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Perrie
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How could so many cars have been destroyed? It amazed Perrie how every car they’d found had the same problem, the engine fried. So, running during the day was their only option.
The new Vale situation had started to finally hit Perrie, and it struck her hard. She didn’t show how she felt on the outside—not a single tear was shed. On the inside, however, she was screaming. She couldn’t look at Vale most of the time because it confused her more than ever—his beautiful face reminded her of August, but then she would think of the other Vale. And it wasn’t the Vale from up in the tower as one would think. It was the Vale, who in his own way, treated the Bride as his queen, his equal.
But this Vale was like neither—he was quiet, calm, and offered her apples he’d plucked from a tree. It sent a strange feeling to her chest. Needless to say, she refused the damn apples.
As they turned down a curving road, the sky above dark with flecks of stars shining, she could barely hold her eyes open. Farther up the long and narrow road sat a small wooden cabin.
“Let’s stop for the night,” Vale said, seeming to notice her tiredness. Relief washed over her when Maisie and Nev both agreed.
After breaking inside, they searched through the tiny home for something to give off light. There was only one bedroom, one bathroom, a living room, and a small nook that would be considered a kitchen. Vale stumbled on two flashlights in a kitchen drawer, which would be good enough.
Perrie’s body was too drained to shower, so she crashed on an old, cloth couch, curling on her side.
Vale plopped down on the floor beside her. Perrie’s eyes widened at him, unsure about what he thought he was doing.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Nev angrily demanded, stomping to Vale. Apparently, Nev thought the same thing.
Vale stared Nev down with a calm expression. “I am protecting Perrie.”
Perrie arched a brow. She didn’t think she needed any protecting now that the souls from the Underworld had been sent back to the Glass Vault, and she sure didn’t know if she felt comfortable with Vale lying on the floor beside her. It was fine during the day, but the night was a different matter altogether. Night was when the Bride and Vale slept in the same bed, when she rode him to bliss, when he thrust inside her until he brought her over the edge. It was when sexual desire was their only conversation. That, more than anything, scared Perrie because she could still feel that lingering chemistry between them. And she could lie to herself all she wanted, but the fact remained that she wasn’t indifferent to it.
“I don’t think so,” Nev said, taking another step toward Vale.
Vale didn’t move a muscle, not even to toss up his hand and freeze Nev in place.
“He’s fine, Neven.” Maisie tugged Nev back by the elbow.
Nev whirled around and scowled at Maisie. “What do you mean he’s fine?”
Maisie brought her thumb to her mouth and chewed on her nail, then shrugged.
Perrie didn’t have the strength to argue about any of this. “He’s fine, Nev. I have the electricity if I need to use it.”
Vale bit the side of his lip, seeming surprised by her willingness. But after being through hell after hell, she needed to face things for herself.
“We can all have a slumber party out here if it’ll make you feel better, Neven,” Maisie suggested.
“No thanks. I’m not sleeping anywhere near that bastard.” Stomping away to the single bedroom, Nev slammed the door behind him. Maisie shook her head and studied the door, frowning.
“You should probably go in there to calm him down,” Perrie said, hoping they’d have a chance to talk about their feelings for each other. “I’ll be fine.” Fine was probably exaggerating, but it was a word that had to get her through this.
Maisie nodded and exchanged a glance between them, as if she was completely fine with Vale. “If you need me, just scream. I’ll be out here in a jiffy.”
“Okay,” Perrie drawled.
Maisie closed the door to the bedroom behind her. So, she really did leave her alone with Vale. He’d been nothing but fine, so why was she worried now?
Slowly, Perrie turned and Vale met her gaze. A comforting smile crossed his lips, which provided her no comfort. Not when the image of Vale’s face between Bride’s legs slipped into her mind.
“Apple?” he asked, offering her one of those absurd ripe red ones he still had left.
“Apple.” She huffed but stretched forward and took it from his hand. She didn’t want to deny him this sacred act he’d continuously been offering her.
