𝒜 𝒞𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝑅𝑒𝓈𝒾𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒮𝒸𝒶𝓇𝓈 | ᴀᴢʀɪᴇʟ

Chapter 87

Chapter 87

"ENOUGH!" Azriel's snarl smothered any other sound in the town house. Arwen's chest rose and fell faster than Cassian's own heart was beating. "Get out of her head! Get out!"

"I am," Rhysand said, staring at his sister. Everything about him was rigid, his fingers hanging by his legs. Not a visible hint the panic that Cassian felt. He just stared and stared, his face pale. Horrified. "She..."

None of them found out what he wanted to say, the High Lord's voice drifting off. Cassian didn't have time to wait or prod him. Blood made a dark crimson line out of the corner of Arwen's mouth, mingling with a thick stream of her nose, her head bent low. Cassian aimed for her, ignoring Mor's voice that called for Rhysand to hear her.

Azriel seethed at the sight of him nearing. His wings wrapped around himself and his mate, shielding her as he back away. Arwen's feet dragged against the ground as he pulled her away from Cassian, giving no wince or even blinking as his back rammed into the stone wall. The hazels which were only a few shades different from Cassian's were brimmed with a terror the general had never seen before.

But Azriel's panic was a danger. To them, himself, and to Arwen who hung near limp in his arms. The sounds of her life, the hoarse hyperventilating, were weak but not subsiding out of calmness. "Azriel," Cassian began carefully. "Let me help her."

He could see his words working their way through Azriel's mind. The shadowsinger's eyes dropped to the form in his arms and he sunk down the wall all the way to the floor. Cassian moved forward, Mor finding her way to his side. A quick glance revealed Feyre at Rhysand's. This wasn't what he had anticipated when Azriel and Rhysand approached him about intervening with Arwen's decision. He imagined a calm, gentle conversation. And maybe that is what they intended—no, it was what they intended. He knew Rhysand hadn't wanted this. But emotions grew too quickly, like a wildfire out of control.

Azriel only unwrapped one wing to reveal Arwen from above her shoulders, the rest of her still hidden under the leathery membrane of his other. Blood spilled from her mouth and nose, its evidence glistening on the chest of his leathers. Her hazy eyes were set on nothing, her lips quivering which each fervent pant. The paleness was striking, as was the hollowness in her cheeks Cassian had only just paid attention to, hot tears streaming down them.

"Get Helion," Cassian said to Morrigan.

She faltered as if she had no idea what he was saying, but then her face went tight and she disappeared, winnowing her way to the Day Court. A glance behind him revealed Rhysand still standing in that spot, staring at them, Feyre's hand against his chest as her gaze flickered wildly between everything. It was Amren who filled the spot next to Cassian, kneeling with a hard look that moved him back into action.

Cassian took Arwen's limp hand in his, pressing it to his chest over his heart. His other hooked under her chin, lifting it until he could see the slits of violet behind her half-lidded eyes. "Arwen," he called, forcing his voice to come smoothly. "Arwen you need to open your eyes."

She did, ever so slightly, but it was a response. Her eyes were hazed and unfocused. He planted his hand on her chest to mimic the one on his, feeling the thundering heartbeat beneath it, the pace wildly and dangerous. "Breathe with me," he said. "In and out. Count the seconds."

He was certain she couldn't even hear him, so he stretched his chest with each long breath he forced himself to take, letting her feel the steady pattern they had practiced so often after her nightmares, hoping it would tug on some sense of familiarity.

Azriel's lips were planted in her hair, wrinkles spearing from his clenched eyes, silent and glimmering tracks streaming down his cheeks.

"...Three, four," Cassian counted. She didn't respond to his attempts. He needed her calm, the sounds of her empty pants grating and a warning that she was only getting worse. Their efforts to save her might just be the reason she died again and that wasn't a guilt he could bare. It certainly wasn't one Rhysand or Azriel could. "Look at me, sweetheart. I need you to do that for me." He just needed to keep her going until Helion arrived.