Page 45 of Omen of ice
Despite my concern, refusing isn’t an option. Orbik has a temper, and if Liani goes to him on my behalf, there’s no telling how he’ll react. I won’t take that chance.
A single tear slips down her cheek. “I am truly sorry, Valen.”
“It’s okay. I understand.” I stand. “But before we start, I need to—”
Liani grabs my arm and gently guides me back to the bed. “I’m afraid Orbik is waiting in the hall for this as we speak.”
If I don’t warn Tania… “But—”
“I won’t take much. It will be quick. I promise.”
I nod and settle beside her on the edge of the bed, steeling myself against what’s to come. “If this is what it takes to ensure our survival, I will do my part.”
She brushes a hand against my cheek as her breath trembles. “These Fae do not deserve you, Valen. Orbikdoes not deserve you.”
I remove my shirt and lay back. She’s gentle as always, yet I still know the moment the needle pierces my skin. It starts with an uncomfortable rise in temperature. Sweat beads against my brow. I swallow as I inhale deeply in an attempt to fill the void Liani creates.Hollow. That’s how it always feels at first. It’s like the needle draws out my soul, sucking away the thing that makes me who and what I am. Then, the ache starts. First dull and faint, progressing slowly toward a pressure that threatens to crush my chest.
“Almost done,” Liani soothes.
Around us, ice begins to encase the room. I feel each item as it freezes. The chair in the corner, the table and decanter by the door…the wine inside.
I close my eyes and chase the pain. Anything is better than the vacuity left behind in the wake of withdrawal. The encompassing numbness has grounded me in the past. During the early years, for days after, I could do nothing more than lay in bed and stare at the ceiling. Food, frivolity, and even simple bodily functions were too great an effort.
Until I learned to embrace the pain.
“Shh.” Liani’s fingers trace a light circle against my forearm. I barely feel her touch. “Just a bit more.”
A spike of anxiety breaks my reverie. The magic surges inside me, exploding outward in a crash of ice and hail. An assortment of pops and clinking fill the room as it pours out, blanketing every last surface.
Liani gasps. Her hand, resting against my chest, shudders from the cold. “Valen, please. Try to stay calm.”
It takes all my effort, but I force my eyes open and make a halfhearted swipe at the syringe. “Enough…”
My aunt continues to pull up on the plunger.
The panic surges, blooming into stone-cold terror.Tania. She feels what I do. She doesn’t understand what’s happening. I should have tried harder to warn her!
I swat at the needle again, this time a little harder. Liani doesn’t seem to understand. “I know. I know,” she croons. “I’m almost finished.”
“STOP!” I violently grab for the needle, and this time she pulls it out. It clouds, then freezes solid, the magic inside crystallizing.
Liani looks from the needle to me, her face ashen. “What— What’s wrong?”
An acidic retort bubbles up, but I swallow it back, reminding myself that none of this is her fault. My reaction is rash and uncharacteristic, but it’s not really mine, is it?
I force a steadying breath into my lungs, hold it for a moment, then blow out slowly. “Like I said, I haven’t been feeling well. It was a little rougher than most donations.”
“Valen—”
I hold up a hand to stop her. “It’s all right. I just… I’d like to rest a bit.”
“Of course.” She cradles the frozen syringe and hurries from the room, and I slump back against the pillows.
I almost have my breathing evened out when the door bursts open and Tania stumbles in. Her eyes are bloodshot, her breathing ragged. She surveys the ice-encased room. Her skin is so pale… “What—”
She sways on her feet, eyes rolling back. I launch myself from the bed. The room spins, but I manage to catch her just as she passes out and drops to the icy floor.
I follow her down, the room growing dark around the edges for a moment before I chase her into oblivion.
