Total pages in book: 362
Estimated words: 347293 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1736(@200wpm)___ 1389(@250wpm)___ 1158(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 347293 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1736(@200wpm)___ 1389(@250wpm)___ 1158(@300wpm)
I supposed that would explain why it felt like something was here that didn’t belong. “And when it’s not that?”
His gaze met mine. “Other times, when a soul makes it out, it stirs up the rest and becomes an uprising of sorts.”
I didn’t need any foresight to know that an uprising in the Abyss, where souls paid for every evil deed they committed while alive, wasn’t good.
I rose. “I just need to find something to wear.”
Ash grabbed the leather straps of his baldric. “That won’t be necessary.”
I turned my head toward him. Did he really expect me to stand back when he wasn’t? Oh, he knew better than that. “What do you mean it won’t be necessary? And don’t say it’s because I can’t enter the Abyss. I know I can,” I said, having had no knowledge of that before it came out of my mouth.
“Yes, you can.” Draping one of the straps over his shoulder, his fingers moved expertly over the baldric. “But that doesn’t mean you should.”
Crossing my arms, irritation flared to life. “Is it because the Abyss is your thing, and you’re, like, asserting boundaries or something?”
He paused, brows snapping together. “Seriously?”
I lifted a shoulder. “It’s a valid question. I mean, that is your arena.”
He stared at me for a moment, then curtly shook his head. “It has nothing to do with that. Especially since you’re the true Primal of Life, Sera. All the realm is your thing.”
My chest squeezed, and not because that was still overwhelming to hear. And it was. But it was how he looked at me. As if he couldn’t believe I would suggest such a thing. I hadn’t meant to offend him with my question, but perhaps I had. I shifted, uncomfortable. “Then why?”
“Would you like one reason or many?”
My eyes narrowed as my guilt over possibly upsetting him vanished. “Would you like me to give you one reason or many to explain the anger I’m sure I’m projecting all over you?”
I swore I saw him grin as he turned his head to the side. “You’re the Queen.”
“And you’re the King.”
“Yes, but you’re the Queen.” He buckled the harness, looking up. “The true Primal of Life.”
“Whose senses are progressing impressively, according to you,” I snapped. “And it’s not like I just Ascended yesterday, so it isn’t like I need to be resting and eating and feeding every five seconds.”
“That has nothing… Fuck.” Eather pulsed behind his pupils as his gaze swept over me. His lips parted, revealing a hint of fang as his citrus scent increased. “I’m not sure how I’m supposed to reason with you,” he said, his voice smoothening and deepening. “Not when you’re standing before me gloriously naked.”
Sultry heat hit my veins as my body happily responded to his arousal, but every other part of me was so not on board. “Well, you’d better figure it out.” I watched him cross the space between us. “I can help, Ash, and I refuse to sit back and do nothing while you put yourself in danger just because I’m the…whatever. That is not how this is going to play out.”
“I would never expect you to do that. I wouldn’t even want that.” He caught a strand of hair that had fallen against my cheek. “It thrills me that you have my back. You have to know that. But you are the Primal of Life.”
I stared up at him, my frustration rising. “I know. That’s been repeatedly established, Ash.”
“But you haven’t really thought about it.” He clasped the nape of my neck. “You would be entering the Abyss, Sera. Not just the outskirts, where the riders had you, but deep within the Abyss. Every soul there will sense you—will be drawn to you.”
I immediately thought about the Shades gathering at the edges of the Dying Woods.
“That alone will cause things to escalate,” he continued. “But it’s more than that. You’re already worried about not being able to stop yourself from bringing someone back. And remember what I said about my father struggling against his instinct to intervene when near the Pillars and how much it saddened him? Being there could be overwhelming for you.”
I clamped my jaw shut, causing my fangs to scrape the insides of my mouth. “Ouch,” I muttered, touching my lip. “These godsdamn fangs.”
“Careful with them. I like the way they feel.” Ash cupped my cheek, tilting my head back. “I need to go.”
The rational side of me knew he was right. My presence would make things worse, and my already tenuous restraint on my ability to restore life would be tested. Then again, I wasn’t sure I’d be all that inclined to bring those in the Abyss back to life.
And that part of me also knew I was wasting time. I exhaled roughly. “I hate the idea of you going out there and facing who knows what when I can’t be there with you.”