Hello Darkness

Chapter Sixty-One

Julian slams through the double doors of the Silvano's recovery platform, darting into an empty room with a bed. I lean against the door frame, my legs struggling to hold my weight. Every inch of my body aches from the silver and regeneration. Talum collapsed after taking one step through the door. But I can't leave Alma, even if my body screams for rest.

I never expected such tenderness from Julian. He cradles Alma in his arms like a fragile doll before setting her on the hospital bed.

Changing Alma isn't an option. I want her to live a full life where she'll get married and have babies—maybe they will have freckles just like hers. I smile at the thought. Julian can heal her—I believe that.

Her heart beat flutters against my ears—the only thing I could focus on. Julian fluidly moves throughout the room, as if it were his own. He pulls a bag of blood from the cooler and hangs it on an infusion pole. In an instant he's at Alma's side, sliding a needle into her arm and taping it. My fist instinctively clench, expecting a brutal pain. But only her finger twitches.

I lose my breath—her heart beat slows.

One... two... three

The world stops moving and all I can see is her. The slow rise and fall of her chest and all seventeen freckles.

Four... five... six...

No—this can't be happening. I will do anything for her to open those big brown eyes and tell me everything is going to be okay.

Seven... Eight... Nine...

Julian's eyes meet mine and defeat washes across his face.

Ten.

A wail escapes from my lungs and my legs finally give out. No—she can't be dead. Julian was so sure he could save her. I can't let this world take my sister too.

A warm hand presses against my shoulder. "It's not too late. We can still change her if we do it now." Julian's voice remains calm—steady.

I pull my face from my hands and meet his gaze. I didn't know how.

"I'll walk you through it," he says, as if he could read my thoughts. "But we have to do it now."

He reaches out his hand. I stare at it. Would Alma want this? The silence is deafening, booming through me, shattering every bit of what's left of my heart. I can't live without her.

I reach for his hand and he guides me to her side. Julian flashes across the room, grabbing a scalpel before returning to me. "Slice your hand."

I twist the scalpel between my fingers, the florescent lights glinting off its surface. Alma would have done it for me. Without a second thought, I slide the blade against my flesh, the skin folding back and opening a fresh wound for black blood to spill out. I cup my hand pooling it.

Julian guides my hand above her mouth and tips it. Blood drips onto her lips, sliding into her mouth. I hold my breath unsure of what to expect next. Four small black dots mar her chin. Maybe I'm too late...

Her body convulses. Flailing wildly on the bed. Julian pushes me back.

"Shit. Shit. Shit." His calm demeanor is completely lost. "The silver in your blood—" Julian frantically secures her arms, but her body keeps fighting the restraints. I press myself against the wall giving Julian space to work.

He stops, his lips a tight line. "Oh, killer. You're going to owe me big time." With his fangs exposed, he rips them into the flesh of his wrist. Black blood streams down his arm in the seconds it takes him to press it to Alma's lips.

Her body seizes. Alma's still for a moment, before she inhales a huge breath, like she'd been trapped underwater and just reached the surface. I finally breathe as the sweet flutter of her heart starts again.

She presses her lips harder against Julian's wrist. I turn my head—she's drinking it.

Julian seems unfazed as he waits for me to catch his gaze. "She'll be fine," he says. "Now, have some decency. This process is a little intimate." He gives me a reassuring Julian smirk.

"She'll be okay?" I swallow.

"As okay as we are." He brushes a stray hair from her face before looking back up at me, his eyes widen. "Now go. I'll come get you when I'm done."

I don't want to leave her, but I'm no use now—not that I was before. I step into the hall and find Talum leaning against the wall, watching through the window. I meet his blue eyes and melt. He wraps his arms around me and I sob, burying my face into his chest. I almost lost two people I care about today.

Neither of us can stand any longer. We slide down, collapsing on the floor. Citrus and rain flood around me. "I'm sorry—I'm so sorry for everything." I say again through sobs.

He strokes my hair. He doesn't need to say anything—I'm not sure I want him to. I just want him to stay here and hold me. My mind and body are numb. I don't want to think about today or tomorrow. I just want it all to be over.

When I finally control my sobbing, I pull myself from his chest and lean back on the wall. Talum's arm still secured around my waist. "You did the right thing."

I draw a deep breath and lay my head in the pocket of his shoulder. "Then why does it feel like I do everything wrong?"

"Because sometimes the right decisions aren'tthe easy ones. And sometimes you take the wrong path before finding the truth."