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“Not as much as Callan does. Not as much as Nuri does. As Cassius does. Not as much as I love you.”

“Sometimes love is not enough,” she sneered at him, and tendrils of those shadows began to wrap around him.

“No, Love,” he gasped. The shadows burned where they touched his skin, coiling tight like snakes. “Sometimes love is not enough, but it can shine like a star.”

“The stars have all gone out,” she said. “There are none left to guide the way.”

“The darkest nights produce the brightest stars, Scarlett,” he managed to ground out.

“There are no stars left,” she repeated. “Not any more.” She stared at him, unblinking. Her eyes were glazed. Those shadows danced around her, taunting him as they slithered along his body. She was completely lost in the thrall of her magic, uncoiling from being suppressed for so long. Too damn long. He could feel it waking up, stretching, suddenly realizing it’d been slumbering, realizing it had freedom within reach. Now it was angry at being forced to sleep, at being forced into a cage.

“Sorin…” came Eliza’s voice, warning in her tone. “We need to go.”

“Let me in, Scarlett. Let me help you,” he rasped.

“Let you in?Youhurt me, Sorin.” When Scarlett met his gaze this time, her eyes were not icy blue or gold or full of shadows. They were silver, as bright as starlight, glowing and radiant.

“Holy gods,” Eliza whispered.

“I will help you kill the Fire Prince,” he whispered. The last words he’d be able to utter, not even sure if she’d hear him.

But the words hit home. Her shadows seemed to flinch, loosening their hold. Her shield fell to the ground, flames extinguishing, and ice shards sprayed as they shattered. He felt some of them cut his arms,his knees, his cheek, sharp as knives. He didn’t care as he fell forward onto his hands, gulping in the sea air and feeling the warmth of the sun on his skin, feeling his blood begin to flow again. He heard the others coughing and gasping for breath behind him.

“Scarlett?” he whispered, not daring to move towards her until she gave him permission. The shadows had receded back to her, but they hovered, preparing to strike. “Can I come to you?”

When she said nothing, Sorin crawled forward and brought his hands to Scarlett’s face, forcing her to look at him. He grimaced as the shadows lashed at him, slicing across the backs of his hands, his neck, his face. “Scarlett, I swear to you that nothing is going to happen to you if you let me take you from here. I swear to you that I can take you to all the answers you are looking for. But right now, you shall either need to summon more ice and fire than you just did and wield it well, or you will watch everyone you love die on this beach.”

She stared at him, her eyes void of any emotion. “Do what you want with me,” she whispered. “I don’t care.”

“Sorin, we need to gonow,” Eliza snarled. He heard it then, too. The sound of clattering hooves, approaching men.

He wrapped her up in his arms, holding her tight. He looked over her head at Callan and his guards. Callan was staring at him, an expression Sorin could not read on his face as he beheld him holding Scarlett close.

“You two need to go,” Sorin said to Nuri and Cassius as he stood, sweeping Scarlett up with him. “Go before you are seen here. Do not stop until you are safely behind the wards. Lord Tyndell is in league with Mikale. Be careful.”

Nuri didn’t need to be told twice as she swung up onto her horse.

“Take care of her,” Cassius said, mounting his own horse. Sorin could see the grief and confusion in his eyes, but there wasn’t time for goodbyes or explanations.

“Give her to me, Sorin,” Eliza demanded, leading a white stallion towards them. Eirwen. Cassius must have brought the horse from the Tyndell stables.He handed her over to the female and swung up into the saddle. Eliza handed her up to him with ease.

The mortal men watched with wide eyes at the strength of the female. “Get on your horses and let’s go,” she snapped, swinging up onto a chestnut mare with a black mane and tail.

“What of her wound?” Callan demanded.

“My magic will bind it until we can stop, and I can look at it,” Sorin answered, tugging up more of his magic and wrapping it around the gash in Scarlett’s side. She was a deadweight in his arms, staring straight ahead at nothing.

“Love, stay with me,” he whispered, digging his heels into Eirwen, and the horse shot forward.

“Don’t call me that,” she whispered. “Don’t act like you care. You’ve done enough.”

Sorin tightened his grip around her as the horse ran hard, leaping over fallen trees in their path, following Eliza’s mare ahead of them. He didn’t look back to make sure Callan and his men were following. He didn’t care about them. He didn’t care if they made it. His only care was getting the female in his arms across the border alive.

They rode hard and fast for nearly three hours before they dared to stop so he could check her wound and let the horses breathe and drink some water from a nearby stream.

“Be quick, Sorin,” Eliza said, taking Eirwen’s reins to lead him to the stream. Sloan had the horses of the mortals and followed.

Callan hovered over him as Sorin gently lay Scarlett on a blanket Eliza had spread out for him. Finn stood near him, his hand on his sword.