Adrian lowered himself slowly, sitting across from her by the fire. His voice was quieter now, but no less intense "That's why I didn't tell you because I know what carrying that truth does to you. It hardens you.... Breaks you in ways you don't recover from and I… I couldn't bear to see that happen to you."
Tears welled in Elena's eyes "But by hiding it, you left me blind. You let me believe a lie. Do you know how that feels?"
His hand reached toward her but hovered in the air, unsure, hesitant "I do and I was wrong."
The flames cracked, sending sparks upward. Their faces were painted in flickering gold and shadow, the space between them charged, fragile, dangerous.
Elena's anger bent under the weight of his sorrow, but it did not vanish. It lingered, sharp, reminding her of the betrayal. Yet beneath it, another truth stirred: he had hidden it not out of cruelty but fear—fear of losing her, fear of her breaking as he had.
The Codex stirred on her lap, its pages fluttering open as if carried by unseen wind. Symbols rearranged themselves, glowing faintly crimson, forming words neither of them had seen before.
Elena's breath caught as she read them aloud "Ash remembers flame. Flame remembers blood. Blood remembers truth. Only together do they burn."
The chamber trembled faintly, as though acknowledging the words.
Adrian's eyes locked on hers "It's speaking to us."
Elena nodded, her throat tight "It says we can only endure this together. That our pain—our truths—are bound."
Adrian leaned forward, his hand finally brushing hers "Then no more lies... No more shadows."
Elena closed her eyes, letting the warmth of his hand seep into her skin. For a moment, the anger in her chest eased, replaced by the ache of something deeper: longing, connection, the fragile tether between two broken souls.
When she opened her eyes, tears streaked her cheeks "Then promise me, Adrian. Promise you'll never shut me out again."
His storm-gray gaze was unwavering "I swear it. Whatever comes—whatever truth, however dark—I'll share it with you."
Her lips trembled "Even if it destroys me?"
His hand tightened on hers, fierce "Especially then."
The firelight flickered, casting their shadows across the ruined wall. Two figures, scarred but unbroken, bound by grief and a vow spoken in ash.
The Codex pulsed brighter, its glow spilling into the chamber, washing the walls in crimson light. For the briefest moment, Elena felt the warmth of her mother's hand, the echo of her father's voice, as if the Codex had opened a door to memory.
She gasped, clutching Adrian's hand tighter. He felt it too—the resonance of power, of something greater than themselves weaving through their bond.
"Elena…" he whispered, awe and fear mingling.
The Codex's glow dimmed slowly, returning to its quiet hum. Elena exhaled, trembling. "It's watching us... Measuring us."
Adrian's jaw tightened. "Then let it.. It will find us unbroken."
The fire burned low as the hours stretched. Neither spoke much after that, but the silence between them was different now. Not sharp, not cutting, but heavy with understanding.
Elena leaned against the stone, her eyes fluttering closed. Exhaustion tugged at her, but for the first time since Cassian's intrusion, she felt a fragile peace settle in her chest. Adrian's presence, steady and unyielding, was an anchor in the storm.
Adrian kept watch, his hand never straying far from his blade, but his gaze often drifted to her face softened in sleep. His chest ached with both guilt and devotion. He had nearly lost her to shadows and silence, but tonight, perhaps, he had regained a piece of her trust.
And trust, he knew, was rarer than any treasure the ruins of Carthia could yield.
When Elena stirred awake, faint light filtered through a crack in the ceiling above. The fire was little more than embers. Adrian sat where he had been, his back straight though his eyes bore the weariness of a sleepless night.
"Did you rest at all?" she asked softly.
He gave a faint smile "I rest when you do."
Her heart clenched, the anger not gone but dulled, replaced by something warmer, harder to name. She rose and crossed to him, laying a hand gently on his shoulder.
"Then we both rest tonight," she whispered.
Adrian looked up at her, storm-gray eyes softening "Together."
And for the first time in days, the word did not feel fragile. It felt like a promise carved into stone.
The path beyond the chamber narrowed, forcing Adrian and Elena to walk single file. The air grew colder with each step, heavy with the scent of mildew and old stone. Water dripped steadily from above, echoing like distant heartbeats.
