Replaced by His First Love
His hand gripped mine, but his touch felt thin, like I was holding onto a handful of dry leaves.
"I'm right here, Silas. Don't let go."
"I... I can't see the stairs."
"Then look at me."
I dragged him, inch by agonizing inch, across the narrowing ledge of reality. My muscles screamed. The heat coming off the mercury pillar was a physical wall, stinging my cheeks and drying the sweat on my neck until my skin felt like parchment.
We reached the base of the conduit. Up close, the mercury wasn't just light; it was a swirling vortex of stolen moments. I could see the flickers of other people's lives in the glass—weddings, hunts, first transformations—all being burned as fuel to keep this world run
Bab Populer