When Perrie bit into the apple’s suppleness, it reminded her for a second of the same damn fruit in Rapunzel’s castle back in the Glass Vault. Hurriedly, she shut the recollection out and chewed determinedly, trying to create a new memory of the fruit, as ridiculous as it might be. But it seemed to work.
“Thanks, Vale.” Perrie meant those two simple words—he may not realize the small gesture helped, but it did. Vale had faced cruel things too, and she needed to remember that.
“You are welcome.” His green gaze locked onto hers, and she studied the red apple.
Perrie finished half the fruit and glanced up at Vale, who hadn’t stopped watching her eat. But he wasn’t staring at her, he was staring at the apple.
“Next time, just let me know if you want to eat it.” She let out a small laugh that surprised her and handed over the half-eaten apple.
Eyes practically twinkling, Vale bit right into the thin skin. “This is a new experience for me—eating fruit first hand.”
“What?” Perrie slapped the couch and lurched forward. “You’ve never had fruit?”
“I have never had anything. When I lived in the Underworld, there was nothing. We do not have to eat, remember?” He winked.
Did he just wink at me? Okay, I think I need to sleep now. “Well, I guess we’ll have to find more fruit for you to try.” Perrie lay back down so he’d get the hint that she was done talking for now. But a part of her wanted to keep the conversation going.
“Good night, Perrie,” he murmured, his voice sad.
“Good night,” she said, fingers twitching at her sides. Closing her eyes, Perrie listened to each crunch as Vale chewed the fruit, until the sound stopped. She heard rustling as he nestled onto the hardwood flooring, his breathing turning slow and deep.
Perrie rolled to her side and opened her eyes, unable to sleep. She couldn’t relax. Her heart thundered. She held out her hand defensively in case Bad Vale crept out and she needed to electrocute his heart to a crisp. Another part of her sang inside her head that he was fine. Is that Maisie singing in my brain?
After a while of lying there restless with her newly-acquired paranoia, Vale began tossing and turning. Perrie started to reach out to wake him, but decided not to as soon as he settled into a curled ball. He looked ... helpless. Taking a deep swallow, she pulled her hand back but still left it open, just in case, as she fell asleep.
The day had been a blur of feelings. With the absence of glass statues out in the open, it only reminded Perrie that those people weren’t coming back. Her family wasn’t coming back. It was going to haunt her for a long time, but when she looked at Maisie and Nev, she held hope. When she looked at Vale, on the other hand, her emotions were scattered, especially when she thought about that morning.
Something poked Perrie’s arm and she groggily peeled open her eyes. Her gaze settled on Vale and she smiled.
She should’ve been terrified when she’d woken, but oddly enough, that emotion hadn’t stirred in that moment. As the day went on, she constantly caught herself glancing in Vale’s direction, then she got irritated at herself for staring. His movements were strong, graceful, and the way his eyes took in the world was as if he recognized it yet found a newness there.
As the night unfolded, they stopped at an empty house with a musky odor. Nev and Maisie claimed a set of bunk beds in a kids’ room, leaving only one bed remaining.
“Do you need new sheets?” Perrie asked with a grin.
Maisie waved her off. “I’ll make due. Might have to take them off like last night though.”
Nev rolled his gaze toward the ceiling and Perrie shook her head as she left to go and get cleaned up.
“You can take the other bed,” Vale whispered as she passed him in the hall. She was about to argue when he’d already gone into the living room.
After a long, cold shower, involving too much damn thinking, she headed down the hall to the master bedroom. She halted when she stepped into the room and found Vale with his eyes open, curled up in a snug ball on the floor. Her heart beat with a familiar thump as she stared at him, and she pushed it away.
“You know you can sleep on the bed or the couch if you want?” She didn’t mind sleeping on the couch. In her opinion, it was just as good as a bed.
Vale lifted his blond head to look at her, his lids half-closed. “I am fine right here, and I want to make sure you are safe.” A tired smile crossed his lips.
