25. Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

After doing exactly what she'd planned—fatty foods, candy, and a gigantic bucket of popcorn accompanied by a romantic movie—Eden had leaned into him and promptly fallen asleep.

Nero hadn't wanted to move. Everything about this night had been perfect, and he hadn't wanted it to end. The reality that faced him at dawn was disastrous.

He'd continuously warded off repeated requests from his lieutenants. Each of them had sent him telepathic pings seeking his presence. They'd all experienced his despair when Luna had informed him of Eden's diagnosis, and, to his own discredit, he hadn't shielded them from it.

It'd been a mistake that he'd have to see to now.

After ensuring his mate was comfortable, he'd placed a faint trace on her mind. It would alert him if she woke up or was in distress.

While Eden had made her peace with her inevitable death, Nero had not. He wasn't willing to take any chances. He had waited eleven centuries for her, yearning with every cell of his being for her presence. The years after Key's first vision of Eden had been long and arduous. The only thought that brought him comfort was that once they'd met, they would share an eternity of happiness. Instead, he was already losing her. Instead of centuries, they would have days.

His only priority now was identifying how to keep Eden alive.

Casting one more pining glance at the woman who was his entire world, he teleported to Zia's home. He knew all of his lieutenants would be there, waiting to assist him. Luna wouldn't have kept Eden's condition a secret.

As soon as his feet hit solid ground, the group of Raeths were on their feet, their anxiety and grief a barrage against his gifts. No one spoke, but the intensity of their stares was as sharp as a blade.

Zia remained still as she observed him, poised to jump into action at the smallest sign. Luna held court with Nolan and Zayn, all three of them struggling to maintain their composure. Only Key was set apart, her face a mask of sorrow.

"Key."

The single word was enough to make her eyes mist, her petite frame shrinking as though he'd struck her. "Sovereign."

"Tell me what you've seen."

Key's tension rolled off her in waves. "Sovereign, I've never seen other visions of Eden except the four I've shared with you."

His chest tightened, realizing what it meant: there had never been confirmation of a future extending beyond their first couple of days together.

"I've experienced all of them, Key." Though his tone sounded calm, Nero was anything but. "Is there no hope?"

"I don't know. I can't tell—" She dragged in a ragged gasp, blinking rapidly as jagged peaks of white lightning flared in her eyes. "I've tried to see other futures involving her, sovereign."

"And?"

"Nothing!" Key fisted a hand in her sleek white-blonde hair. "I can't see anything relating to Eden after tomorrow!"

"Try harder."

Zia's surprised breath didn't matter to Nero, even with his friend's disquiet beating through his gift. He knew he was being unreasonable. He didn't care.

Luna stepped forward. "Sovereign, we both know that isn't fair. Key's visions don't work like that; you know this."

Nero's panther looked through his eyes. "I never asked if it was fair, Luna. I asked her to try harder."

"But, sovereign, Key—"

"Is the most gifted oracle in recorded history!" Nero hissed, his anger warping his words. "Telling me that Key can't foresee whether my mate lives or dies is a farce!"

His rage swung back on Key. "For eleven centuries, you've had visions of my mate. Shared them with me. Now you're unsure if she'll live out the week?!"

The deep, feral growl of his panther rolled in his throat.

Key's face was wet with tears, her poised facade long vanished. "Sovereign, I've never wished you anything but happiness with Eden."

"But?"

Squaring her shoulders, she locked gazes with him. "Eden's transition is blocked from me. I can't see its outcome or consequences, no matter how much power I force into scrying."

Every instinct within him roared, the despair that mounted quickly swarming any sense of reason or composure. His sanity hung by a thin thread.

Key's excuses meant little to his panther. The beast curled his lip, hissing a wild warning as he stalked the foreseer through Nero's eyes. The primal side of his spirit longed for vengeance against the fates that'd cursed his mate.

Nero recognized the spiral of wrath for what it was. Closing his eyes, he let loose the breath that soured in his lungs. Then, he sought out the single light in his life that could bring him back from the darkness: Eden.

She slept, blissfully unaware of his turmoil behind his shield. The instant his soul brushed against hers, it calmed him. His eyes opened to find all five of his lieutenants watchful but wary.

"Am I to believe she'll succumb to her death when her wolf attempts to break free?"

"Nothing is certain," Key whispered, "but one thing will always remain true, whether I see it or not. If she dies, she'll drag you to the grave along with her."

***

Raeths, by merit of their immortal nature, rarely needed more than four hours of sleep on any given night. Nero typically slept for two hours, and tonight, his insomnia had returned. As his anxiety mounted, he sifted through thousands of possibilities, weighing the merit of each while he paced in the darkness of his own home.

