[WARNING! Unedited! Don't buy!]
He didn't answer, only let out a shuddering breath. She could feel the faint tremors of life in him—the heartbeat she had memorized, faint but steady beneath her palm. It was enough to give her a shred of hope, a fragile thread she could cling to.
She lifted him once more, struggling to her feet despite the fire in her arms and the numbness in her legs. The road ahead was endless, filled with danger and ruin, but she would carry him through it. She would face Emerald, Salister, the vampires, and whatever horrors awaited. She would face every scream, every loss, every shadow, if it meant keeping him alive.
And even if he never looked at her the same way again, even if his trust was broken beyond repair, she would endure. Because losing him now would mean losing herself. And Selis would rather walk through hell itself than let that happen.
