Page 242 of Feralheart

I touched the collar, closed my eyes, and reached for the last of my reserves.

I thought of Tolross and Father and Fen and Selira, plus every dragon that had ever died with a collar around its neck.

My hands found the collar.

Cold metal, Selira said. Bad metal.

My palms screamed.

And I pulled.

CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT

ERADIN

The spell flung me away. I landed hard on my side and skidded across bone-strewn stone, shredding through what was left of the shield Fen and I had created. I came to rest against a pillar.

Above me, the runes flared, seeking…

Fuck, no.

I wrenched away and crawled back to Grimstone. Latching onto his collar again, I reached for my magic, determined to use myself as a conduit. Something deep inside me cracked. My magic flooded out in a wave so bright it turned the canyon brighter than daylight.

The collar dissolved. Metal turned to ash beneath my hands, the runes burning away, the whole thing disintegrating.

I slumped onto the ground, resting my face on one clear place of cold stone. Fading…

Grimstone surged upward and released a throaty song while Lyndie’s shrill laughter rang out until it faded to tears.

Selira’s panic slammed into me through our bond.

Use too much.

I couldn’t find my voice to reassure her. Couldn’t think to reassure her. My tongue wouldn’t work. My lungs had forgotten how to pull in air.

Mine, she keened, the word laced with dismay. Mine. Don’t leave. Stay.

“I’m here,” I tried to say, but the words came out garbled.

Not here. Feel fading.

I could feel it too, that terrible lightness that came from using more magic than a body could at one time. I was floating away from myself one bit at a time.

Fen’s arms wrapped around me and he sat, pulling me tight against his chest. “Stay with me, Feral. Please stay.”

“I…will.”

My hands wouldn’t stop shaking. I tucked them against his chest and savored the wonder of his heartbeat under my palms, steady where nothing inside me might ever be again.

Safe, Selira’s voice gentled, her relief flooding through our bond. Him keep you safe.

“Yes,” I said, pressing my face into Fen’s chest. “He does.”

I’d spent my whole life being the one who kept others safe. I hadn’t known I was waiting for someone to do it for me.

“You came for me,” I breathed against his chest.

“I’ll always come.” His arms tightened around me. “Always.”