Wren’s hands found my shoulders as he spoke, a steadying weight when the world tilted. “I can keep things from unraveling,” he insisted, “so long as I remain, a little breathing room for you." Then, a swift exit.
“And then what?” I demanded. “You fade into light like the rest of them? Become another voice in the Core’s prison?”
“Maybe not,” he said quietly. “Maybe I can fight it from the inside.”
It was there again, that stillness in his voice, a familiar echo from when he went toward the tempest, perhaps for good. I’d said then I’d go with him always.
I was sincere at that time, truly.
Truly, I did. It’s genuine this time.
“You’re not staying,” I said.
“Vivian.”
“No,” I hissed. “If there’s a price, we pay it together. You got that? Together.”
Light flared, wild, while a voice fro
