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Wobbling with Luna’s weight in his arms and the ice beneath his feet, Bates struggles to keep his footing, and it’s only a matter of time before he slips. In that moment, he flings Luna’s body away so he can save himself just as Kano leaps forward to catch her, clearly acting on instinct. Spotting the opportunity, Bates grabs onto Kano as he falls, jamming his fist and razor sharp claws into my brother’s stomach.
Time seems to slow despite the fact that this all happens within the blink of an eye. Kano’s eyes widen with shock and pain, his head rolling and back arching. Bates grins manically, and Luna falls to the ground, discarded like trash. Pain stabs in my chest, and my breath gets stuck in my throat as I watch my brother fall to the floor, blood pooling around him.
Time suddenly snaps back into place, and I realise this isn’t some terrible nightmare. It’s real, and I might be about to lose my brother. Shock and pain washes over me and stops the magic in my veins, causing the shield around us to collapse.
I’m moving before I even realise it, my knees hitting the floor hard as I kneel by my brother. Atlas is by my side a second later, pulling his cousin into his lap and trying to wake her. Fighting back the panic and tears that are threatening to fall, I put Kano’s head in my lap and look down at his stomach. It’s a mess of ripped flesh and blood. A strangled noise works its way from me as I lean forward and press my hands to the wound. Kano grimaces and places his own hands over the top of mine.
From the corner of my eye, I see Bates making the most of the distraction and using his werewolf speed to run from the ballroom. Syn gives chase, but my focus is on my injured brother. Someone runs towards us that I don’t recognise, and I’m snarling at them before I’ve even registered what’s happening, my protective instincts running on high. “Come any closer, and I’ll gut you.”
Skidding to a stop, the female lifts her hands to show she’s unarmed. “I’m here to help,” she promises, a streak of blood staining the front of her simple dress. Considering I just threatened her, she seems remarkably calm. Her face is kind, and I get the impression she could be stern when she needs to be. She gives off the aura of a powerful witch, and for some reason, I want to trust her.
“It’s okay, she’s a healer,” Atlas assures me, waving her forward.
The healer gives me one last look, assessing if I’m going to be a threat to her. She must decide that I’m not, as she quickly kneels by Kano’s side. “Remove your hands for me please,” she instructs quietly.
Doing as she says, I feel sick at the blood that starts to flow from the wound once more. Humming, she places her own hands over his stomach, and within seconds, I see a glow forming over the wound.
Running my hands through Kano’s hair, I watch the healer, my stomach in knots. While this is happening, the bonds in my chest hum, informing me of my mates’ whereabouts. I start to breathe a little easier as I feel each of them get closer and join our little group. When Syn returns, I feel his dejection, which tells me that Bates managed to escape. In other circumstances, I’d be frustrated by that, but I’m focused on making sure Kano is okay, and honestly, I’m just glad that all of my mates are alive. Luna is still unconscious in Atlas’s lap, and from the bruise forming on her temple, we know why.
“This is a serious wound, you’re lucky to still be alive,” the healer informs my brother, frowning in concentration as she continues to work. “I can stop the initial bleeding, but I don’t have enough power to fix all this now.”
“Our attackers are retreating!”
The queen’s triumphant cry is met by cheers from the weary witches. Lifting my head and looking around the room, I see she’s right. The hall has been destroyed, and bodies lie everywhere, both those of witches and werewolves. Many are injured, and I spot several healers all wearing the same style of dress as the female treating Kano working their way through the casualties.
All of the surviving werewolves seem to have vanished, although they can’t be too far since I can still hear their running feet with my enhanced hearing. The remaining, uninjured witches are looking around with the dazed expression of people who just witnessed something awful. They hover in groups, not knowing what to do next, waiting for instruction. Several of the guards gather together and make their way to the queen, falling back into their protective role.
“They are retreating! Get them, don’t allow them to escape!” the queen yells again, but this time, there’s a manic look in her eyes that makes me anxious. Feeling my gaze on her, she turns and scowls at me, jabbing an accusing finger in my direction. “Arrest Laelia and her mates too! They were behind this and will die for their crimes,” she screams, her voice going high as she loses her composure.
