Fire screamed through twisting currents of air, and the forcefield started cracking. Tiny hairline fractures splintered across its surface.
“Yes,” I breathed. “Yes, break?—”
Rack dropped to one knee. My stomach lurched instantly.
I sprinted toward him and caught his shoulder just as blood trickled from one nostril. His breathing came rough and uneven now. He’d used too much magic and was burning through himself.
“I can do it,” he rasped immediately before I could speak. His whole body shook while he forced his hands higher. “I can do it,” he repeated.
The determination in his voice hit harder than the magic itself. Nothing existed for him right now except saving Olivia.
Inside the weakening barrier, the human suddenly turned toward the slab and froze. Olivia was gone.
“You bitch!” he screamed, wildly spinning around the chamber to search for her. “Get back here!”
The barrier shattered.
At the exact same moment, Olivia exploded upward from beneath the slab, knife in hand, and launched herself onto his back, burying the blade deep between his ribs.
The human screamed violently while collapsing forward, and so did Rack.
I barely caught him before his face hit the floor. His body sagged heavily against me, his breathing thin and ragged.
“Is she safe?” he whispered immediately.
Even barely conscious, that was his first question. My chest tightened painfully.
Olivia sprinted toward us and dropped beside Rack, gathering him into her arms while tears streamed down her dirt-streaked face.
“I’m here,” she choked out. “You saved me.”
Blood covered half her face. Dust streaked her clothes. Her hands shook while she held him, and he looked up at her weakly. Somehow, he let out a strangled laugh.
“Liar,” he rasped softly.
She immediately pressed a hand against his cheek. “Shhh.” Her voice broke apart while she tried calming him. “Rest.”
His pulse was weak, but with Olivia touching him, holding him, he should make it though. The bond visibly pulsed between them, and if he were truly dying, she would’ve known already.
Instead, despite the tears pouring down her face, Rack continued teasing her.
“Crybaby,” he murmured weakly. She laughed through a sob and lightly smacked his shoulder.
That was enough for me. He’d live.
I slowly stood, then sped my way to the human crawling on the ground. I flipped him onto his back.
Blood poured from his mouth with every coughing fit. Olivia had punctured something important, probably a lung, yet he was still smiling.
“This…” He coughed violently, blood splattering across his chin. “This is not the end.” I crouched over him silently. “He has sent his best for you,” he warned. His grin twitched wider despite the blood drowning him.
“You angered him.” Another cough wracked through him. “Now he’ll take your best from you.”
Then he started laughing again. Wet. Broken. Insane.
It ignited a quiet rage in me that took over, and I planted my foot across his throat. The laughter cut short beneath my weight.
“Don’t worry about us,” I said softly while staring down at him. “We’ll survive. We always do.”
