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Closing her eyes, she slammed her fists into the bloody sand.

All the visions she’d had, and yet she was too weak to stop the deaths. To save her friend. If only she had warned him—

“I would have walked right out here shooting anyway. Besides, look at that. Youarea goddess, Brynnie.”

Chapter 46

Travissmiledashestood over her, a rare sight for the always serious man.

“Travis!” she cried, reaching for him, and going right through him. His hand moved to touch her shoulder but stopped before his fingers curled into a fist.

Time started to freeze as she pulled them across the veil subconsciously, or Faerie did it for her, she had no idea, but the moment they were in Faerie, she grabbed him in a hug. One he returned just as tightly.

“Best friends any guy could have.” His soul looked to where Caden was frozen in yelling at him to wake up, and to where Declan and Justin stood having picked up his rifle and pistol, covering his body so no one could make it to them.

A tear fell down Bryn’s cheek as Jace tried to save him even knowing it was too late. It was all there, frozen in time for them to watch play out. She was thankful he was given this, that Travis knew how much they loved him in the end.

Travis looked to her, the pain in his eyes that he’d held inside of himself in life was gone, and she wished she knew how to bring him back the way he was now.

“You can’t, darlin’. It’s my time.” He smiled down at her. Pushing a lock of hair behind her ear, he laughed. “Youarea damn fairy.”

Bryn let out a sob as she moved her face into his hand, his thumb wiping away her rogue tears.

“Tell them that they need to keep going. No matter what. And Bryn?” His eyes were lit with an eerie blue, his body with yellow, his soul pure. “Listen to Danu, you can end this. Did some reading of my own and you’ve got some banshee in you. So, call for their deaths, darlin’. I know you got it in ya.”

Touching his shoulder, she smiled up at her friend, his form blurring from the tears in her eyes.

“You shall pass,” she whispered. As much as she wanted to hold Travis to her, to find a way to take him back, Travis had earned his rest. Earned the honor of living among the warriors that had come before him.

“Don’t let them get you down, girlie,” he whispered as his aura grew brighter. “Declan better be on his best behavior because I’ll be watching.” He winked, finding a peace in death he never had in life. Stepping back, he turned to where Arawn awaited him.

“I’ll be damned.” Travis winced at his words before chuckling. “Mr. Rafferty really is king of the dead, huh?”

“You get to go to paradise, Travis.” She smiled, and Travis returned it, looking back over his shoulder at her.

Bryn watched as he walked to Arawn, giving him a slap on the back as they turned to walk off together, talking. Travis let out a boisterous laugh at something Arawn had said, and Bryn closed her eyes as the tears fell.

She needed to grieve, but that would come later because the world came back to life around her, the dulls of the desert angering her as she left Faerie and its comfort.

Shoving to her feet, she swung around toward the wraiths, jabbing her knife blindly with tears in her eyes. She would die, she knew this. There was no way to survive this but losing her friend... she would die taking all the wraiths with her. She would save the friends still breathing.

When the lack of gunfire registered, panic rose inside her.

The bullets had stopped.

Fear had her frozen, but something moved her, turned her body to see her worst nightmares come to life.

As if she were a mere observer.

Arioch and Daran were still in their wolfman forms, fighting wraiths, but she knew they’d turn on her and her friends the minute they could.

Declan scrambling back from a wraith that had him on the ground, the sword lifting into the air to strike him down.

Caden, right as a wraith sliced through his arm, severing his hand.

Justin shoving a knife into a wraith’s head, not seeing the one behind him closing in.

Bryn’s body shook as time sped up, her human body unable to move fast enough to do anything. Unable to save anyone.