Sky Stitcher, page 26
She wanted me to…send her to the stars? To kill her? My lips parted in some form of a grimace, overwhelmed by the twisted, indefinable feeling inside me. “You don’t mean that. Let me get you out of here. Please. Zara needs you.”
“Don’t you understand? I told you what you must do. Do it right, and you will accomplish two tasks...end my suffering and use it to set yourself on the path you must follow,” she rasped, her voice crackling against the strain of her words, yet still managing unwavering conviction. “But do you have the strength to do it? You know it is Zara’s time, not mine. Let it be her time.”
Her head fell back, and she reached a bony hand toward me. I accepted, holding the papery, brittle thing in mine, afraid one slight twitch of my grip might shatter her.
She pulled me closer with unexpected strength, her neck muscles cording as she lifted her head to whisper in my ear. “Break the bond, Rue. Let Zara become who she was always meant to be. Let her go.”
I hesitated, caught in ambivalence, distressed by the impossible divide between what I wanted and what Zara needed. I needed to leave her…and not just leave her. I had to betray her. On purpose. With our bond broken, Zara would be able to finish this. She would be able to close the skies, free her Sisters, and set her realm right again. But did that make any of this…right?
My mouth curdled with disgust, already hating myself for the act I could never conceive of committing under ordinary circumstances. I’d need to destroy every good thread of the bond between us to unbind my power from hers, allowing her to be unaltered and uncorrupted by the powers that flowed through me from Prisha. I had to, so she could become what she was always destined to be. Because she was important. Because the stars favored her.
And so did I.
My heart cracked. How could I choose this for her against her knowledge? How could I look her in the eyes and lie to her and hurt her, even if from a place of love? The grief shattered my heart into shards that sliced through my lungs until they could hold no more air. Would the betrayal break her like it had already broken me? Would she try to stop me if she knew what I intended?
I knew the answer without a sliver of doubt. Zara wanted to save everyone, often to her own detriment. It was her best quality, and perhaps her biggest weakness. To care so much about others that she made a habit of putting their needs and desires and expectations first, silencing her own. But perhaps the biggest gift I could give to her was to not let her bear the burden of saving me, too…of putting me before herself. I could sacrifice myself. I could release the best thing that had ever happened to me and return myself to a certain death at Prisha’s hands. I could do that if it meant giving her the best chance to save herself and her people. I could free her from the burden of caring for me so she could do what she had always been meant to do, even if it killed me. In every way.
Because I knew that if even one fleck of her soul still cared for me, she would move heaven and earth to save me, just as I would do for her.
Just as I must do for her now.
I reached for the bone dagger I’d taken from that ill-fated Rider, wrapping my fingers around it while guilt wrapped around my neck like a noose. I knew she had the strength to do it on her own. I was only sorry she had to.
My eyes fell on the Eldress, whose ribs shuddered with each ragged, painful breath. She had asked me to end her suffering and betray Zara. She had asked me to be a monster.
And so I must be the monster I was born to be.
The inescapable role fate had assigned.
My eyelids pressed together, squeezing a single tear between my lashes. Zara deserves so much better.
The dagger plunged into the Eldress’s heart, and she expired with one long, raspy exhale. I leaned my forehead against the hilt, choking on the sob expanding in my throat, unsettled by the rush of anguish that pricked tears in my eyes.
I don’t know how long I remained in that position, shattering from the inside out, crying over the hilt that jutted from Ahma’s bleeding chest.
After a long while, after no goodness and no happiness remained inside of me, I stood, bracing myself for the next agonizing moments that awaited me beyond this room. Preparing the worst possible things I could say to break Zara to free her from her monster.
It was so easy to know the most damaging things to say to her. So easy to find the words that would wound her most. So easy to play the role fate had chosen for me.
But breaking her would be the hardest thing I’d face in my life.
“You’ll have to carry her to earth and sky so she can join the stars,” one of the Daughters whispered, breaking the silence.
