Page 65 of Fate of the Fallen

He’d been such a good friend when I moved to Seaton Falls. Eventually, more than that, before the dust settled and I realized with whom my heart truly belonged. But now, as he crossed the threshold with murderous thoughts and hatred in his eyes, I imagined I was the only one who remembered any of those things. To him, I was now nothing more than a target.

“You two have to get out of here,” I urged, going back to my original stance, one that wouldn’t require Beth—a loved one—to perish because of me.

She ignored me, though, keeping an arm stretched in front of my chest, being the protector she always said she’d be. Errol held his ground right beside Beth, their bodies blocking me from Nick, like human shields.

“Nick … don’t do this,” Beth pleaded, still managing to sound fearless as she all but begged her friend to resist his nature.

But he didn’t listen. Instead, he took another step, closing the distance between us.

I heard the faint rumble of Beth’s wolf from deep within. It was responding to the threat Nick posed and I imagined, had I not yet crested, mine would have done the same.

There was a silent standoff as we watched, waited. I held out hope that Nick would be able to fight this, but when he lunged in our direction … that hope … it evaporated in the wind.

His mass, formidable as it was, collided with Beth’s. She’d shifted in the blink of an eye and met Nick in the air. Fabric from her clothes, the cloak she’d worn to conceal her identity, tore and fluttered gently to the ground. The sight of the material falling so gracefully was a stark contrast to the violence that erupted right after. Errol didn’t have time to think. He, instead, acted on instinct, leaping to Beth’s rescue.

Despite my condition, I barely even thought about myself, doing what I could to stop Nick, watching as his razor-sharp claws tore through Beth’s flesh like wet paper. She yelped in pain and I could hardly see through the blur of tears that welled in my eyes, watching her fall victim to his strength. I managed to grab hold of one of his arms, hoping it’d be enough to pull him away from her, hoping even to distract him by dangling the one thing he wanted most in this life right before his eyes.

Me.

My life.

At first, I believed my plan worked, but then, when I was swatted away like a ragdoll, I realized it hadn’t been enough. My body flew through the air until a large pillar stopped me in midair, my back slamming against it with a deafening crash.

Dazed, I struggled to get my bearings, but instead could only watch in horror as Nick raised one massive claw toward the ceiling. In a fleeting moment that seemed to pass in slow motion, he brought that claw down with swift precision … tearing right through Beth’s abdomen.

Breathless … I stared.

This couldn’t be happening.

She could not die here, not like this.

Not at all.

She cried out in pain and the sound of it struck bone, hitting me in the deepest parts of my soul. Errol’s gaze shifted to meet mine and the shock behind it was mutual. It wasn’t until she was injured that it set in how helpless the three of us were, how vulnerable. Feeling desperate and out of options, I did the one thing still in my power to save them.

“Get her out of here!” I yelled those words from the top of my lungs, praying Errol didn’t try to be a hero. My fate was practically sealed, but I had to hope that, if he moved fast enough, that didn’t have to be true for Beth.

“Take her as far away from Ridge Borough as you can and get her help,” I added.

I knew what I was asking him to do. Essentially, if he listened, I’d be left here to fend for myself.

To face my demons alone.

Errol was only frozen for a moment, paralyzed by the site of what had been done to Beth—her unconscious body completely still, blood beginning to seep from the corner of her mouth as she shifted back to human form. Things didn’t look good and I had to force my tears into submission. I’d fought this as long as I could, and I had to be at peace with how it would end. We’d done everything we could.

Our fight to change the future had all been in vain.

Errol scrambled to cover Beth with the torn cloak beside her, lifting her from the floor before Nick could turn his attention from me to them, possibly thwarting their escape. He held her to his chest and I breathed deep with relief. I had to hope for the best, becauseshewas the best. The best friend, bestsister, a girl could ever hope for.

“Go!” I choked out.

Before rushing off, Errol passed a sympathetic glance in my direction, and then, in the blink of an eye, it was just us.

Me … and Nick.

There was no place else to run. He was faster than me, especially now, so I didn’t stand a chance. As I accepted this as my reality, myfate, I didn’t think about myself. I thought only of those my death would cause pain—Elise, my brothers, Hilda, Liam.

Especially him.