the lake, the grass beneath my boots turned muddy. The placid, glassy waters reflected the sky and stretched from horizon to horizon, but there was a faint mist of white to the north. A billowing cloud that skimmed the surface of the water and hinted at a hidden world. Without a boat and with no bridge in sight, there were no obvious means for crossing. Not that we were ready to leave. Not without Noc.
Noc. I dropped my gaze to the pulverized grass before me. His shove had been a blade to my heart. I knew he’d sacrificed himself to give us a chance at escape, but what if that was the last touch I ever got?
Stop. I bit my lower lip. Don’t think like that. The beams of light had ceased, and the awful grating intonation careening through the city had been silenced. Good or bad, I didn’t know.
“The king will soon get word of our appearance, if he hasn’t already. He’ll assume we’ll go to the ruins, even if his reasons are incorrect.” With tense fingers, Kost clutched the strap of his satchel. “We need to put as much distance between us and the Sentinels as possible.”
“We’ll leave as soon as Noc appears.” Oz’s voice was thick, and he glanced past me toward the lake.
The gates groaned open and we all straightened, eyes laser-focused on the figures emerging. Hope disappeared with the sight of a young couple dressed in evening wear. They smiled and waved at someone behind the gates before hooking a left, following the narrow path lining the capital’s walls toward a glistening cemetery a short distance away. I’d never been so frustrated with someone for simply going on a stroll.
Letting out a shaky exhale, I dropped my head into my hands. “Noc, where are you?”
Something icy teased the back of my neck before slipping around my throat. “I’m right here.”
I yanked my head up and spun around.
Noc.
Tears flooded my eyes. Safe. He was safe. Noc stood perfectly still in a wreath of endless shadows, one of which was still locked in place around my neck. Chills seeped into my skin, and the tendril tightened a fraction. His cheek was smeared in blood, and blank eyes flitted about us. Dark. Endless. Unreachable.
“Thank the gods.” Kost moved toward him and then froze by my side. “What’s wrong?”
Noc blinked once. “Nothing.”
Kost shifted closer to me. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, you don’t look so hot.” Oz came up on my other side and placed a hand on my shoulder. Warmth ebbed into my skin from his touch, heightening the chill around my neck.
“Noc.” I snuck a hand to my throat and stroked the shadow. The usual soothing feel was gone, and icy needles lodged themselves in my fingers. Steadying myself with a slow breath, I fought the urge to yank my hand away. “It’s okay. Everyone is fine. Safe.”
His eyes skipped from my fingers to the tendril of darkness swirling around me. A frown tugged at his brows. “What?”
When I swallowed, the noose tightened. “You’re here now. Everything is okay.”
His face contorted, and he held his hand out before him. Blood leaked around his fingers and fed monstrous red blades that grew right out of his forearms. They had ripped through the fabric of his coat and were shining with sickening wetness in the ocher light of the setting sun. A battle raged in his eyes. Something dark and foreign and beyond my reach. That damn oath on in his inner wrist practically pulsed with power, as if it were a reckoning of sorts that threatened to shatter Noc’s control.
He’s running out of time.
Before I could think, I stepped out of the safety of Oz’s and Kost’s reach and toward the mortal danger that was my lover. Shadows flared and wrapped us in an impenetrable cocoon. Kost and Oz shouted, but their cries were dim against the thick blanket of darkness. The snarling mess of tendrils lashed out, raising welts along my skin, but I didn’t care. All I saw was Noc, lost and alone. But I would save him. I would bring him back.
Every. Damn. Time.
Wrapping him in my arms, I pressed my face into his neck and dug my nails into his back. Did whatever I could to anchor myself to his presence. A groan scraped through him, and I bit back tears as I waited for him to return my embrace. Limp arms hung by his sides, but his hands twitched.
“Come back to me.” I swallowed twice