This seems to create a divide between the remaining witches, many of them looking to each other in confusion. I had a lot of support amongst the younger population, and it seems that might have spread, none of them wanting to intervene. The only ones who move are her guards, and even they are hesitant as they step forward, attempting to circle my mates and me.
I’m still kneeling on the floor with Kano’s head in my lap. The last thing I need right now is the queen making things difficult. We’ve lost so many lives, and my brother is bleeding out before me. She should be focusing on catching those responsible, not forming a witch hunt against me.
The guards come closer, pushing all of us together and forming a tight circle around Kano and Luna. They are going to take us away, and I’ll never know if he’ll survive or not—not to mention she’ll split me from my mates. Fear turns to rage, and magic flows through my body, making my skin tingle. I’ve used so much of it today, but as I reach for my reserve, I no longer feel tired. I feel… powerful, like I could do anything, and I’m not about to let the queen split us apart like this.
“Arrest her! Take them to separate cells and prepare them for execution.”
I hear the gasps of the onlookers and cries of outrage calling for a fair trial, but the queen ignores them. She’s too far gone now. The attack on her people has broken the mask she usually wears and is revealing the unhinged woman beneath.
She’s dangerous, she’s going to hurt you and your mates, my thoughts coax. No, I won’t allow her to do this to us. I must protect us. She needs to be stopped.My thoughts are dark, but the longer I linger on them, the more they begin to make sense. I’d be doing this forus. Power grows within me until I have no choice but to release it.
I stand, my body glowing with the light of a thousand stars, and it bursts out of me in a shockwave, shoving the guards back and pinning them to the ground with shimmering domes hovering over them. Gasps of surprise wash straight over my head, but after a quick glance around, I can confirm that no one other than the guards have been affected. I turn my head back to my target, and another wave of magic surges from me. I smile grimly as the queen is knocked back into her throne, looking horrified as I slowly walk towards her. I am electric. I am all powerful. Magic like nothing I’ve ever felt gives me life, sustaining and filling me to bursting, and as I climb the steps of the dais, I stare down at the woman who’s caused me so much grief since I was brought here.
Her eyes are wide, and fear ripples from her. She looks pathetic, and I don’t know why I was ever afraid of her. There’s a little voice in my mind shouting at me, but I ignore it. Those soft, inconsequential thoughts have never gotten me anywhere. This is what I should have been all along.
“You don’t deserve this throne.” My voice sounds different, older and full of power, almost vibrating with it. “You’ve shown your true self, and it’s only a matter of time before your people rebel.”
“You did this,” she hisses, but she doesn’t dare lean forward and lash out like I know she’s dying to. In fact, she’s struggling to meet my gaze, and I don’t think it’s the fact that I’m shining so brightly.
“No,” I snarl, leaning forward and bracing an arm on either side of the throne, watching with a dark sense of amusement as she leans back and tries to put some space between us, the blood draining from her face. The scent of her fear fills the air, and it makes me want to smile. “This is your doing, and they will see that.”
Pulling back, I make a rolling gesture with my hands, and two bands of starlight appear over her arms, binding her to the throne. Straining against her bonds, she twists and snarls, trying to break free. I lift a glowing hand. Clearly, she needs more of a warning than what she’s received so far.
A tug in my chest pulls me back to my mates where I’m needed, so with one last meaningful look at the queen, I turn to them. As soon as I see their faces, I feel the strange power drain away. What in the underworld just happened? I felt like I was the most powerful being on the planet, and that I could do anything just because I wanted to. The urge to punish the queen for what she’s done was so strong that if my mates hadn’t been here, I probably would have done it. Horrified, I stumble back to them, falling into Joel’s outstretched arms. My body shakes with the realisation of what I could have done.
That power was dark and addictive. Even now, I want another taste of it.
“Laelia.” Kano’s weak voice pulls me from my internal crisis. Taking a deep breath, I turn around and find him looking up at me with a tired smile. The healer is still working on him, her eyes shut and hands glowing as her full focus stays on my brother.
