Page 123 of Lost in the Dark

Crack!

The wretched sting came again, carving through my wing, this time closer to bone. I unleashed a howl, clenching my jaw tightly as I raced toward that void.

“Vassilis!”I roared as powerful dark wings carried him into that terrifying gleam.

Don’t go… the words filled me. But I had no choice. I couldn’t let them go alone and as that cruel sting spread outwards, I hurled myself into that gleaming hell.

I clenched my fists and braced for impact, only none came. And as the screams of my men faded in that merciless glare, I felt myself falling…

I screamed, throwing my arms up to shield my eyes. My body twisted and turned, my wings useless against the force of the fall, until the glare faded. Sparks still danced in my eyes, and in the void came silence.

A silence so cold it was terrifying. Until I hit the ground with acrunch.

I couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t do anything butfeel.

Feel the agony and the terror and the nothingness that came with the loss of my world. “Lohne,” I croaked. “Lohne!”

I pushed up and felt the darkness sway all around me, leaving me to stumble. I felt different here, bigger…heavier. I pushed out my wings, testing them, and groaned with the agony, then jerked my gaze to the rupture in the scales. “Fuck.”

Violet

There was green as far as I could see as we turned off the highway and headed for Moreton Hills Campgrounds. Pines towered over graceful ash trees that filled the landscape all the way to the Peakdown Mountains.

I didn’t normally like camping, not the kind I was forced to endure with my overbearing parents. But this was an exception. I smiled for the first time in what felt like forever and glanced at Michael behind the wheel of his Ford pickup. The rear of the truck was loaded with enough food and alcohol to last us for a week, even though we were only going for three days.

Three blissful, romantic days. My smile grew wider as I reached over and slid my hand along his arm. But Michael didn’t look at me, just shifted gears, shucking off my hand with the movement.

I pulled away, swallowing the sting of rejection. It didn’t matter, he could reject me all he wanted to, but it didn’t change the fact that tonight or tomorrow, Michael was going to propose.

I could feel it in my bones. This was the start of our future. He’d been acting nervous around me all month. Staying away from me all week, then rushing to grab me on the weekend and take me back to his place, where we lay in bed all weekend.

But it was more than that. I’d been dropping subtle, or maybe not so subtle, hints that this weekend was our six-year anniversary. When Michael told me we were going away, I became excited, even more so when he guarded his bag and tossed it into the back.

I couldn’t stop smiling, even though I'd had to load the coolers and the food, then everything else on my own. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered, not anymore.

“I’m so excited about this,” I murmured.

He shot me a glance. “I got that already. You’re excited.”

A flutter came in my chest. “We’ve never done anything like this, and it’s been six years since we started going out together.”

“Has it been that long?”

I gave him a playful punch. “You know it has.”

“Here we are.” He ignored me and turned back to the view ahead.

Excitement charged through me as I caught sight of the entrance to the park. The pickup hit the drive hard. Michael jerked the wheel, scattering rocks against the campgrounds sign. I ground my teeth, catching sight of children playing outside as we flew through the park faster than we should.

“Michael,” I forced through clenched teeth.

He just unleashed a bark of laughter. “Relax, Violet. You’re so damn uptight all the fucking time.”

You’re so uptight.It was his go-to phrase that set my teeth on edge every time.