The moment our tongues touched, energy surged between us—crystalline fiery power that didn’t just fill me, it completed me.
It didn’t feel like death but...renewal.
And if my body could no longer stomach food or drink, then...all I needed washer.With her close, I felt as if I’d devoured an entire feast and drained a river of sparkling water.
I felt invincible.
And now, it was time for war.
Ending the kiss, I hugged her tight. “I love you.”
She hugged me back, trembling a little. “What if it doesn’t go to plan? What if—”
“There are no ‘what ifs’.” Letting her go, I held up my hand and summoned the fire. It answered instantly with full obedience, encasing my fingers in a fiery glove. “I’m in control and they have no idea they’ve just brought retribution right to their doorstep.”
I focused on the heartbeats coming closer; the fire flared around my fingers.
Rook held up her own hand, ordering the ice to create razor-sharp claws on her fingernails. She gave me a shocked look as if she hadn’t expected it to obey. “It’s all well and good having our power back, but what if they use those frequency emitters? No matter how strong we are, all it takes is one little zap.”
“That’s why we have to move now. While they’re least expecting it.” Capturing her icy fingers, I pulled her toward the iron bars. I never let go of her as I placed my hand over the lock and sent a blast of heat into the mechanism.
Flames melted the metal, turning solid into dripping ore.
Kicking the door, the bars swung wide open.
Rook didn’t say a word as we stepped through and headed down the dungeon-like corridor.
Her anxiety spiked, prickling my heart.
“It will be okay.” Squeezing her hand, our eyes caught. “I’ll never leave you like I did on the mountain. Where you go, I go.”
“Where you go, I go,” she repeated, holding my gaze for an eternity before finally nodding and gathering the long train of her nightgown. “Together.”
“Together.” I wanted to kiss her, hug her, thank her for fighting beside me.
Instead, we stalked through Brimstone and prepared for battle.
Chapter Fifteen
WE ROUNDED THE FIRST CORNER, AND almost slammed into a man in a crisp white lab coat, clutching a clipboard. I vaguely recognised him from his visits to Cinderkeep to harvest me when I was younger.
I hadn’t seen him since I’d agreed to start drawing my own blood, but the last time he’d visited, he’d kept me in that little room for hours...sampling my blood with high-tech equipment, grading each congealing droplet as if it was a rare wine.
“Y-You.” His eyes bulged in shock. “What are you doing out of the holding cell?” He went to shout, but...I summoned the fire with nothing more than a thought. It answered like an eager beast, roaring down my arm in a concentrated blade of white-gold flame.
I hurled the spear of fire through his chest, cauterising a hole where his heart used to be. He died instantly—collapsing to the floor—his eyes still wide and lips parted in silent shock.
“Oh my God,” Rook gasped. “How did you...? What—?”
“Come on.” Grabbing her wrist, I ignored the way ice crawled up my fingertips and added fuel to the fire still crackling over my arm. Her power over me had switched. Touching her before helped calm and cool me, but now...now she fed and strengthened me.
I wanted to kiss her in gratitude. Instead, I jerked her into a faster walk. “Stay close.”
Hazy childhood memories overlaid with the present as we made our way out of the row of cages. The basement level was nothing like the elegant upper floors of Brimstone Industries. TheLondon headquarters pierced the sky with a giant steel and glass skyscraper, lurking on the outskirts of the city—hiding what they did below.
Thick black pipes snaked along the ceiling, recycling fresh air and water. Stone had been carved to create the cells and labs that could withstand accidental mishaps.
I chuckled under my breath as I followed the schematics I’d studied for the past two decades. Marcus had regularly dropped off paperwork, operational updates, and meeting minutes—almost as if he enjoyed rubbing my nose in the fact that he’d stolen my family’s company. Bet he didn’t think all that paperwork would come in handy now as we sneaked through my legacy.
