Page 35 of Shadows Ascend (Remnant Archives #2)

O ur goodbyes were short.

Emon held on to the master healer longer than the rest of us, knowing that it was likely the last time we would ever see him again. Both had tears in their eyes when they pulled away and when Emon turned to leave he never looked back—but I did.

When Jar's crystal blue eyes met mine for the last time, I felt the horrible images of his death wash away, leaving me with the beautiful sight of him standing in his loving grove of yellow dying kisses floating around him, his smile as bright as the sun peeking through the trees, and then he was gone.

The moment we stepped back through the light we were on the main silver path where the cù-sìth still rested peacefully, snoring loudly under the star-filled twilight, completely unaware that we had been gone.

But there was one obvious new addition to our little party and it was in the form of a demon eyed black bunny sitting smugly upon my daughter's shoulders. While Emon's distaste for the spirit guide was obvious, mine was much more subtle.

I called to a small shadow upon an embankment of a dune and watched as it rose up to trail over my knuckles, swirling around my arm before morphing into a spear that my daughter recognized immediately.

"Is that for me?!" She jumped with excitement, forcing the pookah to struggle and hold its purchase on her shoulder.

I nodded. "Yes. Your shadow spear from The Under." I patted Sadhbh awake. The great death hound yawned and shook her head, licking gently at her cub to wake as well. "I will teach you more on how to use it."

Emon snorted, giving the pookah a disgusted look. "Or at the very least teach her how to stab vermin."

Riella's pookah hissed at my soulmate and I snapped my fingers in its face. "None of that Zaki. Our journey is perilous, our world is at its end, and Riella is our daughter. We will protect her with everything we have and you have not earned our trust to deserve any indignant attitude."

The spirit guide's ear dropped but it still glared with contempt.

Riella spoke softly, petting its drooped ears. "Zaki says he understands."

My brows rows and Emon huffed next to me.

"Good." I handed my daughter her spear before stopping to quickly braid back her hair to the side.

Smiling down at the way she looked like a dark fairy princess warrior dressed in black leather, with her glittering star crown, a shadow spear, an iridescent indigo dragon scale looped around her neck, a yellow flower tucked in her hair, and a spirit guide sitting proudly on her shoulder.

"Why don't you get settled with Blaithin? "

Riella nodded eagerly and then skipped happily over to the cù-sìth pup that was more than excited to meet a new friend in the pookah. Launching itself from Riella’s shoulder it hopped between the prancing feet of the pup, playing along.

Emon pulled me back into his embrace and I allowed his scent of chocolate spice to wash over me as we stood witness of the young innocently playing without a worry in their hearts .

"From the healer's instructions, it will only be a few more hours before we reach Vagari," I said quietly, Sadhbh turned her red eyes on us and huffed in agreement.

Emon grunted, sweeping my hair to the side to drop a kiss on my shoulder. "I am with you. Every fucking step of the way."

I turned in his arms, searching his eyes. "How have you been feeling?"

Emon's gold eyes twinkled down at me. "I just danced with my soulmate in an ancient grove and shifted for the first time on my own…I feel pretty fucking fantastic, little umbra."

I gave him a reproachful look and shoved him away.

"You know what I mean, shifter. Shea said you would start to weaken. You will tell me if you do start to have symptoms. We must be prepared for everything and anything when we enter the Vagari. Don’t hold it back to spare me, I will feel better knowing. "

Raking his hand through his hair, he growled. "I have not felt anything since the first occurrence. I will not put you or our daughter in danger, Remnant."

I shot him a glare. "You know that is not what I mean, Emon."

His stormy golden gaze softened. "Fuck, Remnant. I know but I sometimes wish you would goddess damn trust me. Have a little faith that I know what I am doing."

I stepped towards him, my hand shaking as I raised it to the thundering heart in his chest, a deep sigh of irritation escaping him.

"This isn't about me not trusting you Emon.

This is me not trusting that I deserve you and that at any moment's notice fate will wake up and realize she has made a horrible mistake and take you from me. "

Emon reached up and pressed my hand harder into his chest, the pink sweater soft under my fingertips, and his eyes flashed brightly. "Fate can go fuck herself, little umbra. I am here and I am not going anywhere. I promise. You don’t need to draw first blood for me to spill that from my soul."

I shivered at his dark tone. Leaning heavily into him, I inhaled his scent once more, letting it calm me while the lingering doubt still slithered through my thoughts. I stared at the dancing unicorns stitched on the fabric before I answered. "Okay," I breathed, then pulled away. "Let's move then."

Emon’s hand fell from mine and I could feel his calculating golden gaze on my back. There was a weariness radiating off of him that I recognized from before…before when he kept secrets from me.

My hands fisted at my sides. He was asking me to trust him while keeping me in the dark.

What was I missing?

Watching Riella clamber up on the cù-sìth pup, my lips pressed into a grim line. There was only one logical reason why Emon would do that—our lives were at stake.