I sniffed and wiped the cuff of my sleeve against the corner of my eye, then scooped the limp, broken body into my arms, and began to walk toward the door. I paused in midstep, speaking to Zara’s Sisters behind me. “The door is unlocked. Just…make sure that someone is left on Zara’s side at the end. She shouldn’t have to face this alone. She deserves to not be alone.”
And I slipped from the room before I could disintegrate beneath the agony clawing at my heart.
“What are you doing with my Stitcher?” I froze at the sound of his frosty tone, not because I didn’t expect to hear it—I’d deliberately put myself in a position to run into the prince—but because I had to believably play my part. If being the monster would save Zara, I would go all in. I drew in a deep, steadying breath and turned to face the real monster, lifting the corner of my mouth into my most devious smirk.
Prince Tiralish’s eyes darted from my face to the Eldress to the dagger still protruding from her chest, and his mouth gaped wide. The liar who’d paraded as Rali. Everything about him darkened. His shoulders widened, and his teeth bared in a snarl, reminding me of a mutt raising its hackles at an intruder.
“How dare you kill my Stitcher?” he demanded, his voice a low rumble of impending rage. “Do you know what you’ve done? Guards!” he shouted over his shoulder. “Guards!” His voice echoed through the empty passage, and he narrowed his eyes on mine, stalking toward me with murderous intent. “You will die for this. You will be sentenced to death! Guards!” The cords in his neck strained as he yelled, popping out like two marble columns I’d love to crumble. Perhaps Zara would do me that honor.
“I wouldn’t do that,” I interjected before he could resume his red-faced hollering. “Not if you want the real Stitcher.”
It was his turn to freeze. “What do you know about the real Stitcher? What have you done?”
My smile widened. “I put her somewhere for safekeeping.” Tilting my head, I let malice wash over my expression. “But I can bring you to her. For a price.”
Delight sparked in his murderous gaze. “It is her, isn’t it? I knew it.” He dropped his attention to the floor and began to pace, muttering to himself. “But there is still something unusual about her. Some secret she isn’t sharing. She’s not a very good Stitcher, is she? Broken, or something. Maybe Prisha is the better choice, after all…”
Fury expanded inside me, threatening to erupt from its shell in an earth-shattering explosion. It took every measure of self-control to fold the anger beneath my carefully crafted act. Play the part, Rue. Play it well. “Zara will never be able to stitch the skies. I made sure of that. Prisha sent me to corrupt her magic.”
The prince snapped his head toward me, regarding me in a whole new light. “What?” He shook his head, worry beginning to mar his expression. “Never? You made it so she can’t stitch? Venom and hell. Then she needs to die. If she isn’t strong enough to fend off Prisha, then my hands are tied.”
Did he really change sides so easily? Did he have no loyalty…no morals? “If you expect me to give her to you, it will be on my terms. She comes with a price.”
He frowned with the air of an insolent child. “What price?”
“She lives. You will not kill her. You will not harm her. Do what you want with me, but you will not hurt her.”
His lips pursed, holding back whatever he truly wished to say, but he composed himself with great effort and a nod. I wondered if he could even be trusted with such a bargain, but it was the only leverage I had.
“Do we have a deal then?” I adjusted my hold on the Eldress, tossing her irreverently over my shoulder so she flopped like a sack of flour, then outstretched my right hand toward Tiralish. I’m sorry, Ahma…have to play the part.
He looked at my hand with disdain, but ultimately accepted the gesture, his shake a shade too aggressive. “Deal. Bring me to her.”
Chapter 26
Broken
I folded myself into the darkness and paced the narrow alley to mark the time. Ten passes. Twenty. Still no Rue.
With every fretful step, the cloud of dread shrouding my heart darkened, and its rhythm thrummed with increasing panic against my ribs. I kept my eyes glued to the sky, waiting.
