The voice that whispered close beside his ear belonged to someone whose heart, he could somehow tell, carried a pain and regret beyond measure.
Azriel froze there, his mouth hanging half open, his body trembling faintly.
I am sorry.
...He had not expected those words to leave her mouth.
Azriel was caught entirely off guard. He looked down at the arms wrapped around his chest in a tight embrace he could not hope to escape, and bit down hard into his own lip, the metallic tang of his own blood rising almost immediately. Her arms were pale, nearly bloodless, and yet flawless, untouched by any blemish at all.
Azriel opened his mouth a little further, then closed it again. He repeated the motion several times before finally summoning the strength to voice the one thought that remained to him.
"Let..." His voice came out husky. "Let go... of me..."
