Delta [Epsilon #2]

Chapter Twenty-Four

Raina

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I'd never run so fast up a stairwell. With the way its winds and spirals, it was a miracle I didn't trip.

I passed the occasional shocked Northerner on the way. I didn't care about the disgruntled mutterings or glares they left in my wake. I had to get to Kyra's room.

Just like in my old court, word travelled fast. Apparently, she'd been duelling the Delta when her eyes had glowed blue. She'd stilled in an instant, as though possessed, her eyes leaking with tears as Azriel showed her something.

I forced my bile down. I had an idea of what said something was, but I wasn't sure I was ready to face the truth yet.

Once I faced her room, I didn't take the liberty to knock. I barged right in, a chill slithering down my spine. The room was cold, as though it were a few degrees colder than the rest of the world. The curtains were drawn, and not a thread of light filtered in. Goosebumps prickled my skin as I whipped around, towards the bed pushed up against the back.

My breath caught. 

She looked dead. Her ghost-white face seemed almost grey in the lack of light, dark circles ringing her eyes. Her mouth was pulled into a grim line, as though reality continued to haunt her even in her dreams.

Azure lifted her head to stare at me. Seated in a chair beside Kyra, I could almost pick out their similarities -- the grey-pale skin, the bags under their eyes, the grim expressions. If I hadn't known any better, I may have assumed Azure had suffered through as much as she had.

I tried to ignore Azure's hand on Kyra's as I approached. 

"What happened?" My voice was shaky, but I wasn't ashamed. Putting on a strong front was the last on my mind. It seemed Azure felt the same, for she didn't bother to blink back the tears that glossed her eyes. I noted how they were oyster-red, and I wondered how long she'd been crying before my arrival. 

"I don't know," she said, her voice achingly hoarse. She glanced towards Kyra's catatonic form, squeezing her hand unsteadily. "She... Azriel showed her a vision. Something bad. I know, because the shock got so bad, she stopped breathing. She passed out and hasn't woken since." She turned to me. "It's been three hours. I'm starting to worry, Raina. I really am. But there's nothing I can do. My magic can't heal a wounded soul."

I swallowed, trying to push back the sting of guilt. How had I only heard of this now? I mean, three hours? What had I even been doing?

Without thinking, I crossed the room and came to Kyra's side. Up close, with the shadows pooling on her face, I could see her jutting cheekbones and sallow cheeks. Since when had she gotten so thin?

My body began to tremble. How much more would Kyra have to suffer? The Northern Court was supposed to be our refuge, our safety from Azriel, and yet he was still able to reach her. Even here.

"Hey," Azure began, placing a gentle hand on my arm. I stilled under the touch, staring. "I know you're worried. I am, too. My God, I am. But we can't show that around her. Her world is falling apart, and we're the supports. We have to put on strong fronts, even when we're feeling anything but. For her."

I nodded, still staring at the place her hand touched. When she took it away, my skin felt as though it were burning. 

We sat in silence for a moment, taking in the misery around us. We'd been so concerned with the threats inside the walls, we'd forgotten entirely about the threats outside them. The bigger threats, the ones that had forced us here in the first place. Maybe we'd though that, if we ignored them, they'd ignore us, too.