by Megan Tayte
I did not black out, though I wished that I could. I lay on my back, half-buried in lath and plaster, staring at the dancing flames reflected in the glass of the framed photographs on the mantelpiece. My grandparents. Luke and Cara. Sienna and me in the meadow at Hollythwaite. She was smiling. She was beckoning.
Someone said my name.
Darkness loomed over me.
Death, come for me. I couldn’t see him, I couldn’t see through the smoke and the pain and the horror, but I knew him.
I tried to struggle, I tried to shout for Luke, for Jude, for Luke. But his hand was over my mouth and his knee was on my chest, pressing me down, down, down into the fiery pit of hell.
*
Scarlett! Is she… oh God, please, no, no, don’t take her, please.
She’s alive, Luke. Now hold her and lie still while I heal you.
Not me, her! Heal her!
There, it’s done. Your leg was broken, but –
Scarlett, Scarlett... Jude, quickly! Heal her!
I already did what I could for her, Luke, as I brought her out. The smoke inhalation. The injuries.
What? But look at her! She’s not healed!
No, she’s not.
Try again. Try again!
I’ve done all I can for her. I can’t heal what’s killing her. I never could.
Killing her – no – not now.
I’m sorry, Luke. She’s not going to get up and walk away from this.
How can she be dying?
Because it’s her time.
But it was meant to be peaceful. Beautiful! She can’t die like this! You have to do something, Jude – please, I’m begging you.
I can’t help her now, I can’t. I’m sorry. I can’t even take away the pain in her head.
Pain? She’s in pain? Oh God. We have to do something.
There’s nothing we can do. Just be with her and wait until...
No. No! That is NOT what she wanted. If you can’t heal her, if this is the end, then it has to be the way she wanted it! She didn’t want suffering. Waiting. When it came to this, she wanted what Sienna had.
What? No.
Yes.
You’ve misunderstood, Luke. Scarlett and I talked about it. You shall not kill – the most fundamental law. She believed in that.
Once, maybe. Not any more. She has morphine ready. She was going to inject herself.
She can’t do that!
No, she can’t. Not now. But… God help me, I can.
Luke – you can’t!
I can’t give her the passing she wanted, that she deserves?
You can’t kill her!
Then you do it.
What?
She told me: a Cerulean can preserve life, and he can take it away. You’re the one taking her from me. So go all the way, Jude. I will hold her in my arms and I will love her and I will say goodbye. And you use your light to end her suffering. Take her – do it! Do what you came here to do.
I can’t, Luke!
You won’t.
Because it’s –
Don’t you dare say ‘wrong’. Don’t you dare. Screw your principles. I have only one: love Scarlett.
Sirens. They can’t find us here. They’ll take her to the hospital – she can’t die there – her body, her mother... We have to move.
Then it’s time to make a choice. Help us, or judge us.
What do you need me to do?
My house. Kitchen drawer. By the stove. Wooden box containing a syringe and vial. Go now and get it.
Where will I meet you?
The cliff path.
I can take you there now, both of you.
No. I will carry Scarlett.
*
An angel released me from hell. He called my name, and commanded me to come to him, and I glided upwards on wings that were singed but magnificent.
The heaven he called me to was everything I’d dreamed of. Home – that place of sand and rocks and water and sky, so much sky.
Beautiful.
But the angel was crying. And his promises were broken by the breeze:
love you...
hold you...
remember...
always...
sunrise...
waves...
eternity...
field...
forget-me-nots...
Scarlett...
Scarlett...
There was a moment of clarity, of brilliance, and I remembered his name, Luke, and I remembered its meaning, giver of light. And my soul cried out for that light.
But the breeze became a wind, and the wind became a spirit, and it tore me from his arms and cast me out of heaven. As I fell – flew – fell into the sky the last I saw of that world was three figures on a clifftop at sunrise. A boy, head bowed, sobbing, holding a girl in his arms who was quiet now, sleeping now; and to their side another boy, holding the girl’s hand and looking up, looking at me.
In the fathomless sky all was light. And the white was release, but the blue was salvation. So I chose it. I opened my heart, and I let all that was blue flood into me, Become me.
The hand in mine was warm and steady. I clung to it, and it led me away. Away from all that had been so right, so precious. Away from the unbearable beauty of being. Away, into the wild blue yonder.
***
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Thank you for taking the time to read Forget Me Not, the second book in my Ceruleans series. I hope the ending hasn’t left you in a puddle of tears, shouting ‘Luuuuuuuke’ into the wind. But if you are feeling a little bereft and blue, then I suggest you follow the British mantra ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’… with the next book.
The Ceruleans story began with Book 1: Death Wish, and it continues as follows:
Book 3: Wild Blue Yonder
Book 4: Devil and the Deep
Book 5: Darkly, Deeply, Beautifully
You can access all my books via my Amazon author page, and get the lowdown on me, my writing and the inspirations for The Ceruleans over at www.megantayte.com.
And finally, did you know I’m an indie author? That means on top of writing and editing my books, I design, publish and market them myself. But when it comes to getting the word out about my books, I’m very fortunate to have a little help. A growing number of readers support me by posting reviews of my books online and asking fellow bookworms, ‘Hey, have you read any Megan Tayte…?’ If you’re one of those readers then thank you – you’re the reason I often do this [dances it out to Ed Sheeran’s ‘Sing’].
With best wishes,
Megan
CONTENTS
PART 1: AURORA
1: WISH
2: DEATH KNELL
3: LUKE’S SCARLETT
4: SOME KIND OF SORCERER
5: THUNDER AND LIGHTNING
6: UNORDINARY
7: CAKE OR DEATH
8: DON’T LET GO
9: THE STUFF OF STORIES
10: STRINGS
11: LATER
12: SOMEONE… BAD
13: FAMILY LOYALTY
14: NEVER SAY NEVER
15: SERVIAM
16: HOPE
17: LOST AND FOUND
18: SUNSET
19: SACRIFICE
20: SUNRISE
PART 2: MERIDIAN
21: WOW
22: NICE KNOWING YOU
23: SINCE
24: DON’T STOP ME NOW
25: CLUB INFINITY
26: THAT’S THE SPIRIT
27: IF ONLY
28: PETER BLAKE’S GRANDDAUGHTER
29: SACRED
30: TYGER, TYGER
31: MIDDAY SUN
32: DON’T YOU EVER
33: LITTLE WHITE LIES
34: REMORSE
PART 3: EVENTIDE
35: WHAT IS RIGHT
36: FRIEND, FOE
37: DONE
38: ON MY WAY
39: SINGING IN THE RAIN
40: ELIZABETH
41:
COME FIND ME
42: LET ME
43: NOW OR NEVER
44: HOLY CARDEA
45: TALKING LIKE GROWNUPS
46: OHHHHHHHHHH
47: IN HIS ARMS
48: TODAY
49: ALWAYS
50: KINDLING
51: WHEN ANGELS CRY
AUTHOR’S NOTE
