She closed her eyes and swayed on the spot.
She was alone.
“It’s not so bad,” she whispered. “After all, I’ve always been alone.”
Strangely, with that revelation came calm. The voices in her head subsided. Her heart no longer felt like it was crumbling to ash, the way a shadowbeast did when it died. She didn’t feel afraid—she didn’t feel anything.
A smile brushed the corners of her cracked lips and her hand tightened around the sword’s grubby hilt.
“It ends now,” she announced, finding strength in her voice once more. As she took another step closer to the Rift, she added softly, “I’ll avenge you, Thorion.”
Roxanne thought she was about to faint. The battle had sapped her of strength and the heat was unbearable. Every breath dried her throat and burned her lungs. She was barely able
