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She took a deep breath, looked toward the ceiling "In her entire life, she’s never trusted anyone the way she’s trusted you So, to , you’re the only one who has a chance of finding out what happened and then figuring out hoe can help her aze back on him "It must have been hard for you to spit that out"

"Worse than enduring the seven rings of Hell Or rease Don’t ask what that is" Raina gave hi, and you can’t help, the one co her And I swear upon every demon and saint, I’ll do it until the end of my days"

He rose "The brand was still way over the top"

"It’s also a very i" At his expression, she was sh to lift a quick hand of truce "Ruby won’t be able to shake it, even if she figures out what it is The Underworld knows and fears you, Derek Whatever she’s doing, it’s dangerous, and detecting your protection round out "How does he figure into this?"

"He doesn’t Give the testosterone a rest" Raina shot him an annoyed look "I’ve never even met him He’s some hookup she meets away from here a few times a year to scratch the itch" She paused "You’ll think this is an overshare, but it’s relevant It’s a pretty violent itch She co hie in his expression, Raina added, "I only have a first nauy with that naue"

"The plague is contagious I’d have their hearts explode in their chests"

"Much ave her a narrow look, but he didn’t argue it "The fantasy in that room Whose was it?"

"Both of yours I think you know that Places you’d like to go again and wish you’d never left Places you two touched upon before, only in that room you went to a deeper level, more vulnerable, more raw" She nodded "It’s a truth room as well as a fantasy It can be dialed for either one, a balance between the two that I can direct with the will of the ics I use for it So Ruby’s fantasy was a true fantasy, but directed by the deepest truth of her heart The truth is what makes the roo, because pure, uncut fantasy is destructive"

Derek studied the witch Though he still wanted to strangle her, he saw her earnest frustration beneath the caustic exterior He’d heard the darkness in Ruby’s harsh laugh, and with Raina’s infor into place

To say he was rocked on his foundation didn’t coh to know the hard things had to be put away to deal with the immediate threat Grief and loss were painful luxuries he couldn’t afford to indulge right now, and ood, because he wasn’t sure how to process the deeper wounds

The Darkness that Ruby carried would spread like an infection At a certain point, it would beco hiic user not to discount the ti fury that Fate hadn’t seen fit to put him here when it hter It wrenched painfully in his gut He didn’t even knohere she was buried He’d ask Ruby, demand to know

"I know you deserve answers fro a e "But save her soul first Then you can ream her out about the rest The love she has for you is the only thing that er first, you’ll lose her for sure We all will"

That raised another concern, a fear he left unspoken His anger and the universe’s plan aside, his love had failed her As the witch before him had noted, until he’d come into her life, Ruby had never had a love she halfway trusted Because he’d fallen short, she ht about soh Despite the many ti this tiile soul, it was going to have to coh him

Chapter 6