The city bells clamored in warning, then came the hellish battle cries of Prisha’s army. Their screeches mingled amid the melody to brew a jarring racket of sounds—wails that frayed my nerves, clanging that rattled my soul, and shrieks that landed like fragmented debris in my heart. I imagined the guards’ shock as they caught the first glimpse of the massive black swarm cresting the highest dunes in the distance. The smell of malice filled the air and painted a mood of despair that weighed heavy on my heart, its scent metallic like some mixture of blood and rancid sweat, touched by the lingering presence of ash. It crept through my nostrils, burning its way through my airway, settling into my lungs to make every breath a clipped struggle. My pulse overran my veins, beating wildly.
Where is Rue? Please hurry. Please hurry and bring Ahma. I nervously twisted the hem of my skirt between my fingers. Let Ahma help us. I can’t do this alone.
The dark spillage from Prisha’s rifts rained down beyond the city walls in tune with the low rumble of thunder. My breath jumped in short spurts, beginning to hyperventilate. What was I supposed to do? I could not stitch the skies…I could not fight them on my own.
Rue, hurry. I knew he wasn’t too far…I could feel the subtle stretch of the bond between us, the beginning aches of the tether pulling gently at my heart. I tugged on the cord, willing him to understand the rush of my panic. No response.
I looked beyond the rooftops, squinting at the top of the city walls, trying to make sense of the flurry of activity above…the panicked shouts, the flares of beacons, and pounding boots. At least they were preparing to fight. They wouldn’t be ambushed blindly. I scanned the dark alley and the skies, hoping for a glimpse of Rue’s shadow or his wings stretched wide across the stars, but found only a sky tortured by Prisha’s marks. If Rue did not hurry…if the monsters killed the guards and breached the city…how could I stand by and do nothing? I couldn’t.
But Rue said he wouldn’t let me fight alone. He’ll be here. Any minute. He’ll bring Ahma. Ahma will know what to do.
Shouts of soldiers above barked orders before arrows unleashed into the darkness beyond the wall. How close had the black smudge moved in the minutes that passed since Rue’s departure? Had Prisha’s creatures already come within the range of the archers? I inhaled sharply, panic clawing at my throat. We didn’t have much longer.
My limbs trembled until my entire frame felt uselessly out of place, functionless and detached from the jumbled panic of my mind. What would happen if Rue did not come back? If he were injured? Fear jolted like a hot flame through my body, sparking my heart to double its galloping pace. What if he doesn’t return soon enough, and I do something foolish that gets others injured? What if…what if they kill me? I’d never shied away from a fight before, but now, whether I wanted it or not, my role was bigger. Whose magic would repel Prisha from this realm if I died? I couldn’t risk leaving them unprotected without a Stitcher…but who else had the power to truly fight and protect? It was my responsibility. My responsibility to try.
Do something, Zara. Do something now.
I jumped, startled by the sudden swoop of a shadow in my peripheral. Rue knelt before me, his black wings shrouding him like a storm cloud, and when he lifted his gaze to find me, the deadness there stole the air from my lungs. What had happened? Was he hurt? My heart twisted with concern, and I rushed toward him. “Rue!” I threw my arms around him, but his whole body stiffened. He peeled my arms away, his hands sticky and…red. Covered in red. Why are they red?
I stepped back, confused. Only then did I notice he’d come alone. “Where is she? Did you find her?”
“Yes.” He widened his stance, pulling himself to full height so when he looked at me, it was with an air of disdain cast down the length of his nose. Behind him, the sky crackled ominously, and Prisha’s army screeched beyond the walls, a matching backdrop to his marked change in attitude.
“And?” Why are you being so weird?
He jutted his chin upward, and his mouth quirked into a defiant smile. “I killed her.”
The ground swallowed me. Or I collapsed. Or time ceased. The world spun off-kilter, and my blood pumped so quickly through my body that it drowned me and my thoughts in a red wave of ire.
“You what?” I gasped, clutching the space between my breasts, pressing against my sternum as though I could contain the splitting fissures in my heart with the pressure of my own fist. Cries beyond the wall shattered my eardrums.
“You’re surprised?” He laughed, darkness staining his mirth. “You knew I was Prisha’s monster. Are you really surprised I killed your precious Eldress?”
