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Her breath shudders in her throat. And I see it then, that moment where fury becomes grief, and grief becomes understanding, even if it’s the bitter kind.
I step back, give her space.
“This isn’t over,” she says.
“No,” I agree. “But it starts here.”
And I walk away before I say something dangerous. Something I’ll regret.
Like I can’t stand the thought of losing you either.
Riven doesn’t move like the rest of us. He stalks, shoulders tense, jaw tight, eyes darker than they should be even in the absence of light. There’s no hesitation in him, just the constant simmer of fury barely leashed beneath his skin. He’s never liked decisions made without a fight, and even now, I can feel it in the way he approaches like the choice we made earlier is still chewing at him from the inside out.
I stand my ground.
There’s no point in pretending like I don’t know what this is about. He slows when he reaches me, doesn’t speak at first. Just glares. I raise a brow.
“She’s not going to forgive us,” he finally says, voice low and rough, like gravel scraped against steel. “Not for this.”
I arch a brow. “Which one? Luna? Or Layla?”
His jaw works. He doesn’t answer because he knows both names sting in different ways.
“I’m not asking for forgiveness,” I say, folding my arms across my chest. “And neither should you. What we did… what we’re doing… It’s survival. Severin has the upper hand here, and you know it. The Rift bends for him. The inked paths, the monsters, this whole labyrinth, it’s his domain. The longer we stay, the more he learns. The more we lose.”
Riven scoffs, dragging a hand through his hair. “So we feed him, Layla and hope he gets full?”
“No,” I say, cold and steady. “We let Layla decide how she wants to fight. She’s not a child. She’s not helpless. And if she chooses to confront him, then she chooses. Just like Luna chose to stay, even when every part of her screamed to run.”
He looks away, fists clenched. “She shouldn’t have to choose between dying with us or surviving without us.”
“No one should,” I say. “But this world doesn’t care what should be.”
The wind shifts. I hear laughter in the distance, Elias, probably trying to bait Luna out of her stormclouds. It won’t work. But he’ll keep trying. That’s how he loves. With jokes sharp enough to draw blood. With distance, so it doesn’t cut him back.
“She deserves better,” Riven mutters.
I let silence settle between us for a moment. Then, “They both do.”
And still, here we are, monsters masquerading as salvation, hoping the girls we’re tethered to never realize they were always their answers.
I start walking again, slow enough for Riven to match my pace if he chooses. He does, but grudgingly, like every step is a concession. I don't push him to speak again. We’ve all said enough today. What matters now is what comes next, how we protect them from what’s still coming. From Severin. From this realm.
From ourselves.
And maybe, if there’s anything left when this is over, how we survive it too.
Layla doesn’t flinch when I sit beside her. That’s a small relief. She’s been… distant since the conversation started. Quiet in a way that isn’t just exhaustion it’s withdrawal. And Luna, always the protector, always the sharp blade drawn on behalf of those she loves, doesn’t take her eyes off me for a second. Her glare sears through me, righteous and raw, but I let it burn. I deserve it.
“You don’t have to go,” I say to Layla, not Luna. My voice is low, leveled for truth, not dominance. My Dominion curls around the edges of the moment, restrained but ready. She needs clarity, not compulsion. She deserves a choice.
Layla tilts her head, the firelight catching the sheen of sweat on her brow. Her mouth is tight, a line that trembles at the corners, but she nods once. “I know.”
Luna’s hand tenses around her sister’s wrist. I see it. I don’t look away.
“You think this is simple?” Luna spits, voice hushed but full of venom. “That you can sit there and pretend like we haven’t been walking through hell together. That she owes any of you anything.”
“No,” I say, meeting her eyes. “But she owes herself the truth. And the truth is, this isn’t just about escape anymore. Severin has been building to this. He’s not throwing monsters at us to kill us. He’s watching what she does. What we do. This place is alive because of him, but it’s bleeding power because of her. You feel it, don’t you?”