Page 24 of The Raven

The In-Between

The Raven

In an instant, every single ounce of pain drained from my body like a dam had just been opened. In its place, a calming warmth descended.

Rushing over to Mason, I fell to my knees by his side.

“Mason!” I yanked his shirt up, covering the wound with my hand.

His head fell to the side, and through one swollen eye, he met my worried gaze. A small, affectionate smile tugged on his split lips.

“You did it, Blackbird,” he whispered as if it had taken him a whole lot of effort to speak.

I didn’t reply; my attention focused on the amount of blood flowing from his body.

“You’re going to be okay, Mase. I’ve got you,” I said, placing my other hand over my now blood-soaked one and not noticing him reaching out to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear.

“Raven, look at me.”

Huge tears rolled down my cheeks as I lifted my head, my bottom lip quivering at seeing the color draining from his face.

“It’s okay, Blackbird. Let me go…” he trailed off as blood bubbled from his mouth. Removing my hands from the wound, I wiped the blood away, stopping only when he snagged my hand in his. “Let me go. I don’t…want to…live this life without you.”

Wracking sobs consumed my body, and I couldn’t stop myself from leaning over him to kiss his lips.

“No, Mase. You have to stay,” I whispered through tears. “I’ve seen your future. You don’t die here. You can’t. You’re going to go on and have children and a wife. You’re going to be happy again. Please. Stay for me.”

I shifted to rest my head against his chest, listening to his heart, the beat weak and irregular.

He didn’t reply, instead lacing his fingers through my hair. I closed my eyes and began an internal mantra.

Mason can’t die.

Mason can’t die.

Mason can’t die.

As I said the words in my head, something strange happened. His heartbeat started thumping a little harder, a little steadier. But the darkness that had shrouded my vision earlier returned, light at first, but growing darker every time I repeated the words silently in my mind.

Energy drained from my body, and I could feel my warmth leaving me and flowing into Mason in great waves, the same way his warmth had flowed into me when I needed him to remove my pain. I continued repeating it, focusing on his pulse getting stronger, and allowing myself to relax into the darkness.

Somehow, I knew Mason was going to be okay. He would live.

That was enough for me to let go.

My eyes flew open, my lungs burning as I gulped in air. Disoriented, I managed to get to my feet as panic gripped me. There was only one thought in my mind.

“Mason! Mason, where are you?” I screamed, blinking to take in my surroundings.

A sinking feeling cascaded through me like a rock plummeting to the deepest depths of the ocean when realization hit.

I was back in the in-between.

“Welcome back,” a familiar voice said.

I spun, coming face-to-face with Oz.

“Mason, is he-” I couldn’t bring myself to finish the question, tears stabbing my eyes.

“He’s alive,” Oz replied in his neutral tone. “You saved him.”

Relief slammed into me like a sledgehammer, a myriad of emotions bubbling under my skin. The weight of that knowledge, coupled with the events of the last week, became too much.

My knees collapsed, and I hit the ground with a resounding thud. The dam broke, and my whole body shook from powerful gut-wrenching sobs.

It was over.

The Vipers were dead.

Mason was alive; he’d go on to live his life.

So why didn’t I feel at peace?

Perhaps I’d assumed wrong. I suppose I hadn’t given much thought to what came after, maybe I’d just assumed that once the last Viper was dead, I’d see a beam of bright light that would carry me away to a place where I’d spend the rest of eternity.

But there was no light. The only thing surrounding me was the derelict train station, overgrown with weeds, and Oz.

I didn’t know how long I sobbed for, but Oz waited patiently, a comforting hand on my shoulder as I purged all the hurt, the pain, and the heartbreak from inside me.

“What happens now?” I asked, lifting my sorrowful eyes to meet his kind ones.

“There’s someone here to see you.”

With furrowed brows, I twisted in the direction Oz had nodded, leaping to my feet and sprinting to the end of the train station when my gaze landed on someone who’d just appeared.

