He opened his eyes and stared at her, a tortured look on his face.
"I remember them," he said. "All of them." His memories flashed, and she winced at the sight of the executions he'd committed for Czerno.
"That wasn't you, Darian," she whispered. "You had no control over yourself."
"I'm weak."
"You're not. Damian was crippled by the same thing." She regretted alluding to it the moment the raw look of anguish crossed his face.
"Claire," he said hoarsely. He closed his eyes, his jaw clenched hard enough for the muscles to tick. Tears escaped one eye and trailed down his face. She felt her own tears spill over at the depth of his pain. His was not the kind of pain she could fix.
"You're safe, Darian," she said and draped the trench coat over his shoulders. She placed her hands on his face and pulled him closer, hugging him. "We won't let anything happen to you."
Dustin approached, his gaze as haunted as Darian's. He knelt, ruffling the snow from Darian's hair.
"It's okay, brother," he said quietly. "Let's get you inside." He helped Darian to his feet. "Sofi, get ready. We're evac-ing you and Darian next," he ordered. "Pierre, pack your things. You're going, too."
She didn't miss the look of relief that crossed Pierre's face and suspected he'd been threatened with a reassignment for shooting her. Obviously, Damian had reconsidered. She was happy for it. Pierre tossed her a familiar cell phone as they entered the mansion. An unread text message blinked on the screen.
4got 2 tell you. Luv u 2.
She grinned and typed a response. Man up and tell me in person.
Next time I see you, I'll do better-I'll show you, he promised, his whisper sliding into her mind. A thrill went through her.
"I still hate that," she muttered.
In the words of an Oracle I once knew, get used to it.
"I love you, Damian. Come home soon."
I will, kiri, I will.
Truly thrilled about the start to her new life, she folded the phone and dropped it into her pocket. She followed Dustin and Darian down the hall.
Sofia. The new voice in her mind was the same as the voice she'd heard during the chopper ride with Darian. He was waiting for her. She pushed open the cracked door to the library. Inside was a man she recognized from Czerno's, the small man with dark green eyes and white hair. Her heart slowed, and she froze inside the doorway.
He gave a fatherly smile and approached her, holding his hand out, palm up. She hesitated, torn between screaming for Dustin and staying where she was. She touched her palm to his, driven back by the impact of images that rippled through her. The whole of Damian's history, his forefathers', all the way to the Beginning, when spirits milled without purpose before the Original Beings shaped the universe into something much greater.