Page 78 of For Ever More

I’m broken, clawed by terror. Shenming pulls me onto his back, bearing me away, each step taking me farther from Jin. I cannot protest or struggle, still unable to move.

Jin’s voice rings out strong and unflinching, drawing all attention away from us. “Here is your precious starfire, Queen Chunlei.”

“Bring it to me and you will be richly rewarded.” She holds out her hand. “There is no choice. You cannot run any longer, nor can you destroy it—”

“I can hurl it into the ocean,” he counters. “It would take far longer to find.”

A smile spreads over the queen’s face like she doesn’t believe him. “Lord Jin-Yong, is it not? You hid your identity well. I learned much about you after you left the palace. A pity, as we could have forged an arrangement, one to both our liking.”

“What did you have in mind?” Jin is distracting her and the soldiers as Shenming carries me away.

“Thorn Valley has been a false ally to the Iron Mountains. Why not make it a true one? What if you and I seal the alliance my brother tried to secure before?”

A trick. I catch the tension in the air, the queen’s magic swelling as the soldiers close in on Jin, the archers from the Pearl Ocean joining the fray. His shield no longer gleams around him, only protecting us now—as though knowing there’s no way out for him anymore. Arrows rain down as Shenming sprints in a winding route to the ocean, trying to evade them.

Jin glances at us briefly, as though assuring himself we’re safe. “A pity, Your Majesty, that your word has been somewhat tarnished of late.”

The queen’s tone hardens. “Did you know, Lord Jin-Yong, that once I have enough pieces of the starfire I will be able to sway mortal minds, reshaping them? You would be an interesting test.”

Mortal? Does Queen Chunlei see herself as more than human now? Her threat sickens me, yet Jin laughs mockingly.

“You’ll have to catch me first.”

Her magic erupts toward Jin, but he spins around, racing in the other direction—heading toward a cliff as though intending to cast the false starfire into the sea.

The queen’s gaze locks on him. “Follow him!”

The soldiers chasing Shenming and me veer away, pursuing Jin instead. He must know this is futile, he cannot outrun them—trapped. And once they learn he doesn’t possess the starfire, the queen’s wrath will fall on him alone. He is sacrificing himself. For us. For me.

Shenming reaches the boat, carrying me effortlessly when I cannot struggle nor scream for him to stop, to return for Jin. Along the shore, Dian has wrecked the Pearl Ocean boats. She now grabs me, dragging me aboard our vessel, her face stricken. The queen’s spell is waning, I’m regaining the feeling in my limbs, yet far too slowly.

Dian throws her arms around me. “Don’t waste his sacrifice. Jin would want you to be safe.”

Shenming thrusts the oars furiously into the waves, rowing us swiftly away. As our boat shifts with the current, I glimpse Queen Chunlei and the soldiers closing in on Jin upon the cliff. The queen raises her hand, her crown aglitter as a brightness streaks forth—hurtling into Jin, who falls to the ground. And then, it’s gone, the cool brush of his shield that always made me feel safe.

The tether on my emotions snaps, my mind descending into chaos, a sharp ache in my chest like it’s been ripped apart. This pain I feel, it’s because I love him—I know this now. And though he’s shown and told me how he feels a hundred different ways… I never truly told him even once.

Upon the cliff, the Queen of the Iron Mountains reaches Jin, her soldiers swarming around him with their glinting weapons, circling tighter—

And then, I can’t see him anymore.

CHAPTER FORTY

THE FIREFLY FROM CAPTAIN HONG SOARS INTO THE SKY, released by Shenming as a signal to our waiting soldiers on the shores of the Pearl Ocean. They need to flee before Lady Shufang returns, before they are caught. Dawn threads the night, yet it feels irrevocably bleak. The queen’s magic has worn off; I can move now, though what use is it? This nightmare is one I can’t awaken from.

We’ve escaped—but with Jin a captive, I’m still not free. A ceaseless pain has taken root in my chest since leaving him behind.

As Shenming rows us away from the island, Dian is watching me with concern, her hands clasped over her knees. “I’m sorry, Yining,” she says.

“For what?” My tone is listless and flat. “That we left Jin? Or all the things you accused him of before?”

I’m lashing out when I’m furious at myself. My anger should be channeled at the Queen of the Iron Mountains, not those closest to me. Instead of a rebuke, Dian’s arm goes around my shoulders in silent comfort.

“I’m sorry.” My voice chokes as I lean against her. “This wasn’t your fault, Dian. None of us wanted this.”

“I was wrong about him,” she admits. “I never trusted him because he’s from Thorn Valley, I never looked beyond that. But he cares for you, as you care for him. That should have been enough for me.”

“We left him behind.” The tears come now, spilling down my cheeks.