Page 46 of Fallen Stars
Before Elara could scream, hands clamped over her mouth, dragging her out of the room. She clawed at the figure holding her, punching and screaming through the hands as loud as she could. And still the hold did not relinquish, until the scent of rain and tobacco smoke coated her, and she was pushed screaming into the never-ending dark.
There was a moment of nothing but sheer terror, of falling through air, stomach in mouth.
Then Elara gasped, sucking in deep breaths as she slammed back into her body, pitching forward to the desk. Eli’s eyes flew open moments later, his stare venomous.
“What the fuck was that?” he hissed.
“I could ask you the same,” she spat, still trying to regain control of her breathing, the sensation of falling still spinning through her. She passed her hands over her face. “You dragged me out of that room? What were you thinking?”
“I was hunting you down after you found that fucking door,” he snarled. “You had no business opening it. Youshouldn’thave been able to open it.”
“I don’t know,” she rasped, taking a deep drink of water from the tea table. “I had no idea why it opened. Or any idea what was going on behind it. You had no right to drag me into oblivion like that.”
“There was information in that library you didn’t need to see. That I can’t trust you with.”
“Trust?” Elara laughed incredulously. “You want to speak of trust? You seem to know my whole story, and yet you have only gifted me with a few chapters. And I’m supposed to trustyou? Just what were you to me? I saw us in that dream. You meant something to me. You handed me a lette—"
“I was your messenger,” he replied, pushing himself out of his chair, not even deigning to look at Elara. “The one being helping the two of you to keep your trysts.”
Elara’s eyes widened.
“I delivered your letters to one another. Watched you fall in love. The Moon was my closest friend. My queen.” He finally locked eyes with her though his were filled with fury. “But you… You are nothing like her,” he spat. “She wouldn’t have pried her way into a memory she had no business being in.”
Elara reeled, as though she’d been slapped. She didn’t know why she craved the god’s approval, but what he had just said stung.
“And thank gods I’m not like her,” she hissed back, hackles rising. “Thank gods I have a human heart that allowed me to see why you’re truly helping me.”
Eli scoffed. “This was a mistake. I should never have offered to help you. I’m too far gone, and you… You’re useless. You don’t even know who you are. Get out.”
Elara remained seated, tilting her head as she watched him, putting together what she had seen in his dream with how desperately he had tried to keep her from it. Even his insults washed over her.
“That woman with the butterfly wings… She’s tied to this, isn’t it? To us?”
“I saidout,” he snarled, every vicious part of him that earned him the nickname Serpent radiating from him. Elara had almost forgot just how intimidating the Star could be.
She smoothed her hair, raising her chin. Then she did the unthinkable.
Sometimes it’s harder to speak the truth aloud.
She sent the thought, crafting it like a paper airplane, and guided it to Eli blindly.
His hand fell from the doorknob as his eyes flew to her in shock.
Don’t—
Someone dear to me once said that to share helps to shed a burden. So share. You clearly need my help for a reason.
She sent that thought with a little smirk. Eli curled his lip but sat back down, bristling.
I can’t trust you enough yet to tell you.
Ah yes, because I’m ‘nothing like’ the Moon you knew? You know what I am? Better. More flawed. More emotional.Deadlier, because I possess that humanity. Which means I will stop at absolutely nothing to help the ones I love. Even if that means helping you. So tell me—who is she?
There was a long pause. Then a sigh, audible, breaking the silence of the room.
Fine,Eli said in her head.That woman is one of you. A titan. Of air.
Elara let the puzzle pieces fall into place.