That again? Hesitating for a moment, Perrie decided to ask if he wanted to share the bed. It was a king-size mattress with plenty of room, as strange as it still would be. After the night before, she wasn’t scared to sleep beside him. If for some reason his heartbeat shut off, she would be ready to flip the switch.
“Um, you can sleep up here if you want, Vale. You don’t have to sleep on the floor. There’s plenty of room.” Perrie hopped onto the bed and lightly tapped the mattress.
He shook his head. “I am already used to the ground, no need to worry.”
Used to the ground? How often had he slept on the floor? But she didn’t ask as she slipped beneath the covers and shut her eyes.
Perrie laid there for what felt like a fucking month, staring up at the darkness above, her head spinning with too many thoughts. She wondered if anyone would ever return to these cities she’d helped destroy, or if they would always remain empty.
A cool breeze drifted through the cracked-open window. Perrie rolled to her side and pulled the thick blanket up higher, thinking about what Vale had said. They could either remain immortal or move on to the other side ... wherever souls go. After all she’d done, she hoped she didn’t get shoved down into the Underworld, but she wasn’t willing to go anywhere yet.
A tiny whimper interrupted her thoughts, and Perrie jerked up in bed. She scanned the dark room, thinking she’d imagined it, when the sound came again ... from Vale on the floor.
Last night, he’d tossed and turned for hours. He hadn’t been moaning like this, though.
With a heavy sigh, Perrie threw off the blanket and left the comfort of the bed. She shut the window, then rubbed her own arms to warm them. Her gaze dropped to the floor where Vale’s otherworldly face seemed to glow beneath the moon’s silvery light, as if it was giving him his own spotlight. Should she let him continue sleeping, or wake him? He shivered, and another soft sound of pain slipped out from his mouth. Wake him, it is.
Perrie gently nudged his leg with her foot, waiting for him to stir. Vale didn’t, so she nudged him again, a bit firmer this time. A small sob escaped him, yet his eyes stayed tightly sealed. Her chest tightened as she studied him, something akin to sympathy taking root inside her. He looked so helpless, just like the night before. Why couldn’t she shut off her feelings?
Then she thought of the Bride, and she wouldn’t ever want to turn that emotion or any other one off ever again. She wanted to feel everything.
Perrie didn’t know why she did it, but maybe because the human side of her ached to come out. Or maybe, because Vale had comforted her the other day in the street, or maybe it was just the familiarity of him.
Either way, she took a deep breath and lowered herself behind him on the carpet. She shifted closer and draped her arm around his waist. Her breathing hitched as he took her hand and slid it to his chest over his own heartbeat, like she was his salvation. Maybe she was? Did he even have anyone? Perrie still had Maisie and Nev, but she didn’t know who he had.
Vale’s heart increased against her palm, and she lifted her head to peer down at his sleeping face. He wasn’t asleep though—he was smiling, his eyes almost fully open. Perrie yanked her hand back.
“Did you just fake all that to get me down here?” She frowned while hovering over him. If he did, she would kick him outside.
“Pretend to do what?” His expression turned serious as his eyes met hers. Maybe he wasn’t pretending...
Her frown left her face and she bit the inside of her cheek. “You were crying in your sleep.”
“Oh. I was having a nightmare.” He rolled over to face her.
Perrie studied the loose lock of hair that fell over his eye, but she left it where it was. Even though her fingers ached to push it back. She adjusted herself on the floor and propped her head in her hand. “Demons can have nightmares?”
A dark blond eyebrow drew up. “Well, I do sleep, don’t I?”
“I find that odd too.” Before, she wouldn’t have imagined a demon could sleep, let alone have a bad dream.
“That I sleep?” He let out a low chuckle.
“Yes!” Perrie whisper-shouted and threw her other hand up.
“You’re immortal and you still sleep.”
“But that’s completely different.” It was way different. She’d at least been born on Earth, so if she slept here before, it made sense that she still would.
The edges of Vale’s lips tugged to the side. “Not really.”
“Um, yeah it is.”
“We both don’t age and live forever. It’s the same.” They could argue about this all night, but he did have a point.
