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Sliding an arm under her back, I lift her up until she’s on my lap. As I feel her spine, I can tell it’s severed. Her back is broken, which is probably one of the reasons she can’t feel the pain.
A groan of despair bursts from my throat as I glance around at a world I don’t recognize.
The palace grounds are a battlefield. Rocks, blood, and body parts litter the grass. Smoke is in the air from the firing cannons and the exploding Pyros.
The garden is wrecked. All the greenery has been trampled by the dozens of meteor fragments. The side of the palace has crumbled further in the spot where it got hit, and inside, the thrones are toppled.
Suddenly, King Kirian and Queen Quinn emerge from the back of the palace, and they run this way.
Unfortunately, the rocks I’d organized into words are a scattered mess.
Our avenue to winning is demolished, and I realize I have two choices.
One, I could spell the words out again, but I’m certain Ro would die before I could finish. As it is, she’s passed out, and her breathing stops for a terrifying second before raggedly starting up again.
Which leaves me with option number two: Forfeit.
Neither of the possibilities have good outcomes, but one guarantees Ro’s death, right here, right now. With the other, she has a chance.
If I surrender, then I’ll get this damn collar off and I can heal Ro. After that, I’ll refuse the deal I made with Armand because I won’t execute my wife. So what if my lifeforce gets sucked into the amulet?
From the beginning, I always knew it might come down to this. Armand knew it, too. I remember that moment before I entered the maze when he seemed so sure I would give up, and I hate that he was right.
Option number two, it is.
Gazing up at the night sky, I loudly announce, “Armand, I surrender.”
The noise dies down. The shouts, the constant rumble… it all gets quiet.
Then everything darkens and my surroundings start to change. The Night Realm fades away, and the dusty interior of Armand’s castle materializes.
Within seconds, I’m on the dirty stone floor in the Lost Land.
Slow clapping draws my attention to the twiggy throne.
Armand gets to his feet as if he’s giving me a standing ovation, and Yugo is at his side looking just as ecstatic. They’re wearing expressions of utter delight.
“Well,” Armand breathes out. “I must say, you know how to put on a show. We thoroughly enjoyedeverythingyou and the queen did. We saw… so many sides of you both.”
When he sayseverything, I know he’s referring to how he watched us when we were intimate. Ro and I were certain we had an audience but hearing him say it feels like a violation. He didn’t have to tell me that. He could’ve allowed us to keep a modicum of privacy, but that’s how he operates. He wants me to be embarrassed and angry.
I sneer at him. “You won. Take off the collar.”
“If it makes you feel any better, most participants don’t make it past the first test,” he placates with mock sympathy. “You should be impressed with yourself.”
Right now, I don’t have the capacity to feel anything but grief and rage. “Collar. Off. Now. Let me heal her.”
Armand twists his lips. “Oh, I don’t think that’s a good idea. You forfeited the last challenge.”
“I did it so I could get back here to fix her. Now remove the fucking collar!”
Armand sends more of his artificial pity with his downturned mouth. “But the queen must die either way. You knew what you were agreeing to when you surrendered. Why not let her take the natural course? She’s almost there. Honestly, Kai, it’s a mercy for you and her.”
Resorting to trickery, I point out, “She was supposed to die by my sword, yes? That was the deal.”
He narrows his eyes with skepticism. “You’re telling me you want me to allow you to heal her, just so you can kill her anyway?”
“Yes,” I blatantly lie.
