Page 155 of Kneel Before Me

“Come with me, Son.”

“No. I must make sure that—”

Another scream. A jolt went down Maximus’s spine as he recognized the voice. He whipped around to see Daphne at the edge of the crowd, her arms extended protectively around a tall figure. Maximus squinted, trying to see who it was. The woman with the baby was gone; it wasn’t her friend Ella. This woman had dark hair and proud, regal shoulders. She moved with uncanny elegance, almost like a—

Slow realization seeped into his chest. Daphne was standing next to a basilisk.

There was no time to think—no time to second-guess himself. Maximus flung his father’s arm away and jumped off the stage, sprinting through the crowd. All he could see was Daphne, her eyes widening as the guards descended on her.

“Stop at once!” Maximus cried. “I order you to—”

But the words died in his throat. Something was emerging from a side street—something huge.

“Daphne!” he screamed. “GET DOWN!”

One moment she was standing and the next she was on the ground. Maximus flung himself on top of her just as an enormous serpent hurled itself into the wall of guards. Helmets clattered; swords flashed. Maximus tucked Daphne’s body into his, pulling her roughly across the cobblestones until they were on the steps of a nearby building, barely out of the fray.

“Are you hurt?” He panted, taking her face in his hands. “Did that thing—”

“Agnes,” Daphne gasped.

“What?”

“I can’t let them get her. She’s—”

They both flinched as the horrible sound of fangs scraping against metal echoed behind them.

“Call the guards off, Maximus,” Daphne cried. “Please. They will listen to you.”

“I’m not calling them off. There’s a fucking basilisk here.”

“That’s just her brother. If you call them off, he will leave.”

“What?”

“Maximus”—she grabbed his face so that they were both holding each other’s gaze—“she just wanted to see the villagers up close. She meant no harm. Your guards made the first move, and her brother is just protecting her.”

She stared up into his eyes, her skin pale beneath her freckles. He had never seen her so incensed. Why did she care so much about the snakes?

“Maximus,” she said firmly. “Call. Them. Off.”

“Only if you get out of here,” he said finally. “Do you hear me, Daphne? Leave.”

“I can’t. I have to—”

“Go home,” he said firmly. “And I will call them off.”

Daphne pursed her lips. Then she gave him a tiny, reluctant nod. He nodded back before pulling her to her feet.

“Go,” he commanded, “and don’t look back.”

Maximus waited until she had disappeared down the street before turning toward the battle, drawing himself up to his full height, and bellowing, “STOP THIS AT ONCE!”

The guards froze, as did the basilisks. In that single moment, Maximus understood the sheer stupidity of this plan. The woman serpent was still in her human form. Her brother, however, was not. His enormous, scaled head was turning in his direction. Maximus knew he was mere moments away from turning to stone. He did the only thing he could think to do—the one thing that might lead both snakes away. Maximus pointed at the woman and said, “Run.”

Mercifully, she did. The moment the woman turned and ran, her brother turned too. Maximus squeezed his eyes shut out of pure instinct, not daring to open them until he was sure the basilisks had retreated. When he finally opened them, the town square was emptying. All around him, villagers were running into their homes, their hands over their faces to shield their eyes. Maximus knew it was only sheer luck that had saved them all.

“Maximus.” His father’s voice cut through the square. “We are leaving. Now.”