“So, you were born this size?” I mean, was he even born like humans are?
He chewed on his lip. “No, I was born a baby, like you.”
“Before this gets any more weird, how old are you really?” she prodded. “You aren’t eighteen, are you?”
“No.” He adjusted himself so his head was propped up too.
“Please don’t tell me you’re like five-hundred years old.” It was already fucked up that she’d had sex with a demon, but if he was some ancient age, she’d be nauseous.
His grin grew wide. “I am nineteen.”
“You could’ve said that right away instead of just saying ‘no.’” Perrie smacked his arm and laughed. Realizing she so flippantly hit him, she tucked her hand between her waist and the floor to prevent that from happening again.
“What about family? Friends?” She thought about Fannie who’d followed him around endlessly, but she didn’t want to bring that bitch up. The thought of Fannie made her want to find her, then electrocute her over and over. Perrie supposed she did have that aspect in common with the Bride.
The half-smile faded away, and he shook his head. “I’ve never had any. My father murdered my mother after he found out she had given birth to a demon with a heartbeat. It had never happened before, but with how powerful I could become, he wouldn’t have her whispering ways to turn me against him. Father would shut my heartbeat down every time it would emerge, until finally, he found a way to turn it off permanently, or at least he thought he did.”
“No friends ever?” Her jaw dropped, taken aback that he was nineteen and never had a single friend, regardless of where he was from. She didn’t know much about his father, but he already sounded like an asshole.
“None.”
“Oh.” Her chest felt as though it had been punctured, the air slowly leaking.
He lifted his shoulder and shrugged. “It is okay. I have the memories of you, so I know what it is like to have a friend.”
Perrie didn’t feel like that was the same thing at all, not in the slightest. “Well, I’ll be your friend.” She was surprised by her suggestion, but she believed he needed one.
“I will take what I can get.” He chuckled and rolled over.
Perrie started to push off the floor and return to bed, but he wrapped her arm back around his waist.
“What are you doing?” she asked, not sure if she should be feeling uncomfortable about this whole situation, but she didn’t.
“Friends help friends, so you can stay holding onto me to keep the nightmares at bay.”
“I think this is just a way to keep me down here holding onto you.” A laugh forced its way out from her throat.
“Perhaps,” he said, giving her a smug look. Maybe he could help keep her nightmares from making an appearance too. She thought of Officer Rodriguez and what they’d both done to her. She closed her eyes to escape the woman’s frightened face. Perrie and Vale had been through the evilest of things together, and they both needed those memories to stay away.
As soon as her forehead pressed into his warm neck, she drifted to sleep. All her thoughts eroded not into a nightmare, but a dream.
Something tapped Perrie’s bare foot, and she drowsily kicked at it. Then the quick pressure came again, and she blinked her eyes open. Maisie hovered over her, smiling, while Perrie was still clamped onto Vale. His lids were already open like he’d been lying there a long time.
Perrie quickly removed her arm, and, with a smile, focused on Maisie. “Did you really have to tap my foot to wake me?”
Maisie gave her a sheepish look. “Neven said you were taking too long, and we need to get moving.” Perrie glanced toward the door, finding Nev staring at her and Vale with his brows up his forehead. You would think he just found Vale and me naked together.
Then Perrie remembered how they’d been like that in the past, in every which way possible. The breath in her lungs seemed to constrict, and she pressed a palm to her chest, the memories playing over and over. The sex. The blood. The glass. The deaths. Their romance...
Vale’s expression turned concerned, and Maisie knelt beside Perrie, taking hold of her hand. Perrie didn’t rip it away, even though she wanted to melt to the floor like the glass statues had done the other day. She wanted to vanish from everything and everyone.
“Can I have a few minutes with Perrie before we leave?” Vale asked. “Please?”
“It’s fine,” Perrie rushed out.
Maisie pursed her lips and nodded, while Nev narrowed his eyes at Vale before following her cousin out of the room.
