Page 30 of The Last Guardian

A hand.

Shattered glass.

No. I shook my head, as if the lightning of memories could disappear, but they didn’t. They lingered. They took root, deep inside my soul.

I lifted my gaze, trying to find solace in the glimmering stars; every part of me ached.

Your blood sings to me.

Haedeon had branded me with those teeth still imprinted in my neck; his essence still lingered there, and tears flowed before I could stop them.

Something burned me on my wrist…

The mark.

Was that what had made him bite me? Haedeon seemed to recognize it. He had looked at it with contempt and fear. What was it?

My fingers grazed the mark where his nails had pierced my skin, and I hissed in pain. Leaning my head against the cold tree, I tried to ignore the pain, to release the emptiness that gnawed at me. Once more, I gazed up at the night sky to find some comfort, as I always did when I felt lonely and hopeless, where I could still feel my mother’s presence.

The only peace I so desperately wanted was to be with her again. To feel her warmth and her love, to hear her laughter. Could she see me now?

I needed her so badly—more than anything in the world. Everything had fallen apart since she’d left, and… I couldn’t go on. I just couldn’t.

I no longer had the strength to pretend my soul hadn’t died with her, to pretend I was still alive. Maybe it would be easier if it all just stopped now. Dying here could be a kind of mercy.

At least then, I could finally rest.

SOMETHING WET AND cold touched my leg, brushing frantically against my skin. The sound of crunching trees and—a growl.

My eyes opened wide to find red eyes watching me.

Haedeon?

No, no, no. How had he found me? Was he going to kill me?

The thing brushing against my legs felt like fur. My eyes fixed on what was in front of me, and I saw a wolf—or what was left of one. Half of its face was bare bone, while the rest was a normal wolf. Its chest heaved like bellows; some scars marked its flank. Beneath its dark fur, something was pulsating.

Seven Hells.

That was its heart. Part of its body was only bones—with no fur or flesh. I could see its heart beating below. How could it still be alive?

With its teeth bared at my leg, a growl sprang from its throat, its red eyes flashing in the darkness. My body moved on its own, crawling backwards before it could bite me. I tried to get up quickly, but my weak muscles kept me from doing so.

The wolf attacked my leg, biting so hard that I screamed. My lungs burned.

It was going to devour me alive! Its jaws were too powerful, its teeth sinking deep into my flesh. Why was everyone so keen on sampling me?

My hand seized a rock from the ground, and I hurled it at the beast. The rock bounced off. The wolf retreated, howling in pain. I got up as quickly as possible. A white-hot burning pain spread up my leg, but the adrenaline kicked in.

I ran.

Or at least, I tried. My foot hit a root, and I stumbled, falling to the ground, my ribs crushed against a hard trunk. The impact drove the breath from my lungs.

The wolf growled and charged, its fangs scratching my shoulder as I tried to strike.

But I couldn’t move; my body refused to obey.

Another howl shattered the night, but it was not coming from the beast. No, it was far away. Or was I fainting again?