Wings of the Wicked - By Courtney Allison Moulton Page 0,96

This is Cadan. The thought ran through my mind a hundred times, and still I couldn’t fully comprehend it. Bastian’s son.

He sat up and looked into my eyes, his gaze deep and drilling. “I’ll do anything for you,” he said, his voice husky and earnest. “I’ll kill Bastian. I’ll even leave you alone if you want me to.”

I exhaled. “I don’t know what I want.”

He smiled. “You and me both.”

I studied his face without speaking for several moments. This time with him was exactly what I needed. “Thank you, Cadan. You saved me tonight.”

“Go back to your Guardian,” Cadan said, his smile faint and longing.

I didn’t want to, but he was right. If I died without ending any of this awful mess, then my parents would have died for nothing. Will’s pain would have been for nothing. And I couldn’t let him or Nana down.

I got up and stood in front of Cadan, looking down into his face. I ran my hand through his hair, and he closed his eyes just for that moment. “Good-bye, Cadan.”

His eyes opened again, that crystalline opal fire bright in the dark. “Good-bye, Ellie.”

I walked slowly back to where I’d parked. Now that I was alone again, I wanted to be anything but. What had happened with Cadan churned my thoughts and my heart. He was the perfect comfort at the perfect moment, and I cared for him, but he wasn’t Will. And Will was the only one I loved, despite everything.

As soon as his name echoed through my head, his voice echoed in my ears.

“Ellie!”

I turned my head and saw him darting across the snow-covered street toward me. He scooped me tightly into his arms and sent my body into flutters of joy and longing. I felt every contour of his familiar, warm body through his wool pullover. I ran my hands up his back and traced every ridge and plane, memorizing every part of him. There were holes in his sweater where his wings had grown through. I slipped my fingers through, touched his skin, and I squeezed my eyes shut.

“God, I thought you were gone,” he said hoarsely. “I thought they’d taken you. I couldn’t feel you anywhere. I flew over the city and then I felt you, but it was so small. I thought you were dying. And then I found your car abandoned. Ellie, I thought I’d lost you.”

“I’m fine,” I said, my voice small. “Really. No wounds, I promise.”

He froze suddenly and gave me a strange look. Then the look turned visibly pained. In that moment, I knew he smelled Cadan on me. “Why couldn’t I find you?” he asked. “Were you hiding from me?”

The heartbrokenness in his voice made me feel like the worst person alive. “I’m sorry, Will. I just needed to be alone.”

He didn’t ask about Cadan. He knew, but he stayed silent. He wasn’t going to judge me. He never did. He was perfect, and I loved him so much it hurt.

I started to cry again. “I’m so sorry!” I sobbed, barely comprehensible.

He pulled me closer and made a soft noise into my hair. “It’s okay. Everything’s going to be all right. Please don’t cry.”

“Why do you wait for me like this?” I begged, my teeth chattering. “All I do is run away from everything, from you. Why are you so patient and just take all of this pain, no questions asked?”

“Ellie …” He looked down and picked up my hands, examining them. He frowned and rubbed them with his. “You’re frozen. Your hands are like ice.” He lifted my hands and pressed them to his lips, closing his eyes and exhaling warm air gently against my fingertips. Everything in me melted.

“I’m screwed up,” I said exasperatedly. “And I’m cold.”

Without another word, he scooped me up and cradled me in his arms. We walked toward where my car was parked. I clung tightly to his shirt, shivering, and when we arrived, he set me gently on the cold hood of my car. My fingers shook as I dug through my purse for my keys. When I found them, Will took them and unlocked my car.

“I’ll drive,” he said softly.

I didn’t protest, and he scooped me back into his arms and carried me around to the passenger seat. I watched him, almost amused, as he buckled me in as if I were helpless, but I didn’t mind. Taking care of me was more than just his duty. He loved me as much as I loved him