“What is wrong? And do not try to tell me everything is okay.” Vale propped his back against the bed, leaving her enough room to breathe.
Perrie was going to be honest with him. The way she was with everyone, especially her friends. “I was thinking about before. With August—with you.”
She didn’t have to say anymore—he knew exactly what she’d meant as his throat bobbed with a hard swallow. “I am sorry about that. He—he did a terrible thing in the tower. It feels like my fault, if only I had found a way to have not let my father shut off my heart.” Terrible wasn’t quite the word she would use, but it hadn’t been him.
“It’s not your fault.” Perrie took a few shallow breaths before continuing. “The first time with August, I wanted to, but the outcome afterward wasn’t the best.” She could’ve used a more descriptive sentence of how she really felt, like how she’d been hollow and powerless as she was dragged naked across the floor. Then when her throat was slit, and she was still inside, she only wanted death. He knew this. And she didn’t want to make him feel any more self-loathing than he already did because he knew what that Vale did.
“The other times as the Bride...” Perrie trailed off.
But she needed to talk to him about this because he was the only one who knew how she felt. Maisie might say she understood, but she really wouldn’t because she wasn’t in Perrie’s head. And Nev? He would just threaten Vale even more. They wouldn’t understand. She knew it wasn’t just the Perrie show here—they’d all been through horrific things. But she couldn’t get past her damn emotions as easily as Maisie and Nev.
“Vale? Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“When we were um, together, as the Bride and Bad Vale ... I know with every fiber in me that we both wanted each other, every single time. It was never a one-way street. I wanted you and you wanted me. It was like the darkest parts of ourselves chose it, so it wasn’t ever a violation. Or was it? Since we didn’t choose to have our emotions taken away. You didn’t choose to have your heart shut off.” She paused. “How do you feel about it?”
Vale ran his hands through his hair and avoided her gaze. “I don’t really know. I have never had intimacies with anyone when I was me, but I have all these memories and feelings of being with others—with you. Most of my life has been without anything being my choice.”
Perrie inhaled sharply. She might’ve been through hell herself, but he’d really gone through it. He had lived there.
“And, maybe it is wrong,” Vale continued, “but I am glad I have the memories of you. Not the ones after the Glass Vault, but all the ones leading up to it, including when we were together inside the museum getting through all of it side by side. Even the simplest ones where we sat on the couch in your home watching old movies together. I know it wasn’t me with you, but those memories ... those memories are holding me together. It is the one thing I have that is good. I may not be someone you would like to be around, but I want to do the same for you. If you need it, I want to help hold you together with new memories. Although, I know you don’t need me. You are strong enough to do it without anyone.”
Perrie remained quiet, but she managed to give him a small smile. His words sank in and she wanted to be brave for herself, but she wasn’t sure if her pieces would stay glued together.
Earlier that day, everyone remained mostly silent while they covered a great distance. As they got closer to the Glass Vault, the world appeared even more broken, catastrophic. Every tree was ripped from the ground and thrown like twigs—not a single trunk still stood. Power lines were scattered all around, and almost every house and building lay in shambles.
Perrie stayed focused, quiet, just to make it through the day.
They stopped at a house for the night with several outer walls torn off, but it still stood, so that was good enough. After two more nights, they would be at the Glass Vault.
Maisie went into the bathroom to take a shower, while Vale headed into a bedroom. Nev still hadn’t come inside, so Perrie opened the door to find him sitting outside on a porch step. He hadn’t even tried to speak to her that day.
She shut the door behind her and asked, “What’s going on?”
Nev stared at a hummingbird yard decoration and watched its spinning wings before turning to her with a frown. “No. What’s going on with you? You and Vale were cuddled up together on the floor this morning. You do realize this is all his fault, and everything we’ve suffered through is because of him.”
With a sigh, she sat beside him on the porch. “Vale isn’t the Vale you hate. He may still be a demon, but I’m starting to trust him.”
“Like you trusted August?”
It felt as though she’d just been slapped. “That’s not fair, Nev. He has no one.”