Resolved to one course of action, he reached out telepathically to Nina to ask for a face-to-face meeting. The woman responded almost instantly, and Aidan, by his request, was already there.

He manifested into the warmth of Nina's den. The werewolf alpha was chatting absently with Zeke, Nina's mate and co-sovereign.

"Nina will be here shortly. She's putting the twins to bed." Zeke frowned. "Nero, are you alright?"

Nero gave a single, tragic laugh. "No. The last few days have been simultaneously the best and the worst of my life. I'm here to ask for a favor."

"Anything, Nero," Aidan said. "We'll wait for Nina, and then we can talk about what you need."

Agitated, Nero shifted on his feet, loathing that he was away from his mate while she slept. If there were only days left of their lives, he wanted to spend every waking minute by her side. He had to ensure he'd done all he could first, that he'd fought for any possible solution.

Nina entered several minutes later. Her concerned smile had his chest tightening. "Nero, what's wrong?"

"Eden collapsed this morning," came the emotionless statement that had Aidan leaping to his feet. "Hemorrhagic stroke. She concealed a cancer diagnosis from me."

Aidan cursed vehemently, his eyes transforming to a tangerine yellow. Guilt and sorrow from the other man sharpened against Nero's abilities, making it clear that the alpha had already known about Eden's terminal condition. Fisting his hands in his hair, Aidan bowed his head.

He continued as if there had been no interruptions, and his friends weren't staring at him in shock. "Glioblastoma. Malignant brain tumors. Even if she hadn't been bitten, she'd have less than five months to live."

Warm fingers found his across the chaise, Nina's hand giving a gentle squeeze to ensure he knew he wasn't alone.

"What if we brought all of our senior healers together to try to heal her?"

"It wouldn't be enough." Nero had already contemplated the possibility. "With less than a week between being bitten and the full moon, even if we had completely cured her as soon as I found her, there's no way she'd be strong enough."

"The bitten need internal fortitude. Tenacity, yes, but they need an underlying strength in their physical bodies," Aidan concurred, devastated. "At this late stage, cancer has already taken away the necessary energy stores and depleted her reserves."

"Where is Eden now?"

"In my home," Nero replied. "Asleep."

Aidan strode over to where Nero and Nina sat. "Kane healed one of Nova's packmates from pancreatic cancer when he turned her. What of your blood, Nina? You could cure her."

Nina frowned. "Eden's already started the transition to werewolf."

"But she's yet to shift," Aidan argued. "No matter the strength of her wolf, attempting the change already compromised won't have a happy ending."

Despair and hope warred within Nero. Eden's survival was growing slimer with every passing second: what Aidan had suggest might be her only chance. If he had to fight for her, he would—nothing would stand in his way.

"Think about what we're risking, Nina," the werewolf warned. "This isn't just Eden's life we're talking about."

It called to light what was at stake. Though Eden had always been Nero's priority, her death would have deep and far-reaching consequences. If he followed her to the grave, it would destabilize his clan—and potentially lead to the dissolution of the treaty that peaceably linked the five most powerful Raeth sovereigns.

With the increase in the Citizens' attacks and the resulting werewolf deaths, Aidan had been profoundly affected. The pulse of his negative emotions beat against Nero's shields: the alpha was close to spiraling into depression. If Aidan lost his rationality, and those pack bonds were jaded as a result, it would impact his entire nation.

The immortal world hung on the balance of one human's life—or death.

Solemn, Nina shifted uneasily across from Nero. "We've never attempted to thwart a wolf transition before immortality has taken root—replace those immortal cells with ones of another breed." She paused. "Nero, she could die."

"She is already dying!" A flare of agitation roughened Nero's words. "Whether it's tomorrow morning or after the moon rises in two days is inconsequential, Nina. The risk is all we have."

And still, his friend was reluctant. "We have no way of knowing the outcome of our tampering. We all know that once the process is complete, there's no way to change our chemistry. A vampire is a vampire; a wolf is a wolf. A bite post transition doesn't change that."

Zeke came to stand silently behind his mate, his jade eyes locked on Nero. A silent threat, a reminder that he would have Nina's back regardless of the outcome. If this had been any other scenario, he would've appreciated it for what it was.

But this was about Nero's mate . He would push as hard as needed to get the only outcome acceptable to him. His chin rose in subtle challenge, but his words were for Nina alone.

"Nina, I'm begging you to try. You agreed before. While circumstances have changed, the ask has not."

"Before, Eden's health would not have mattered; a vampire transitions regardless of the health of their body. But she's been bitten, and by a rabid wolf, no less."

His eyes shifted to the emerald of his panther. "It doesn't matter! If she becomes a werewolf, she'll die!"

