Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 91891 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91891 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
As I scowled, she extended her arm, palm cupped, holding bits of fruit meant for—I jerked. Two baby pegacorns peeked from the shadows to snatch the food from her hand.
My eyes widened. They had the exact same coloring as Skyprancer and Starflight. “Are they…?”
“Children of your pegacorns? No. They are your pegacorns. Those that sacrifice their lives for their riders do not die. They simply start over. Though they don’t know it. They can remember everything, it seems, but that.”
A problem we had in common. “You and I…we fought more times than we worked together.”
“Yes.” She gave the babies the last of the treats, then shooed them off. With a curious glance in my direction, the adorable pair flew from the cave. “That’s why I stayed away after the first hundred loops.” Her voice thickened. “Even when we warred, it hurt too much to lose you again.”
The space behind my ribs collapsed. I’d had things bad, yes, but she’d had things worse. Unlike me, she’d relived all the pain and all the deaths while I forgot them. But every time, she’d done what she thought was right.
As Jasher did?
I worked my jaw. “I forgive you, Elowen.” If this were our last opportunity to win, we better not waste it.
Surprise parted her lips, her scars pulling taut.
I snorted, pleased by her reaction. “Are you telling me Her Supreme Greatness of the Sea didn’t see this coming?”
“I am.” Regret tinged her words. “I hurt you. He hurt you. Even now, your eyes are like wounds.”
The perfect description of the man I’d left him in that Ring. Eyes like wounds.
Emotion crushed inward, compressing bone and breath. I shuffled over and eased down. Elowen and I sat in silence for a long while, shoulder to shoulder.
Soft memories bubbled up, reminding me of all the times we’d laughed together. Helped each other. Comforted, supported, and encouraged.
“I missed you in this life,” I admitted. “I didn’t know it, but I did.”
“That’s because I’m missable.” She bumped my shoulder with her own. “But I missed you, too.”
I squeezed my eyes shut for a beat. “Let me assure you, I won’t make the same mistakes. When the time comes, I’ll kill Ian, even if Jasher dies with him.” Pain leaked into my voice. “I won’t hesitate. Not again.”
Her eyes searched mine, and she sighed. “I believe you. I’m sorry.”
We sat in silence for several more beats, the very air we breathed saturated with sorrow.
“How did you get the scars?” I asked. In most of my memories of her, she’d been without a single mark. “You’re immortal. You heal.”
“The tides fall on us all,” she mumbled, then nibbled on her bottom lip. “Do you think we’re cursed? Both of Mother’s husbands died violently—or they will, if the past repeats itself. Iris’s father, my husband and greatest love, died in monstra fire when they first arrived, and nothing I’ve done has saved him. And now, your love is set to die.”
No wonder she hated monstra as much as she did. They’d taken her parents, her sister, and her husband. And if she didn’t want to tell me about the scars, that was fine. But I hoped one day she would.
“We can blame Ian for all the deaths,” I said. “I can stop him. I just have to ignite and unleash the Ember.” Yes, I’d given it the last piece of me: my will. But what did I do next?
Another heavy pause. Another dejected sigh from Elowen. “Mother once told me it’s not a skill you learn, but a valve you open.”
“Great. Another riddle.”
“Allow me to translate for you. You do not want to, so you do not.”
Because of Jasher. Pang. “That’s changed. I’ve changed. I want to. So why haven’t I?”
“You’ll have to tell me,” she muttered.
I sighed. “When I succeed this time, everything will be fixed, just not the way I wished. I get it now. Jasher will be dead, but the world will be restored.”
She flinched. “We all have a price to pay. And a role to play. A purpose. You carry the Ember to stop Ian. My path leads to Sin and her Malkom. Their end drives my every thought, my every action. I believe you are our ultimate weapon. One needed to take out their greatest weapon—Ian. It shouldn’t matter that you’ll suffer a loss in the process. But it does. Your happiness is important to me.”
PANG. “I won’t fail us.”
“I believe you,” she repeated. “When the time comes, I think the light will flow from you, as it’s meant to.” She shifted her position, angling toward me. “If everything goes as it has in the past, we have two days before the big battle. Take a little time. Get your head and heart right.” She lifted and offered her hand. “I’m still hunting Sin and Malkom.”