Elena trailed her fingers along the wall as they descended. The stone was slick, carved long ago with roses whose petals had crumbled with age. The Codex glowed faintly against her chest, its whispers low and urgent, warning of what lay ahead.
Adrian's sword remained drawn. His movements were controlled, deliberate, every sense sharpened. His storm-gray eyes scanned the darkness, his body tense as a coiled spring. He had been in places like this before—caves that swallowed light, corridors where death waited in silence.
But the unease that prickled the back of his neck now was different. Deeper.
"Elena," he said quietly "Stay close."
Her hand brushed his shoulder "Always."
The tunnel widened into a cavern vast enough to hold a cathedral. The ceiling stretched high into shadow, stalactites like jagged teeth dripping with mineral tears. At first, the silence was complete—an oppressive weight pressing against their ears.
Then came a sound.
Soft.... Haunting. A single voice drifting down from above.
Elena froze, her pulse quickening "Do you hear—"
Adrian's hand shot up in warning "Yes....Don't follow it."
But the voice multiplied, becoming two, then three, then a hundred. A choir. Their tones rose and fell in mournful harmony, weaving a melody so beautiful it ached. It pulled at Elena's chest, threading into her heart, coaxing her forward.
Her grip on the Codex tightened but her steps faltered.
Figures emerged from the darkness above, descending like smoke. Cloaked in tattered robes, their faces hidden by veils of shadow, the wraiths drifted closer. Their mouths moved in song, their voices echoing with sorrow so deep it threatened to unravel thought itself.
"Come to us... chosen," the voices whispered in her mind, layered and inescapable "Let go of the mortal chain.... Rest in the Rose.... Rest in forever."
Elena's breath caught. Her mother's voice seemed to rise within the choir, sweet and familiar. Her father's laugh echoed faintly, entwined with the melody. Tears welled in her eyes.
"Mother?" she whispered. Her feet moved without command.
Adrian cursed under his breath and lunged, seizing her arm "Elena! Look at me!"
She turned, but the song clung to her ears, her soul "It's them.... I hear them—"
"It's not them!" His voice thundered through the cavern "It's a trap."
The wraiths descended fully now, circling them in a slow orbit. Their song deepened, filling every crack in the stone, pressing against every thought.
Adrian drew her against him, his blade flashing in his other hand "Fight it.... Elena. They'll use your heart against you."
But she trembled in his grasp, the Codex pulsing violently in her hands. The whispers from the book collided with the choir's song, confusing, twisting, pulling her in two directions.
Adrian's teeth clenched. He couldn't fight shadows and hold her at the same time. He needed her strong, awake, present.
"Elena!" he roared, gripping her face in his hand "Look at me.... Not them—me!"
Her tear-filled gaze locked with his storm-gray eyes. For a heartbeat, the song dimmed, drowned out by the fire in his voice.
The wraiths hissed, their harmony breaking into a shriek. They dove, their forms twisting like ribbons of smoke. Adrian swung his blade, steel cutting through shadow. Sparks of pale light flared where the edge struck, scattering one wraith back into the darkness.
Another lunged at Elena, its skeletal hand reaching. She lifted the Codex instinctively, and crimson light burst outward, scorching the wraith with fire that was not flame. It recoiled, its song warping into a scream.
Elena gasped, the power coursing through her veins "Adrian—I—"
"You're wielding it" he shouted, his blade cleaving another apart "Use it!"
The choir shrieked louder, their harmony fracturing as more wraiths fell beneath steel and crimson light. Yet with each strike, more emerged from the shadows, endless, countless.
Elena closed her eyes, clutching the Codex to her chest. She focused not on the song but on Adrian's voice, the warmth of his hand on hers, the oath they had sworn.
"Together" she whispered.
The Codex responded, its glow flaring so bright it painted the cavern crimson. Symbols rose from its pages like living fire, swirling around her in a vortex. The wraiths faltered, their song stuttering.
Elena opened her eyes, and crimson light burned within them "Leave us."
The words were not hers alone—they were the Codex's, spoken through her.