Page 79 of The Threads Between

“For what it's worth,” she said quietly, “we're here because of Ysella. Her call for help reached us. When we saw that Elias was coming to London, we knew this was where we needed to be. We will no longer sit by silently while our sisters die. It may have taken us too long, but we are choosing differently now.”

Then she left to coordinate with the others.

The woman of the house stood with her arms crossed, studying us with sharp eyes.

“Right then, you can call me Diana. My husband is Joseph,” she said briskly. “The injured man stays down here where I can watch him. The rest of you—upstairs. Three bedrooms. Sort yourselves out.” She looked at Beatrice. “You look half-dead. When did you last eat?”

“I . . . cannot recall.”

“Unacceptable. Sit. I'll bring soup.”

It wasn't a suggestion. Beatrice sat.

I helped August toward the stairs. Each step was an effort for him. The pendant pulsed in time with his breathing—or maybe his breathing had synchronized with the pendant. Hard to tell anymore.

“First room on the left,” Diana called after us. “Cleanest linens.”

The room was small, with a sloped ceiling, a single window overlooking fields, and a bed that looked older than I was. Simple and clean and quiet.

I closed the door behind us.

The moment it clicked shut, August's knees buckled. I barely caught him. We went down together in a controlled collapse, ending with him sitting on the floor, back against the bed, me kneeling in front of him.

“August—“

“It's getting worse.” The words came out rough. “The corruption. It's been pushing. Testing. Every moment I'm not actively holding it back, it gains ground.”

His hand lifted to the pendant. Pressed against it as if he could hold the corruption in through sheer physical force.

“I can feel it looking for cracks. For weaknesses.” His eyes met mine. “And it's finding them.”

“How much time?”

“Half a day.” He paused. “Maybe less.”

Something settled where my breath should be.

Time was slipping away from us. We could no longer wait for me to regain my full power, couldn't wait for Beatrice. It was now or never.

“We need to complete the bond,” I said. “Now.”

“Your magic hasn't recovered enough.”

“I don't care. We don't have time to wait for perfect conditions.” I pressed my hand flat against his chest, right over the pendant. “I didn't pull you out of that void just to lose you again. We're completing the bond. Tonight.”

“Lily—“

“No.” My voice came out fiercer than I intended. “Listen to me. I will not live another moment without you whole at my side. We are doing this whether I am up to it or not.”

He was quiet for a long moment, looking at me with hazel eyes that had seen too much and somehow still held tenderness.

“Alright.”

Just that, simple and absolute. Trust in its purest form.

CHAPTER 23

AUGUST