Page 98 of Into the Abyss
Wren
I came awake with a start, jerking against whoeverheld me and flinging myself forward.
“Wren!” Corson’s arms constricted aroundme.
The fight went out of me when he pressed meagainst his chest. “Oh,” I breathed and draped my arms around hisneck. I inhaled his scent as my lips rested against my fading biteon his neck. “It’s you. I’m… I’m… back.”
I had a vague memory of having gonesomewhere without him, but where had I gone and what happened?
“You’re back.” Distress and relief resonatedin his voice as he stroked my hair. “You’re back.”
“I missed you.”
“And I, you.”
I let myself drift into his comfortingembrace, but I turned my attention away from his neck when my fangspricked with the impulse to sink into his flesh and mark him.However, I sensed others around us, and I wouldn’t share ourprivate bond with them.
“Others went with me, didn’t they?” Iasked.
“Yes.”
“How many remain wherever I was?”
“Just Magnus and Amalia.”
Leaning back in his arms, I smiled when hisbeautiful citrine eyes met mine. I cradled his cheek as loveswelled within me and his eyes danced with joy. I was so focused onhim that it took me a minute to notice the dark purple leaves andarching branches over his head.
We certainly hadn’t been anywhere like thisbefore… before…
Total recall danced at the edges of my mind,but the memory of where I’d been continued to elude me. Then, Iforgot about trying to recall my whereabouts when I realized wewere in a grove of calamuts.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“Trying to get help,” he said, “andfailing.”
“Where is Amalia?” an unfamiliar voicedemanded.
I turned my head to find a striking womanwith black hair and black eyes staring intently at me; I guessedshe was the speaker. I didn’t respond to her as my gaze traveledover all those gathered around us. I’d never seen the six men andwomen standing with the woman who’d spoken, but I recognized theones gathered close to Corson. However, there were far fewer demonsand humans here than there should be.
“Where is everyone else?” I demanded.
Lix grunted before chugging from his flask;Erin rested a hand on his shoulder. From over Corson’s shoulder,Jolie gave me a wan smile.
“This is all that’s left,” Corson murmured.“There are twenty-three demons, including Magnus, two angels, andtwenty human survivors.”
There’s only forty-five of us left!
My stomach turned over at the realization.Yesterday, or however long ago it was before all this occurred,there were one hundred twenty-five of us.Eightyhad diedwhile I’d been wherever I was. If I were still human, the knowledgewould have made me puke.
“Oh,” I breathed as I took note of all themissingfaces. For years, I’d fought relentlessly againstthose who sought to kill us, and I’d aligned with the demons in thehopes of keeping the Wilders alive, but I’d lost so many of them inone fell swoop.
“This is not your fault,” Corson said as heguessed at my thoughts. “You couldnothave stopped this.None of us could.”
It was true, but it didn’t matter; I stillblamed myself.If Randy is still alive, he’s going to be sodisappointed in me.He’d left me in charge while he went tofind a safer place for us to live, and I’d failed.
No, you didn’t, and he won’t bedisappointed.The reasonable voice in my head replied. And thereasonable voice was, of course, right, but I couldn’t shake thefeeling I’d let Randy down and that I’d failed all the Wilders whowere lost.
“Well, that’s not entirely true,” Lix saidin a tone so icy I half expected to see frost billowing from hisjaw as he spoke. “Some of those gathered here might have been ableto stop it, or at leastattemptedto stop it. Theydefinitely could have stepped in to save a couple of lives. Justonelife would have been better than none, right,Rislen?”
