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“Can you mistphase us?” I tried to help him straighten, but he winced.
“Yes, come here,” he rasped and pulled me close again, but his magic didn’t rush to the surface as quickly as it had the first time.
“My prince?”
He groaned again, and his face grew paler. Muscles quivered in his neck, and his aura grew more and more diminished. A huge gush of blood appeared on the snow beneath him, then a shudder ran through his entire body.
“Prince Norivun!”
His eyelids dropped, and his limbs went slack as he fell in a heap. His full weight hit me like a huge stone.
Breaths coming faster, I struggled to hold him, but he weighed too much and collapsed back onto the snow.
Panic consumed me. “Prince Norivun!” I screamed again and began to shake him.
Nothing.
Frantically, my gaze shot over him as I tried to assess what was wrong.
Clawing at him again, I whipped the tunic out of his belt and lifted the material to his chin. All of my fear collided into epic proportions of terror and despair when I saw his true injury.
Ahugelaceration slid along the length of the prince’s abdomen. Blood poured out of it as intestines shone beneath. It was so deep and undoubtedly lethal.
“Dear gods,” I cried.
The creature’s claws hadtorn him open, and all because he’d been trying to save me from the snowgum’s jaws.
“My prince!” I yelled again. My heart exploded in fear just as a vibration of magic rippled through the air.
It was the only warning I got before the snowgum pounced.
CHAPTER7
The force of the predator hitting me knocked the wind from my lungs. Its hot breath came next, wafting over my skin like smoke. The snowgum’s invisible body pinned me to the ground, my ribs screaming in agony under the feline’s immense weight.
All the while, the prince continued to lie beside me. Unmoving. Possibly not breathing. Perhaps even dead.
My heart threatened to burst, and I only had a second to glance at the prince before the creature shifted its weight and nearly crushed my chest.
I wheezed as my body sank more into the snow. Coldness seeped into my back. And the snowgum... I could feel its mouth opening. It was going to eat me even though I saw nothing.
Blessed Mother, I’m going to die. Prince Norivun’s going to die. Cailis will be alone.
Those last two thoughts had panic rising from me like an inferno.No!
Magic erupted in my gut.
I screamed. And then the realm tilted, as though everything were moving in slow motion. A rush of magic blazed out of me. Fire. Air. An inferno of power.
The snowgum roared as my magic burst free in a whip of blazing heat. It ripped beyond my control as one thought and one thought only seared my mind.
We can’t die.
My head whipped toward the prince. I needed to save him.Now.
The snowgum’s hide caught fire. The creature screamed again as its massive body erupted into flames.
My eyes widened at its monstrous size as I scrambled to Prince Norivun.
