Page 109 of Temptation Unleashed

Thaddeus’s room appeared, and she barely caught the blur of his figure before he vanished. The panic that struck ripped through her chest, shredded her soul. She pushed away from Shaye, searching the area, all the while knowing—damn wellknowing—he’d set out on a path of self-destruction.

That last kiss. He’d kissed her hard and fierce.

Farewell.

“Bloody bastard!” Shaye barked.

“No, no, no.” The room blurred as a weighted cape pulled down over her head. A whimper expulsed on a sharp breath. “Thaddeus!”

“Rori.”

Shaye’s voice sounded so far away as she gasped for air, the world closing in around her. Hegrabbed her shoulders, stilling her frantic spins. A sob fled her as she fisted bunches of his shirt. Figures moved up behind him, but she was losing focus as her panic strangled all but desperation from her mind.

Hysteria flooded her.

“Savehim.” A sob escaped on her last word. “Please.”

Arms came around her shoulders, peeling her away from Shaye, holding fast, putting too much distance between Rori and her only hope of bringing Thaddeus back.

“Go.”

“He destroyed the path back,” Shaye growled.

“Love,go. I’ll take care of her.”

Shaye hesitated. He nodded, then vanished.

Rori twisted in the tight arms, coming face to face with Moira. The woman’s brows pinched. Rori shook her head frantically. God, she refused to accept the sorrow glistening in those blue-gray eyes. The draw of her beautiful face and the downturn of her mouth.

“W-we were coming up with a plan.” Rori’s chin quivered uncontrollably. Tears crept down her face. “We were going to save him.”

Moira’s nostrils flared, the crease between her brows deepening. She smoothed a hand down Rori’s hair, pursing her lips, her face taut with strain.

“Rori,” she whispered.

Her knees buckled. Moira lowered them both to the floor, her arm tightening around Rori’s back.

“T-this can’t…be the end. Shaye…he’ll bring him back.” A strangled cry clawed up her throat. “Right?”

Moira released a pained sigh and blinked, moisture clumping her lashes.

A new agony stirred within Rori, a destructive force that stretched and expanded. It crushed along her organs, flattenedher lungs, constricted the motion of her heart. The glowing bond, her only hope that Thaddeus lived, flickered and pulsed. Even their precious soul threads trembled.

“Shaye won’t abandon him, but if Thaddeus is determined to sacrifice himself, not even the Goddess can stop him from doing so.” Moira touched her damp cheek. “Not if he does it to save you.”

Rori grasped at Moira’s legs, something to try and keep her from getting swept up in the storm consuming her inside. The room tilted. She listened to the fast pace of her breaths, knew she was hyperventilating, recognized the first crack in her psyche as it began to grow.

“He’s mysoulmate.”

“He is. And he is so lucky to have been given such a gift. A woman with more fire and spirit than most I know. A woman who saw beyond his faults, led him back to the path of light, didn’t give up on him.” A shaky grin formed over her mouth. “A woman strong enough to fight for him when he had given up fighting for himself.”

Rori’s head fell forward with a sob. Tears splashed over her hands, her shoulders heaving.

Moira stroked her back, urging her closer.

“Whatever happens tonight, whatever the outcome is, don’t ever give up on yourself. It would devastate him.”

Everything trembled, inside, outside. Grief struck through the storm, feeding strength and chaos to a hurricane that had already begun to break her down. Her tears flowed endlessly. Her cries shameless. The pressure building inside her, the searing agony, the bone-splintering battering, widened the cracks webbing down into her soul.