“I was to lead. You’re here. You pick the berries you were told.”

There was only one problem with that. “No one said anything about color-coded berries, crow woman. They just said to pick six.”

“Then pick six and be done with it.”

Nick wanted to wring the neck of that unhelpful red crow. He glanced to Livia, who was glaring at him as if she could kill him herself.

She might be one of his generals, but every part of him said that he should listen to Aeron. “Fine. Then I’m going with the one who calls this place home. If anyone should know which to pick, Aeron should be he.”

He reached for the red ones.

The moment Nick had all six in his hand, Lerabeth opened the portal back to their world.

Nick hesitated. “Can Aeron return with us?”

“I brought two in and was only told to take two out. That is all I can do.”

Nick scowled as he faced the one person he owed everything to. Without the púca they’d have never made it. It didn’t seem right to leave him here and go home after everything Aeron had done for him.

“Aeron—”

“It’s fine, boyo.” He gave Nick a cheerful smile that didn’t quite reach his pale eyes. “Give Xev me best.”

Nick nodded glumly, feeling like crap over this. It wasn’t fair or right.

But then, life seldom was.

As Nick started to turn to leave through the portal, Livia ran up to him and grabbed his Malachai dagger from his back pocket. Before he could ask her what she was doing with it, she cut his throat and vanished through the portal, then sealed it closed.

Stunned by the pain, Nick fell to his knees as he tried to stop the bleeding with his own hands. But it was useless. He was going to die.

He couldn’t believe what had just happened.

Livia had murdered him.

After everything he’d done for her.

I saved her life. Kept her from having to go back to her prison.

And this was how she repaid him. Kyrian was right. No good deed goes unpunished.

Kneeling by his side, Aeron cawed and summoned a small murder of crows to them. Since he couldn’t hold or grasp anything, he had the crows bring straw and brush to make a pillow for Nick’s head. “Breathe, Malachai, stay calm.”

Easier said than done. His senses reeled as his fury mounted over her actions. Livia had betrayed him in the worst sort of way.

The bitch had cut his throat! Literally. And left him to die alone in this realm without friend or family!

But there was nothing to be done about it. In a few minutes, he’d bleed out and be gone from this life.

Forever.