Page 68 of Realm Walker's Awakening

I took in a deep breath, mentally preparing myself to try something I wasn’t sure would work. Brushing another kiss to his forehead, I tucked stray pieces of hair behind his ear. He shuddered beneath my touch, sleepily humming in contentment.

Closing my eyes, I rested my forehead against his as I cradled the back of his head and focused on healing him. Just like I healed myself as Death and the voices told me, I imagined the serum in his system disintegrating until nothing was left. Next, I pictured the infection oozing out of him and the bruise healing until no mark was left on him.

Rune’s fingers squeezed on me in a grip that might bruise. But I didn’t care. I never minded having his marks on me.

“Holy shit,” Harper whispered.

The energy around us thickened, giving off the impression everyone was holding their breath as I healed Rune.

My heart hammered against my chest, and my head became fuzzy. I sagged against my soulmate. He threaded his fingers through my hair as he took in a deep breath.

“Elskan mín,” he murmured, his voice full of pride. “My beautiful, powerful, loving mate. Gods, Isa.”

I breathed harder, exhaustion creeping up on me. It felt like I ran for hours with the way my head grew lighter and my body heavier.

But Rune was healed. He had to be because of the way his voice held more strength and wasn’t slurred from fighting sleep. I leaned away from him, squinting at his shadowed neck to see if he really was okay and if I somehow fixed him.

There was no mark on his skin. No pus weeping from the area he’d been shot.

I tiredly smiled, my gaze meeting his. “It worked.”

His eyes danced with pride, as he slowly curved his full lips into a smile. “Yes,elskan mín.” Tucking some of my hair behind my ear, he gently pulled me back into him. He brushed chaste kisses onto my mouth. “You amaze me.”

I huffed a laugh and skimmed my palm over his neck where the bruise had been.

It really worked. I really healed him.

He kissed me again before he leaned away with a sigh. “You need to eat something.”

“I’ve got it,” Harper said. She shuffled around and dug into my pack, grabbing a couple of meat sticks and handing them to me. I took one from her and let her have the rest. She needed to eat too.

We ate in silence, and for whatever reason, it was heavy. There was something about it that put me on edge. Maybe it was because something needed to be said, yet no one wanted to start the conversation.

Maybe I was reading way too much into it and it wasn’t that deep.

A few meat sticks and half a waterskin later, we left from under the bride. It was still foggy and shadowed by the dense covering of the trees. I glanced around the area, searching for any sign someone was watching us.

Nothing.

I swallowed hard and turned to Rune as he observed our surroundings. The confused look on his face told me he didn’t recognize where we were and had no memory of us coming here.

He really had to have been out of it when we stopped here for him to rest.

“Are we leaving?” I asked him.

And where were the other two? Were we meeting up with them?

Rune’s gaze came to me, his eyes softening like he knew what was going through my mind. He took a step toward me and brought me into him.

“Yes, beauty.”

I touched his chest as I leaned my head back to have a better look at his face.

“What did you mean by you didn’t want to risk it with me?”

Confusion clouded his stare for a moment, then wiped away when he realized what I meant.

“Flashing is tricky. The serum they shot me with could have done a number of things to not only me but everyone else who tried to flash with it in my system. It’s made specifically for hindering from escaping.”