Page 1 of Venomous Lies (Greywood Conservatory for the Arcane #2)

ISLA

T he moon was wrong.

I didn’t know why I thought that, but it was true. There was just something about it that felt off.

Or maybe I wanted it to be.

Maybe I was trying to find a reason why these events were coming to pass, something to blame it on other than the fact that this was just my reality.

He would take it better if this was because of fate, a thing so far removed from ourselves that we were left to scream into the universe that we mattered.

All the universe did was remain silent in response. Crueler than any laugh from a poet.

“Ruelle,” a soft voice called from behind me, taking my attention away from the night sky. A foreign, gentle smile curled my lips as I kept my back toward him and reached out to play with a nearby plant.

My time for running had come to an end.

And so had his .

"My love," he continued, his voice so soft it reminded me of a spring breeze amongst the trees.

"You weren't supposed to come,” I felt myself reply.

Felt?

There was a jolt, then a perspective change, like when a camera pans to a new position. Suddenly, I was a spectator, watching the woman turn to face the man behind her.

Her rich brown hair fell in soft waves down her back, a contrast to the stark black of the man's equally long hair that was tied back in a high ponytail. As if something didn’t want my brain to focus, I couldn’t make out the details of their faces.

Both people wore clothes far older than any I had seen before. She wore a loose dress, maybe a nightgown of some sort. The mystery man was in black pants and a cream-colored tunic. My brow furrowed as I tried to figure out what was going on.

Is this some type of dream?

‘Cas?’

"You cannot leave a note such as that and think I won't follow you," he replied. Reaching out to take Ruelle’s hands, he gently held them in his. "What is going on?"

"It is my time." She squeezed his hands, a sad yet accepting expression filling her face even as his twisted in denial. “But your time has not come yet. You need to go.”

"Together, always, Rue,” he replied as he shook his head. "We promised it to each other."

"I have seen more for you, darling. More life for you to live. You have a whole destiny that doesn't include me, and I will not deny you that.”

"What kind of destiny could there be for me without you by my side? I want nothing to do with it,” he said vehemently, his denial and pain so strong that tears filled my eyes.

‘Cas? Where are you?’

Once again, no answer came from my constant companion.

She smiled at him as if she were watching a child, that knowing smile showing just how much he didn’t understand yet. The man dropped her hands at the sight of it and stepped away, his anger flaring. The tension in his shoulders signaled he was trying to control himself.

"Do not stay here. What is coming... I don't want you to remember me that way. Remember me as I am now. Please ,” she pleaded.

"Do not do this.” He squeezed his eyes shut as she closed the distance he’d put between them. "Do not leave me to face the eons of this place alone."

"You will not be alone forever, my love.” She reached up to cup his face, gently urging him to look at her.

She stayed silent until he opened his eyes again.

"You were the love of my life, and I have no regrets about that. I am but a chapter in your story, and that’s okay.

Enjoy the good times and know that there is more ahead of you. I wish you nothing but happiness."

“There—”

“Promise me that you will not hide away. Be happy ."

He didn’t respond, but the light of the moon illuminated the tears quietly sliding down his cheeks. There was so much love and heartache in his eyes as he stared down at the woman before him. In contrast, she was calm in the face of the storm before her.

I shouldn’t be here… But where was here ? I couldn’t tell anymore. Looking around, I tried to see if there was a way to leave, but it was as if the forest gathered closer, keeping me in the vision.

As I turned back to focus on the couple, a brisk breeze blew through the clearing.

With it, the woman’s figure split around the edges.

She began to glow from within, her body crumbling like ashen cinders and scattering like burnt pages tossed about into the wind.

The man stood frozen, and my heart ached as he stared after the scattering of charred ash as it blew away.

His entire life was gone in the blink of an eye.

I wanted him to rage into the darkness of the night. Shatter the silence of the forest by yelling, lashing out... But no, his grief was so much more painful.

It was silent, creeping upward as he remained frozen in place, looking down at the hands that had last held the woman.

Tears slid down my cheeks, and part of me wanted to reach out to him.

But what could I do or say that would help him? Nothing would make the grief less or go away. I'd never understand... I didn't want to.

This was just a dream or vision… In reality, there was no one to comfort.

That reasoning felt hollow, though, as if I knew on some level that this was more than that.

Awareness started returning to me, the edges of the forest becoming lighter and blurry. I strained against the wakefulness that was pulling me at me. Even if it wasn’t real, I could not leave this man alone in his pain.

The harder I fought, the stronger the tugging sensation became. I couldn’t stay here forever.

Just as the world started to shift again, the man moved. Golden eyes pierced through his blurred features, turning to where I was standing.

He couldn’t see me though. This was a dream.

But then his eyes widened... A new emotion encroached on his pain.

Shock.

Then the forest disappeared.