Where The Ice Gives Way Chapter 65

**Blake**

Charlotte’s body sways once where she stands, her eyes still fixed on Arun like some part of her has not fully come back into the room yet. I step in fast, one hand catching her waist while Charlie takes her other side. Up close, I can feel the change in her straight away. Her skin has gone cool beneath my hand, and her breathing comes quicker now. There is a heaviness to the way she leans into us that was not there when we walked out here. *Easy.* Mum’s voice slips through my mind, soft and firm all at once. *Be careful with her. That kind of power will drain her quickly.* I tighten my hold on Charlotte and glance once toward Mum over the top of her bowed head. She is already turning back toward Arun with Dad and John, but I catch the tension in her face before she looks away. Charlie shifts Charlotte’s weight a little higher under his arm as we turn her toward the house. His jaw is tight; hell, his whole body is tight. *What’s wrong with her?* He asks through the bond, his gaze cutting to mine.

*Mum thinks using that power drained her.* I send back.

Charlotte’s steps are uneven across the snow, her shoes dragging slightly through the thin white layer as Charlie and I guide her over the yard. Her head stays bowed, pale hair falling forward, and now and then, I feel the little give in her knees before she catches herself again. By the time we hit the back steps, I am done letting her walk. I bend and lift her in one clean movement. She lets out the smallest breath of surprise, and one hand catches weakly at my shoulder, but she does not argue. She folds in against me like she has nothing left for it, her forehead dropping near my collarbone while Charlie pulls the door open ahead of us.

“She needs sugar,” Charlie says immediately, coming in right behind us. “And water.” I head straight for the bench and set Charlotte carefully on the kitchen counter, my hands staying on her waist for half a second longer to make sure she is steady before I let go. She slumps forward almost straight away, and Charlie steps in. With one hand braced against her back, her forehead drops against his chest. The sight of it tightens something hot and ugly behind my ribs. If this is what it does to her, then I don’t care if every rogue stays lost. She looks like the strength has been pulled clean out of her, and I hate that.

I turn to the fridge, yank it open, and grab the first block of chocolate I see from the shelf inside. When I look back, Charlie is smoothing one hand over the back of her hair, his face pale with worry. I break off two pieces and step in close. “Eat,” I say softly. She does not move. I lift the chocolate closer to her mouth. “Lotty.” Her lashes lift halfway. She looks dazed, and her mouth opens just enough for me to press the chocolate to her lips. After a second, she takes it. I quickly turn to get a glass of water and hold it to Charlotte’s mouth once she finishes chewing. “Drink.” She obeys that too, swallowing in small, careful mouthfuls while Charlie keeps her upright. Colour starts creeping back into her cheeks after a minute or two. It’s not much, but it’s enough to calm Lex from taking over and destroying every threat to her. “Can you stand?” I ask. She blinks at me, then gives the smallest nod. Charlie and I each take an arm again. She slides off the counter more than climbs down, and the second her feet hit the floor, she sags between us. I catch her around the waist before her knees can give.

We steer her through to the living room, and I lower Charlotte onto the middle cushion. She folds there bonelessly, all the fight gone from her body. “Blanket,” I tell Charlie. He is already moving before I finish the word. He comes back with the thick grey one from the armchair and drapes it over Charlotte first, then over himself as he drops onto the cushion at her other side. She turns into him almost straight away, her head settling against his shoulder. He tucks the blanket more securely around both of them with a look on his face that says he would quite happily bite anyone who came too close right now. I sit on her other side and watch as Charlie pushes the hair from her face. “You okay, Lotty?” he asks quietly. Her lashes flutter. “I don’t know.” Her voice is soft and rough and tired in a way that sits badly in my chest. Charlie glances at me over the top of her head, and I can read exactly what is moving through him because it is not far from what is moving through me. There’s a sharp helplessness that comes when someone you care about does something impossible, and all you can do is stand there and watch it take its piece from them.

Mum comes in with another glass of water and sets it on the coffee table in front of us. She crouches in front of Charlotte and smooths a hand over her knee through the blanket. “You did beautifully,” she says. Charlotte’s eyes close again. “What did I do?” No one answers straight away. Because what answer is there? You howled with the voice of a white wolf and pulled a man back from the edge of himself. You changed the shape of everything we know about rogues. Mum only brushes a strand of hair back from Charlotte’s face and says, very gently, “Something big.” Charlotte lets out a breath and sinks a little further into Charlie’s side. I look at her then, at the pale sweep of her hair against the dark blanket, the way the morning light catches on her lashes. The fragile heaviness in her body after all that power and sound and impossible grace. She is changing things already. Charlie shifts under the blanket and lowers his voice. “She needs sleep.”

“She’ll get it,” Mum says. I lean forward, pick up the water, and hold it out toward Charlotte. “One more sip.” Her eyes open halfway. She looks at me, then at the glass, then takes it with both hands and drinks because I asked her to.

I do not know why that small obedience hits me so hard, but I like that she trusts me. When she gives the glass back, I set it down and pull the blanket a little higher over her shoulder. Her eyes stay on me for one quiet second. Then she looks away and nestles back against Charlie. I should be jealous of that. Instead, all I feel is relief that she has somewhere soft to fall. Mum moves around the room, dimming the lights and quietly softening the whole space. I know now, nothing will ever be the same. Charlotte is going to change everything.