Cadence hung in the air for a moment, or so it seemed. She knew her sister wasn’t close enough or focused enough to have sent her a protective bubble of levitational power. Still, everything in front of her seemed to pause for a heartbeat or two. Beyond Christian and the ebony embers of the exploding Vampire, she saw familiar faces, either staring at her in shock or just turning their eyes in her direction, realizing what was happening. Her arms flailed through air, her legs kicking as if she might gain traction and suddenly learn how to fly as they all watched her, hopeless.
She saw Cale and noted how the moonlight gleamed off of his blond hair. He had been a good friend to her when she needed him, and she hated the fact that she’d broken his heart. Christian was shouting her name; he was misunderstood, she realized that now. Her sister had been right to help him. Hannah, her strawberry-blonde hair fluttering behind her as she ran in what seemed like slow motion toward the cliff edge. She’d been Cadence’s savior after Jack died.
Eliza, a friend who had betrayed her in the worst way but then showed herself to be a force on the battlefield. Far behind her, she could see Aurora, her second in command and good friend who’d been compromised that night but was still a good person. Jamie was next to her. How many times had he saved her before? Cadence couldn’t count. He was probably the best person to ever walk the face of the earth.
Cassidy’s eyes were wide with horror as she stretched out a hand in her sister’s direction. It would be too late. Cadence knew that as she began to slip out of whatever it was keeping her hovering here for this never-ending moment. She loved Cassidy so much and only wanted the best for her. Never would she have chosen this life for her little sister, but it had worked out, and Brandon, who stood next to her, dirty from his trip down the hole, was the best thing that had ever happened to her little sis.
Elliott’s face was contorted as he stared at her, and Cadence wanted to reach out and tell him it was okay, that she’d be okay. But she wouldn’t. And she knew when her journey ended, neither would he. But he’d recover someday, wouldn’t he? He’d already lost so many people he loved. At least he had Amanda back. If Cadence had designed a person to be her best friend, she couldn’t have come up with a better one than Dr. Elliott Sanderson.
And then her eyes shifted to the most perfect, handsome face she’d ever seen. Aaron was in shock, his eyes wide, but his expression not transformed into the unrecognizable look of despair she saw on some of the others staring at her. She focused on his eyes—those piercing blue orbs that had first got her attention when she was just a human girl, before Vampires and death and portals and explosions changed her life forever. He didn’t deserve to watch another woman he loved die, and if there was anything at all she could do to go back and let Christian be the one to plant the grenade, she’d do it. He wouldn’t die from this after all. It would hurt, but he wouldn’t die.
She had a feeling she would. The fall alone couldn’t kill her. But it had been a Vampire who put her in this situation, and Vampires could kill Hunters any number of ways, including this one. As the air beneath her moved aside, letting her body slip through, Cadence’s lips shifted of their own accord. “I’m sorry.” And then, they were all gone, and there was nothing left but her and nothingness.
Looking down didn’t seem like a good idea. She’d gotten a glimpse of what lay beyond the edge of the cliff before, and she knew it was well over four hundred feet to the tops of the trees. She’d hit those first, and then, after another drop of several yards, she’d hit the solid ground. Cadence wondered if she’d still be alive for the second impact.
She’d always been afraid of falling. As her body raced toward the earth, the distance gave her time to contemplate all of the times she’d hesitated because of her disdain of great heights. When she was younger, it had been a fear of roller coasters, though she always went on them anyway so her friends wouldn’t tease her. But she’d never liked them. Once she became a little more indestructible, it hadn’t been so bad. She had no problem jumping over gates or up fire escapes. The time Aaron had thrown her out of the airplane, though, that had been scary. At least she’d had a parachute then. The ground had buckled her knee, and a memory of that pain came to mind. This would be worse....
She was almost there now. She could sense the canopy of trees beneath her, their tips pointing up like a hundred fingers heralding her arrival. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes, a thousand thoughts crowding her mind as branches and needles welcomed her, poking at her flesh, grinding into her arms, snapping beneath her weight, piercing through her leather. The pain wasn’t so bad. It was manageable. And then the ground caught her, and almost every conscious thought was thrown from her mind with the agony that riveted throughout her body. The crunch of bone breaking, skin tearing and opening, blood gushing, all of it was a roar in her ears, buried in a layer of pine needles that had not provided any sort of cushion at all.
Her eyes wanted to open. She wanted to look up and see if anyone was coming to her aid. If Jamie could toss a beam in her direction, the pain might stop. But her eyes didn’t want to cooperate, and it was just as well anyway. A blinding light seemed to radiate from just in front of her face, taking over her field of vision, even with her eyes closed. Cadence took another deep breath, rested her hands on her abdomen, and let go. One fleeting thought remained as she faded into the abyss. “What about the baby....”