“But how do you even know he’s not worse than before?” His stare became hard, as if the answers would all pour out from her soul, but she didn’t have them. If he was going to accuse Vale, then he would have to blame her and Maisie, too. They were all a part of this, whether they’d known it or not.
“I don’t. The thing is, I’ve been through a lot. You and Maisie have been through just as much, but I can’t live my life wondering if Bad Vale will come back or if things may get worse. I’m giving him this one chance, but believe me, if a third Vale pops out or if this one goes hostile, there will be no more chances.”
“I just can’t see you get hurt again. I don’t want him to do that to you.” Nev fidgeted with his hands as he studied her.
“It isn’t like that, Nev.”
He cocked his head and lifted a brow.
She mirrored his movement right back at him. “It isn’t!”
“Maisie and I have your back no matter what, Perrie.”
Her heartbeat sped up. The two of them meant everything to her—they were her family. “I know you guys do.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and held him tight while he ran his hand through her hair, comforting her.
“But I still don’t trust him.”
“You don’t have to, Nev.”
They sat on the porch and stared up at the night sky for a long time, just shooting the shit, until Perrie finally decided to head back into the house. She found Vale still in the bedroom, curled on his side on the floor. His apparent routine shouldn’t have surprised her, but it still did. I’m only staying in here with him in case he needs my electricity to revive him. Or that was what she told herself anyway.
After maybe two minutes of resting in the bed, Perrie sighed and dragged her pillow down beside him. “Okay, so tell me what the deal is with the floor? Why do you insist on sleeping like this?”
The wooden floor was hard against her back, so she wasn’t quite sure why the hell anyone would want to sleep on it versus a soft bed.
Vale rolled over to face her with a weak smile. “It is what I am used to. I have always slept on the ground. I remember him sleeping on mattresses outside the Underworld, but I never have.”
Perrie’s heart sank to the pit of her stomach as she thought about what he’d just confessed.
“Do you want to now? Everyone needs a chance to melt into a mattress.” She tugged lightly on his shirt. “You can test it out for yourself. I’ll even stay down here while you sleep.”
“That would be a stupid idea. Down here is where all the fun happens.” He softly patted the wood several times.
“What fun? Bad back fun?” Perrie laughed.
He chewed on his lip in thought. “Re-energized fun.”
“That doesn’t even make sense. You can get re-energized even better on a soft mattress.” Perrie motioned at the bed.
“You can go back up there if you want.” Something in his voice seemed to yearn for her to stay.
“No. I think I’ll stay down here and keep you company.” She rubbed a hand across the wood as if it was her new best friend.
“Roll over.”
“Why?” Perrie blinked, twice.
“Do you question everything? Roll over.”
She wrinkled her nose, then awkwardly rolled to her side. He folded his arm around her waist, and she melted into his warmth.
Time slowed, and Perrie flipped back over to face Vale as she recalled a moment she’d had with him when she was Bride. “It was you that night, wasn’t it? The kiss. Your heartbeat fainter, but it was still you.”
He didn’t answer, and she thought he may not, until he did. “It was. I thought I was hallucinating—I wasn’t fully aware of everything because my heart was sluggish.” His gaze dropped to her lips, becoming hooded, before focusing back on her eyes. “Now, roll over, I’m going to keep your nightmares away tonight.”
Perrie wanted to forget about that sweet moment with his mouth against hers, tasting, caressing. But it continued to linger as it was now her turn for her gaze to fall to his mouth. So, she rolled over.
After they woke this morning, it was another uneventful journey with no sign of life anywhere. Not even a bird, stray cat, or dog. Only emptiness. An ugly quiet that Perrie could feel down to her bones. Chill after chill slithered up her spine, and it felt more and more like a movie she’d seen that she never would’ve expected to be real.
As night started to fall, and their bodies grew tired, they stopped for their final night at an old apartment complex with half the building still intact.
“You can have the bedroom,” Maisie said, not taking no for an answer. Nev stayed with her cousin while Perrie headed into the room.