I shook my head, my lips stammering to force out some semblance of coherent thought. He…he’d been Prisha’s monster, but…this was all wrong. This wasn’t the plan. This was not Rue. Something was off. Someone was forcing his hand…he…he cared for me. But the cold expression on his face lacked any trace of the Rue I’d fallen for. This was somebody different. Someone I didn’t recognize.
Ice traveled through my veins, numbing me into a state of paralysis as my heart withered, breaking into needle-sharp fragments that sliced through every feeling of hope and trust that had taken root within my core.
He shifted uncomfortably, but the disinterested expression on his face never wavered. “I did bring you someone, however. I didn’t come empty-handed.” He jerked his head toward the shadows, and Rali—no, Prince Tiralish—stepped forward with triumph on his face, lending the glow of confidence to each stalking step he took in my direction.
“Hello, Zara.”
My attention snapped back to Rue, my mouth parting in shock. Rue’s eyes showed the slightest flicker of emotion before cooling to a deadened stone. “Rue? How could you?” I whispered. My insides melted into hot iron, burning and disintegrating me with agonizing pain. “I trusted you.”
He shrugged, apathy oozing from his posture. “The prince offered me a deal I couldn’t refuse.”
“You…bargained with him?” My vocal cords failed miserably to give resonance to the ghosts of my words.
“You know I appreciate a good deal.”
No. Everything I thought I knew about Rue shattered, pulverizing the belief that I had ever been important to him.
“You want me to believe you’ve chosen some deal over me? You…you expect me to believe you never cared about me?” My voice cracked.
He hesitated, and for a moment, I thought I glimpsed the truth in his eyes, but it was gone just as quickly. Shielded by his hard, cold stare. He leaned closer to me, indifference radiating palpably from his frame, wedging its way into my heart like a lance. “Never.”
“I thought—I thought…” I stammered, stepping backward.
He laughed a singular, venomous chuckle of disregard and wrapped his hand around the bond between us to bring it to view. It flickered, sputtering like a candle fighting to stay aflame beneath the rain. “You think it was random? Did you really think this was an accident?”
The tether pulled on my heart, the pain of his words an excruciating slice. “What do you mean?”
“I latched myself to you the moment Prisha knew you were important. The very first chance I got. It has always…always been about Prisha…I am hers. Her magic flows through me, and now, it corrupts yours through this bond. You know why you can’t stitch? Because I ruined you.” He smirked. “You were so broken…so eager to accept someone who pretended to piece together your broken shards.”
No. Raw, sharp claws of agony raked through my heart, unable to make sense of the shift in Rue’s demeanor, the lack of life in his eyes so black and devoid of any favor toward me. Had I misread him so horribly? Had I been so desperate for someone to tell me I wasn’t broken—that I was special—that I let this monster work his way into my heart to betray everything I thought I knew? That I let him become important to me so he could blind me just to use me for his plans?
“You made it so easy.” He grinned dangerously, his gaze lazily appraising my frame in the same approach he’d used at our first meeting. “The stars do favor you, you know, even when you’re angry. It’s just a mystery why they’d pick someone like you.” His voice dropped to a low growl, speaking the last word like it was a distasteful curse on his tongue.
Everything shattered. Tears flushed from my eyes, racing down my cheeks, coating my lips and drowning me with immeasurable sadness. “I hope they swallow you whole and banish you from this world forever,” I seethed, my voice boiling with rage as it slipped through my clenched teeth. And I meant it. I meant every damn word.
The bond flared vividly to life, glowing with the luminous hue of molten metal before bursting into a roaring rush of flame. Fire seared through the tether, burning it away until all that remained was the ash drifting between us. I gasped for air at the same time as Rue, but my lungs felt empty and lacking, no matter how many panicked breaths I drew to refill them.
Our bond had been severed.
“Kill him, Zara! End him. End this,” the prince commanded, his voice a far away, distant memory, the firm grip of his arm around my bicep hardly noticeable compared to the agony decomposing my heart.
