Page 111 of Pet: Torment

I want to protest, but it occurs to me that I have yet to ask about anyone else. I gasp, my grip on Remus’s hand tightening.

“Sky and Ezra were with me! Did you—are they—” I trail off, not knowing how to finish the sentence, but Remus understands.

“They are safe. Ezra is recovering slowly,” he says, and I sag in relief, leaning against the pillows as the stress visibly dissipates.

“So does that mean the person who attacked him—who attacked you is dead?” I ask.

Remus shakes his head.

“TheCelestivinewho attacked is from our home world. The history of my mother is a complex one that Ezra is unfortunately a stain on. So, as a condition for his life, Xion and I will be returning with him to the world we came from,” he says.

My eyes widen, and I pull my hands from his as my world comes to a screeching halt.

“Returning? You’re just going to go back with someone you’ve never met, who tried to kill you, as if everything is going to be okay?” I ask in disbelief.

Remus studies me carefully, his expression unwavering.

“Yes,” he says simply.

I shake my head in disbelief.

“What about me? What about your promise? What about seeing this as my home?” I ask, trying to make sense of everything.

Remus releases a deep breath, shifting closer to me on the bed. He lies down behind me, his arms wrapping around my waist as he pulls me into him, and I realize I am trembling. His chin gently rests atop my head for a moment before he speaks.

“I am not what I once was, Iris. I’m barely evenwhoI was. Everything for me has changed, and remaining on this world is no longer an option. This is no longer my home. It can’t be. It never was…it was only ever a prison,” he says.

I tense, but don’t respond. He’s speaking cryptically. He won’t tell me more about what’s happened since his memory returned. Or even what’s returned with it. But whatever he knows is enough for him to despise this world.

“And me? Is this my prison now, too?” I ask, earning a soft chuckle from Remus as he pulls me closer.

“Of course not. I’ve come to realize with this whole situation that you’re the only thing in my life that’s been real. You’re the only thing I chose for myself that was never corrupted by my mother’s touch. You’re the one thing I can count on and return to…as my home. I will always love you for that, Iris,” he says, gently turning me so that I am facing him.

My heart beats harder as I look into his eyes, my cheeks warm from his words. He reaches behind him, his hair falling in loose strands around him as he pulls something out of it. My eyes widen as he reveals the hairpin he gave me right before he left. He holds it between us, studying it as he speaks.

“When I was released from my mother’s prison for the first time, I infused my essence into this. I crafted it using minerals from a neighboring planet and infused it with my essence as a reminder of my freedom—my growth. It’s very important to me, and why I gave it to you that day by the river,” he says.

He reaches over me, placing it in my hair, and I note that there’s a ghost of a smile on his lips as he reaches for my chin, lifting my eyes to meet his.

“Thank you for not giving up on me,” he says.

My eyes widen even further, if possible, as I realize the extent of his words. Whatever his mother did, whatever he’s discovered about himself has changed him entirely. Heseemsdifferent, because he is.I fight the chill threatening to crawl up my spine as my body finally accepts the truth that’s been staring me in the face since he entered the room.

He’s an entirely new kind of entity that I have no idea how to handle.

He lowers his lips to mine and kisses me. His kiss is soft and gentle, as if he’s afraid that I am truly here. My stomach flutters in excitement when I feel his fingers in my hair, holding me close to him as his tongue traces my bottom lip before pushing into my mouth.

His free hand wraps around my waist, pulling me flush against him, and yet he still kisses me so gently. His fingers shift from my hair, tracing the nape of my neck, before settling along my jaw, and I feel the pattern of his thumb stroking my flesh, making me shiver against him.

And suddenly, he pulls away from me. His eyes shift over my face, lingering on my lips, and it’s as if a switch has been flipped. His hands fall away from my face, and he releases a soft breath.

He’s distancing himself.

I slowly reach for his hands, gripping them as I offer him a smile. It’s the only way I know how to comfort him, the only way I can tell him that whatever is coming, whatever is next, I will be by his side. I don’t have the strength to voice it. I have no idea what’s in our future, especially since he seems to be changing right before my eyes. Whatever it is, we’ll face it together.

“Please...stay,” I murmur.

Remus hesitates, but finally lowers himself to lie with me, pulling me close. His body is warm behind me, reminding me he is here as I focus on the snowy display beyond the glass. There was a time I never thought I’d see this place again—when I thought that my life with Remus was over. After everything that has happened until now, I don’t have the strength to be angry with myself for the warmth I feel in his arms.