It was small with band posters covering every inch of the walls. She ignored the smoky odor lingering in the room as she peered around. A vintage stereo system took up the corner and hundreds of vinyl rested in blue plastic crates. Plaid sheets sat in a heap at the end of the bed.
Before Vale could be the first to achieve floor status, Perrie positioned herself on the carpet as he got out of the shower, his soft steps sounding down the hallway. He came to a stop in the doorway when his gaze fell to her, amusement dancing in his eyes. Instead of meeting her on the carpet, Vale closed the door and dove straight onto the twin-size bed. The springs squeaked with the bounce from his weight.
“I think I will take the bed tonight.” He peered over the edge, and a grin spread across his face.
Shrugging, Perrie smiled back. “That means the floor is all mine.” She stretched her body against the thick carpet.
“We may have to switch positions.” In a flash, Vale leapt from the bed, swooped her off the floor, and tossed her on the mattress, her body bouncing two full times before she could process what the hell had just happened.
Perrie laughed a real laugh and rolled to the edge of the bed. She found Vale already on his side with his arm up, ready for her to crawl in. As she hopped off the mattress and curled up beside him on the floor, she told herself the main reason she was indulging him was because this had been keeping her nightmares at bay. But she knew deep down that wasn’t the only reason...
After she was cozily tucked into his side, a low muffle escaped Vale’s throat. She stilled, then flipped around to face him. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry,” he rasped. Tears streamed down his face as he sat up, then turned away from her.
Perrie’s shoulders slumped, and she didn’t want to tell him it was okay because nothing was okay. She scooted beside him as he brought his hands to his face and sobbed into them. Tears pricked at her eyes and streamed down her cheeks when she thought about what he’d done, what she’d done, what they’d done together. It may not have been them, but it hurt like it was.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Perrie pulled him toward her and lay his head in her lap, letting him cry while she stroked his rumpled hair. Everything was catastrophic and nothing was their fault, but it was. His hand squeezed her knee as his warm tears fell harder.
“I am so messed up. I did such terrible things while I was in the Underworld with my father—when I was him. I keep hearing the screams down there when he would perform unmentionable acts of cruelty on the corrupt souls. I hear you scream, too. I—I do not know how to repair myself.”
“Look at me.” Perrie gently lifted his chin. “I hear screams too from when I was the Bride. I may not know everything about you, but we have been through a lot together, and we are going to get through this together. Maisie will help you, too. Nev might need a lot more time.”
Vale’s laugh was half sob because they both knew how Nev felt about him.
“If it comforts you at all, the Bride would’ve loathed this version of Vale. She would’ve fought to have her Vale back by any means necessary, far worse than anything he’d ever done.” Perrie continued to stroke his hair, and with her free hand, she brushed the scar at her throat. The raised skin reminded her every day of a time in her life she ached to forget, but it was also something she needed to remind her how she could overcome anything.
Vale’s gaze found hers. “He was going to tell her, you know. He was going to tell her every single thing he had ever done in order to bring her to life.”
“I know. She told him to tell her in the morning, but I had already gotten my memories back.”
Vale stayed silent.
“She wouldn’t have hated him,” Perrie said softly. “She would’ve thanked him and loved him even more because if he hadn’t done it, she wouldn’t have existed. And together they could be even stronger.”
A palpable instant passed between Perrie and Vale as he murmured, “He loved her. That emotion may not have been possible for either one of them, but somehow it existed in its own way.”
Perrie looked out the window at the night sky, and it was just as dark as their alters’ hearts had been. “Everything in the world could burn except for the two of them and that would be perfect. A twisted romance that would be a superb movie. Now, roll over. I think you need to be held tonight more than I do.”
“And in the end, they could both be happy,” Vale whispered quietly, so quietly that she wasn’t sure if he’d meant for her to hear him. But she knew he was no longer talking about Bad Vale or Bride, he was talking about them.
Tomorrow they would reach the Glass Vault, and once the museum was gone, maybe they could start to truly heal.
