Page 176 of Remnants: Disruption
“Drain me.”
She tries to pull her hand back, but I hold tight. Her eyes spark with revulsion.
“I would rather die,” she says, venom in her voice.
“I stopped that before and I’ll fucking do it again,” I whisper, not dropping her blazing stare. I can see the orange peeking through now.
Her jaw ticks, but she doesn’t look away.
“I will not let you waste away,” I say, putting my arm out. “Do what you need to do. I’m strong enough.”
She finally looks down at my skin. I can’t tell if it’s the light or the contacts, but her eyes seem to dilate a little.
“It is not like in the fantasies,” she whispers, eyes still locked on my bared forearm. “It will not feel like ecstasy. In the old days, yes, but not now. Not with what I am today.”
“Keeping you alive is the only thing I care about,” I say, studying the dullness of her hair. It’s like the Aether itself was her life force.
“Please,” she whispers, and I look down to see she’s crying. Once was already terrible, but twice in one day? “I do not wish to do this.”
I kneel beside her and wrap a gentle hand around her jaw, pushing her eyes to meet mine.
“You told me there would be time for grief and sorrow,” I say, rubbing at the tears. “We both deserve that—for Ivan and Percy. But now?”
She nods a little, back stiffening. “Now is the time for vengeance.”
“And I can’t have you keeling over while vengeance-ing.” I frown a little at the word, but shrug.
Cass takes a shuddering breath, but nods. Just once.
Her hand glows with the blood red of Bloody Mary. I marvel at the power contained in this one person—in my love.
She presses the red palm to my forearm and pain rings through me like a knife straight to the neck. I tense barely letting out a wheeze, and she glances at me.
“Keep going,” I grunt, brushing at her face with my trembling thumb.
The pain somehow gets worse. It’s like she’s searing something into my skin, but the burn doesn’t go away and gets hotter.
And then it ends. Like it had never happened.
I slump forward and she catches me with strong arms. Stronger arms than before.
“My love,” she whispers, pressing a kiss to my temple as I try to get my feet under me. “Breathe. It should only take a few minutes for it to wear off.”
I let out a sharp gasp before putting my feet down on the floor and using the bed to prop myself up. The world wobbles like I’d just suffered massive blood loss, but it’s more visceral.
“Alright,” I whisper, straightening. “Open me a portal to the Citadel. I’ll tell them what’s happened and that you’re safe.”
She stares at me like I’ve gone mad.
“You should sit down not—”
“No,” I say, pointing to where the portal had been last time. “No, we need to move before Damien’s people do. Before Darkrend does. He thinks you’re dead and we can use that. There’s no way I should have saved you. Hell, I don’t know how I did.”
“You said dieagainearlier,” she says, frowning.
I gesture a little frantically. “I don’t know, Cass. I don’t remember a lot because I was a little bit stressed. When neither of us are actively dying we can debrief, but I need a portal.”
She nods wordlessly and I press a firm kiss to her lips, tasting the spice and vibrance in her presence.
