I reached for my shadows, instinctively—but the wards shoved me back again, slamming me into the psychic wall like always.
But I didn’t need them.
Maddie stepped forward, shaking, her eyes locked on Kyra as more vines twisted around the girl’s body like a straitjacket.
“Stop moving,” she said quietly.
Kyra tried to scream—only to have her voice muffled by thick, creeping tendrils.
She wasn’t going anywhere.
And now Maddie… Maddie was glowing.
When Kyra finally went limp, Maddie exhaled shakily and knelt beside me. Her fingers trembled as she picked up the fallen knife and started sawing through my bindings. She wouldn’t look at me.
The silence between us was taut—stretched thin with unspoken fear. When the last rope fell away, I touched her arm gently.
“Can you pull them back?” I asked softly.
Her violet eyes flicked to mine. She gave a single, hesitant nod.
“Do it,” I whispered.
That same low hum vibrated through the air. I watched as the vines around Kyra slithered away—receding like smoke into the cracks of the floor. Moments later, there was no trace they’d ever existed. Kyra lay unconscious and eerily still.
Maddie stood frozen, breathing hard. I wrapped my arms around her without thinking and held her tightly.
“I won’t tell,” I murmured. “I promise.”
“Elira!” Leo’s voice boomed down the hall, followed by pounding footsteps.
Maddie pulled back just as the door slammed open. Leo burst in with Thorne at his heels, both of them armed and furious.
“What the hell happened?” Thorne demanded. “Where did you go?”
Leo didn’t wait—he grabbed me in a fierce hug that knocked the wind out of me. I coughed, still dazed.
“I’m fine. Just your average impromptu murder attempt from your girlfriend,” I muttered dryly, eyeing Kyra’s limp body.
Leo blinked. “She’s not my girlfriend.”
“Then maybe someone should tell her that,” Maddie said under her breath.
“She saved my life,” I added, nodding at Maddie. “Took Kyra down before she could do anything permanent.”
Leo looked at Maddie, impressed. “Damn, Mads. You badass.”
Maddie offered a small, sheepish grin. “You know it.”
“We should get her to the infirmary,” Leo said, already stooping to lift Kyra. Maddie fell into step behind him.
I caught Thorne’s arm before he could follow. “Wait.”
He paused immediately. “Are you okay? What do you need?”
I stared up at him, at the sharp line of his jaw and the unreadable weight in his eyes. There was something in the way he watched me—too careful, too constant. It made my breath catch.
“I need a favour,” I said. “Don’t ask me any questions about it. Just trust me.”