"What if I try and she dies during the process? What if by biting her, I subject her to unendurable pain? Could any of us live with ourselves if our choices bring about that end?" Nina studied him. "Is she choosing this risk for herself, or is it your grief at the reins?"

"Try! Please, just try, Nina!" Nero roared. "You owe me this much."

"My mate owes you nothing."

A pulse of Zeke's power rammed against Nero's skin. Abrasive, it sizzled against his psychic defenses.

Reluctant to heed Zeke's threat, and desperate for Nina's aid, Nero resorted to supplication. "Eden will die—and I'll have to watch it happen. Nina, you know better than anyone what being apart from your mate is like—how hard the years are." Dark emotion made his throat thick and his words strangled. "Eden and I have had days together. Days. I owe it to her to explore every option available—even if it means I'm indebted to you for the rest of my immortal life."

On his knees before her now, Nero gripped her hand. " Please . I'm begging you, Nina. Just try."

She squeezed his hand. "Have you asked Eden what she wants? What risks are acceptable to her? If she's willing to undergo experimental and desperate interventions, and if she trusts us with whatever we try?"

"I didn't want to give her false hope," he whispered. "If it was your mate—if it was Zeke—would you hold out an offer you hadn't confirmed was a possibility?"

Giving Eden hope, and then taking it away, would have been cruel. Before he went to his mate, he wanted to know every avenue that was available to her. He'd put all of his resources to use if she wanted to pursue this. This was Eden's life, and her choice. It didn't matter what his priorities were. He would follow her down any path she chose—even death.

When Nina's fingers gently curled around his shoulder, slowly bringing him back, she gave him a soft smile. "Ask her. Let me know what she says. If she agrees to it, I'm happy to attempt. But she must understand the stakes. If we try and succeed, it'll change a death sentence to immortality, cancer to eternal health.

"If we fail, it could mean agony, and a very brutal death in a matter of hours."

***

Shadow. Light. Shadow. Light.

The brilliant yellow beacon slowly rotated behind him, while across the waves, darkness called, the deep midnight of the ocean both comforting and disconcerting.

The lighthouse had stood the test of time, bearing the burden of both fair weather and hurricanes, invasions and peace. Everything had changed since they'd erected it a hundred years ago. Except Nero.

He'd remained the same, always waiting. Since the day he'd seen Eden's face eleven centuries ago, Nero had become stagnant, yearning for their relationship before starting his life.

Now everything he'd craved was on the edge of the abyss.

Eden was the only thing that mattered. The happy portrait of a matehood Nero had envisioned for centuries was no longer the pinnacle of his future goals. His sole remaining purpose was to ensure her survival— if she wanted it.

If she didn't …

The thought of her death stabbed through Nero's chest, burning his soul from the inside out. Everything would be meaningless without her by his side.

If Eden refused to take Nina up on her offer, he'd do everything in his power to help her shift. If she decided to end her life before the pain could steal her sanity, he'd jump into the fires alongside her.

It was Zia's psychic signature, tinged with potent veins of trepidation, which gave away her approach. Her steps had been completely silent.

"Sovereign?"

He didn't turn to look at her. "Zia. Did you volunteer for babysitting duty, or did you draw the short straw?"

"Who wouldn't want to comfort our sovereign during his time of need?"

"Any of my lieutenants."

"That's hardly fair, Nero." There was a slight admonishment in her tone.

"And what questions are you here to ask, healer?" Nero braced himself for the inevitable. "Will you inquire as to my health, or the health of my mate? Or will you bypass the topic entirely and ask who will lead my clan when I meet the Light?"

"Your mate will soon lose what mortal life she has left, sovereign—whether to immortality or to the grave." Zia gracefully strode forward, trailing her fingertips along the fogged glass. "The lifespan of a human may be seconds compared to ours, but their lives are dazzling, when compared to those who live forever."

She continued, as if lost in thought. "While many immortalkind pity them, I cannot help but admire humans. Their existence blooms so magnificently, precisely because they are aware of its limits. We will never know the like."

Her wisdom drove him to explain his decisions. "I won't force her to accept immortality, whether wolf or vampire. I couldn't. If Eden wants to try to overcome this challenge, I'll do everything in my power to help her. And if she chooses that this is the time to let go, I'll support her. But I won't live another day without her. Eden is everything I've been missing, and now that I've met her, nothing will ever be the same again. If she goes, I'll go with her."

"Nero, you've lived your entire life without her," Zia urged. "Why would a week with her so drastically change your point of view, mate or not?"

A flare of anger made his panther hiss. "Because she's shown me that there's so much more to life than how I've been living! If I've only been given a week with my mate, then when it's over, so am I."

Zia's despair followed him as he descended the circular staircase that led out of the lighthouse. The brittle creaking of the aged metal was the only punctuation to her sadness.

Nero ignored it all.