“Eric!” I cried, launching myself into his arms, my legs circling his waist, and fresh tears brewing.

The heart I hadn’t felt beating in so long thudded against my chest as he wrapped his arms around me and spun us.

“Baby, I missed you,” he said, his palm stroking down the length of my hair. “God, I missed you so fucking much.”

A wrecking ball of guilt crashed into me, destroying my short-lived moment of happiness.

I wriggled out of his grasp, my feet landing on the ground, but Eric kept his hands on my hips. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

I tore my gaze away, unable to look at him because of the immense shame coursing through me. The worst part was, I didn’t regret being with Mason. It had felt so right.

“Eric, I’m sorry. I’m so damn sorry,” I whispered.

He placed two fingers under my chin and gently lifted my head to make me look at him, an affectionate, warm smile playing on his lips. “Baby, you have nothing to be sorry for. Mason was there when you needed him.”

My eyes widened, words getting stuck in my throat. He knew I’d had sex with Mason? Not just had sex with him, but fell even deeper in love with him than ever before. How could he be okay with that? Why was he not mad?

“I’m not mad, Raven,” he said, answering my unspoken thoughts.

He released my chin but laced his fingers through my hair, almost as if he couldn’t help but touch me in some way.

“Baby, I always knew how you and Mason felt about each other. You two were inevitable. I know you loved me, but you loved him too, and I could never find it in me to be jealous, because the love you and he share is so fucking special. A once-in-a-lifetime love that deep down, I always knew I wouldn’t have with you.

” A lone tear slid down my cheek, and Eric carefully brushed it away.

“It wasn’t our time, Raven. Maybe in another lifetime, I’ll get to be the boy who moves in next door and steals your heart and soul.

But for this life, the here and now, you’ll always belong to Mason, and he’ll always belong to you. ”

More tears followed as I gaped back at Eric. Tears for him. Tears for me. Tears for a love that would never be.

No part of me could deny his words. If I were honest, I’d always known in my heart that I belonged to Mason.

“You need to know that I did love you, Eric. I still do,” I managed to say without breaking into sobs. I needed him to know that the love I held for him was never a lie.

His smile widened, and he moved a hand to rest against my heart. “I never doubted your love for one minute, baby. I always said your heart was big enough to love us both.”

A sad smile tugged at my lips. Maybe in another lifetime, I’d get to keep both Eric and Mason, and the Vipers wouldn’t have an opportunity to rip us apart.

For several long seconds, Eric and I stared at each other, a million unspoken words passing between us, until a throat cleared from beside us.

Oz placed his hand on Eric’s arm. “It’s time.”

Regret flashed over Eric’s face as he nodded once. I looked between the two of them, unsure as to what was going to happen. When Oz stepped away, Eric cupped my face, his warm palms against my damp cheeks.

“I’ll never forget you, Raven. You made every second of my life worth living for.” Before I could reply, he pressed his lips against mine.

Why did it feel like he was saying goodbye?

I closed my eyes to stop more tears from falling. All too soon, Eric pulled away, but when I opened my eyes again, the space in front of me was vacant. I turned, looking for him, but knowing I wouldn’t find him.

Eric was gone.

“What happens now?” I asked, finding Oz watching me intently.

“It’s time,” he repeated.

“Time for what?”

Oz took a step toward me, reaching out to place his hand on my arm like he’d done to Eric. “I told you before, Raven. I would show you the truth, and then you will have a choice to make. A choice whether you go back or move forward.”

I shook my head, confusion rushing through me. “You’re talking in riddles again, Oz. I went back. The Vipers are dead.”

His head tilted to the side. “A soul can’t rest until it resolves its unfinished business,” he replied softly. “Your soul isn’t at peace, and neither is his because they were torn apart.”

My jaw dropped as the truth slammed into me.

It was never about the Vipers.

“Now it’s time for you to make your choice, Raven. Do you move forward or will you go back?”