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He’d existed alone far longer than just his time as a ghost.
Avery was nearing the beach now and he lurched back into motion, chasing her down into the sand.
“Avery—”
The roar of the sea, the howling winds, all muffled his voice.
He didn’t feel deserving of any of this.
He watched her approach the rocks, hands slipping and sliding over the damp surface. It wasn’t a far climb, just a few feet up. Black stone jutted out into the sea and there, at the end, was the faerie circle.
Wolfe felt it down to his toes. Power and magic and possibility. The sea slammed into it, sending a spray nearly ten feet into the air. The fossils at his back, the energy from the winds, they all aligned.
“Here.” He showed her where to step, monitoring her as she made it to the top of the embankment. “Steady.”
“I’m fine.” She brushed damp hair from her eyes, teeth chattering. “I’ve got it. What do I do now?”
“What you’ve always done,” he said softly. “You call for me.”
She nodded, wincing against the spray of water that fell across her face. He stayed with her as she approached the end, the frothing mouth of the ocean whirling below them.
“We can’t keep it open long,” he warned. “There are things here that would gladly come through if you let them.”
There were not many lurking about. Shadowy faces and spindly fingers looked down at him over the lip of the cliff above but still, he could not risk her.
That made her hesitate. “Like what?”
“Like wraiths and ghouls. Wandering souls that are prone to causing trouble.”
“Will I be safe?”
“You are always safe with me, Avery.” He squeezed her hand.
Her skin was freezing, the tips of her fingers nearly blue. He thought the image was fitting. Every time she did this, it cost her another piece of herself. It latched onto him, brought him closer and closer to what he once was. Her warmth fled and now settled into him, blooming inside his chest.
“Let’s go.” She marched the rest of the way toward the stones, rocks growing slicker and slicker with each step. She could slip and fall, fade into the sea.
He would never be solid enough to save her.
He dismissed the thought.
A crackle of energy slithered around him the closer he came to the circle. Three steps away, the stones yanked him inside of their own volition. Here, in the midst of the stones, Wolfe felt the echo of his own heart.
The distortion of reality, the fog that was slowly being wiped from his eyes, made him want to weep. He pressed a hand to his chest, shirt now soaked through with salt. The creatures on the cliff grew curious, bony hands and faces leering down at them.
“Now, Avery!” he shouted.
The sea roared back, slamming into the rocks under his boots with such force the earth shook.
“Royan Wolfe!” she screamed, throat raw. “Royan Wolfe, are you with me?”
He would never have a heart again within this body, but he swore he felt a kickstart in the place it used to be. Cold air greeted him, ripping against his shirt and hair. Sea spray soaked his boots and his pants. The mist around him began to glow, warping into tiny rainbows and golden light.
The sea screamed his own name back at him. Echoes of laughter danced around him. Teasing words, haunting whispers. There were so many trapped on the other side. So many aching to go home.
Why you?
Why him?
