in-between. As soon as my form solidified, I was running faster than I’d ever run, feeling my hands covered in Verity’s blood, even though my incorporeal limbs had passed straight through her the moment I’d reached for her.
She’d fallen so far.
I’d told Rainy about that spot, out in the desert, surrounded by beautiful rock formations. It was a safe place to appear under the cover of darkness. Not as convenient as materializing in a city, but with almost no chance of encountering a Hunter.
For very good reason. It wasn’t a safe location for a human. If I’d have been in this form, subject to the will of gravity, I would have never considered it a convenient location for anything.
How could I have been so stupid? Verity was so fragile, and I’d hurt her because of my own sick jealousy. My obsessive need to keep her to myself. What if she never woke up?
No, I refused to accept that.
I pushed myself faster and harder than I’d ever moved in my life, all but throwing myself out of the portal in front of the palace, and coming to a stumbling stop in front of half of Allerick’s court and the king himself, decked out in all of their finery, presumably returning from a stop on their tour.
“What are you doing here?” Damen asked, surprised. “Where’s Verity?”
“I need help,” I rasped, looking at the king. “She’s hurt. Please. Help me bring her home.”
Allerick straightened instantly. “Where?”
“The human realm.”
Mutters broke out amongst the courtiers, but I didn’t care about that. Whatever the cost, whatever Allerick demanded of me, I would give it gladly. Anything to get Verity back.
“She can’t walk,” I added. “She’s not conscious.”
“Astrid—” Allerick began.
“Already on it,” the queen’s sister announced, jogging up to the entry room with Captain Soren in tow. “Show us.”
I didn’t hesitate, guiding us straight back into the in-between. Astrid jumped on Soren’s back, allowing us to move faster as we sprinted back to the exit point I’d used, but now it was burning, warning us away.
“Fuck,” Astrid muttered, jumping off Soren’s back. “Find somewhere nearby. You’ll both have to stay here—”
“Absolutely not,” Soren cut in, already in motion as we searched for a suitable entry point.
“Absolutely, yes. You can’t go out there in daylight, I can. Theon, you’re going to need to tell me what I’m walking into. What happened?”
“She fell,” I rasped. “The wind… And then she lost her footing. We were high on the rocks—”
“Did you walk her off a fucking cliff or something?! What the hell is wrong with you?” Astrid yelled. “Soren, get me through there right fucking now.”