Nightfall (KotLC)

Chapter 28

Btw thank you guys so much for 4K reads! I'm not going to do a bonus update this time because I just don't have time, but I really do appreciate it. Thank you!!!!! <3

Tam's brow was furrowed. He had been trying for the past ten minutes to lift the shadow veil in Prentice's mind so Sophie could look at his memories, but he was having a lot of trouble.

He pulled back, panting. "This one is really hard to lift. I tried everything I could think of, but even when I mentioned Sophie nothing happened."

"Let me try!" Sophie insisted, for the third time that evening. (A/N Honestly I forgot what time it is at this point. The past like 10 chapters have all been the same day I think, so let's pretend it's the evening. Please let me know if I'm wrong!)

"Fine," Tiergan grudgingly agreed.

A tad too excited to be looking through a broken mind, Sophie placed her fingers on Prentice's temples. She felt the Cognate rings click together as Fitz placed his hands over hers. She pushed her consciousness into Prentice's mind.

Darkness.

Of course, there had always been darkness in all the broken minds she had been in. But this felt... different, somehow. Emptier.

She transmitted everything she could think of to get any response. Prentice! Wylie! Jolie! Black Swan! Nothing seemed to be working.

She pulled back, discouraged. Tiergan, seeing that she hadn't made any progress, turned to talk to the rest of the Collective.

An idea formed in her mind. It wasn't what the Collective wanted her to do. And it wasn't necessarily even safe. But when was anything she ever did safe? She grabbed Fitz's hand to get his attention, and transmitted her plan. His eyes grew wider with each word. Trust me, she added at the end.

I trust you, he replied, and they turned back to Prentice. Sophie pressed her fingers on his temples, and Fitz put his fingers over hers. She pushed her consciousness into his mind one last time.