Chapter Forty-Three

I woke up to silence and darkness. Thinking I was back in Death's domain, I screamed.

"Ember!" Rath grabbed me and pulled me into his arms.

A light came on. I was in our bed with all of my lovers, two to either side. They closed in around me as I processed this. Then the shuddering took me. The memories. The sorrow.

"Ara," I whimpered.

"I know," Rath said and rocked me.

"Oh, Goddess, why? Why lead me to him only to let him be retaken?" I sobbed.

"She cannot control everything," Taroc said gently. "But neither can Death. We've learned what is possible, Ember. This failure does not have to be the end. Aranren still lives. You can try again."

"Try again?" I whispered, then I pushed out of Rath's arms. "How? I'll never get past Death. He'll never loosen his hold on Ara now. He has learned as much as we have."

"He will make a mistake," Xae said. "He must fight Aranren too, remember? The Corrupter is not as compliant as he once was. He tried to die tonight, Ember. He would have given his life for yours."

"I know," I sobbed. "Thank the Goddess Vexen didn't have the chance."

"That blast, it was the bond, wasn't it?" Kel asked. "I felt it break."

"We all did," Rath said. "I just don't know how Aranren did it. It shouldn't have been possible"

"He used Death Magic combined with love," I said. "He didn't want me to feel him die, and he needed to distract Death so Vexen could take his head. So he opened our bond to the magic and severed it. He just didn't realize what breaking our bond would do."

"He did right by you, Ember," Taroc said. "Cutting ties to you proved his love."

"He didn't have to prove anything to me!" I shouted and pushed through them to climb off the bed. "I know he loved me. I felt it through our bond. And I could have saved him. I could have helped him fight off Death. We were almost out!"

"And he knew you wouldn't make it," Rath said gently. "Aranren did what any of us would have done—everything within his power to save you. Hold onto that, Ember. Let it comfort you."

"Comfort me?! Are you insane? This is not romantic, it's horrifying. I got him free, Rath. Ara was finally free after centuries of enslavement. And it lasted one fucking day! I wasn't even there when Death took him. I was fucking sleeping beside you!" I waved my hand at Xae accusingly. "Because you fuckers had to establish your rights immediately!"

Xae's head lowered and his shoulders hunched.

"Hey!" Keltyr shouted and pointed at me as he climbed off the bed with Rath and Taroc. "I love you, and I know you're hurting right now, but don't you fucking do that to Xaedren! Don't you put this on any of us. It's not our fault that Death came for Aranren last night."

"Last night?" I looked out the window. Light seeped through the curtains. "Fuck. How long have I been asleep?"

"It's been several hours," Taroc said. "I think it's late afternoon."

"Late afternoon?!" I rushed into the dressing room.

As I yanked clothes from hangers, Rath came into the room.

"Ember, there is nothing that can be done for Aranren. Not at this moment. But we know that he's a victim now, and we can adjust our tactics."

"What the fuck does that mean?" I pulled on my pants, then went for my boots. "Sounds like a bunch of crap meant to keep me from going after him."

"Sweetheart, you can't go after him. We have to come up with a plan."

"I'm going back, Rath," I said firmly. "I'm going to face Death and free Ara as I've done before. Except that this time, I'm going to make sure that he's completely free."

"All right."

I paused in pulling on my boot. "All right?"

"Yes, all right. Let's go back. We will stand at the Corrupter's ward and then what will we do?"

I slumped. "And then . . . then I will shout until Death comes out, just as you did when I was taken."

"And what shall we do when the Corrupter appears?"

"I'll send my wraith into him."

"Through the ward?"

"I'll force him out. I'll taunt him until he comes out. Then I'll send my wraith into him."

"As you did when he first took you? What happened to your wraith, Ember? Without Aranren helping you, using his will to welcome your wraith, what will happen to it again?"

"All right, you don't have to be an asshole about it." I slumped onto the bench.

"I'm not trying to be cruel," Rath said as he sat down beside me. "We all want to save him now, Ember." He took my hand. "Aranren has proven to be a good man, and none of us want to see him tortured by Death. He would have given his life for you, and that makes him one of us."

"But I can't save him right this second," I concluded.

"No, I'm sorry. We need to figure this out. Wait for an opportunity."

"But there will be one," Xae said as he walked in. "And now we know he can be saved, Ember."

"Do we?" I whispered. "I was certain he was clear of Death, but he wasn't."

"Then you'll have to be more cautious next time."

"We have a new goal," Taroc said. "To conquer Death by saving Aranren. This is a setback, but it has also been a step forward. We are finally fighting our true enemy."

"Thank you," I said. "You never bonded with him, so I know you don't feel as strongly as I do."

"We can still feel what you feel, Ember," Kel said. "And I'm sorry we chose not to bond with him. Maybe that was our biggest mistake. Next time, we won't let you stand alone. You're not meant to."

I bent my head and let the tears fall. "Ara's alone now. All alone in that cage of bones. He begged me to hold on. He said he couldn't go back there. And I failed him."

"No, you haven't. It's not over yet. And until it is, you will give him hope." Rath took my hand. "Every time you see the Corrupter, you will speak to Aranren. You will reach through Death and tell Ara that we are not giving up. You tell him to survive because we are coming for him."

I turned into Rath's embrace and the other men closed in around us, all of them offering me their strength and comfort. Taroc was right. We had a new goal. A new path to ending the war. And I was destined to win. It was a setback and a step forward.