All my life, I’ve counted down the seconds. Sixty seconds has never felt longer than it does right now as he studies every detail of my face.
“You look like her.” Derek’s words are assured and his head tilts just slightly as he takes a single step closer to me. His index finger and thumb snatch ahold of my chin and I’m so confused by his statement that I don’t immediately react. “Down to every last freckle.”
Out of every dangerous thing that’s happened tonight, him speaking as if he knew my mother is possibly the most threatening words he could say to me.
My jaw clenches closed, and instead of using the power that’s ripping through me, I flatten my palm and strike quick and fast against the tip of his already crooked nose. He groans from the impact and my foot is already kicking off of the shining buttons of his shirt before he can react.
The wind catches my hair as I turn to face Armond. Rory’s power surges to the forefront at my command, and it rushes out of me in crashing waves. A reckless feeling steals my breath away as I lift my hands, reminiscent of the first time I saw Rory use his power. Without effort, I send Armond flying into the dirt, my fingers aching with the energy that’s storming through my veins.
I can’t seem to contain the power, and a tree near Armond splits down the center with a deafening crack, falling to the ground with a heavy thud. My eyes close and I focus hard on reeling that building power back in, even as a gravestone nearest to me bursts and crumbles into dust in the breeze. Pebbles and debris swirls around my tangled hair, skimming against my skin, scraping against my flesh. It’s too much. It’s too hard to control even as the power becomes harmful to myself.
With a deep breath, I clench my jaw, my hands fisting as I try to absorb that overwhelming energy back inside my body. The chaotic sounds and whipping wind settle when the power crashes hard, recoiling into my chest.
My lashes slowly open to find Armond watching me with admiring but fearful eyes.
It’s only him and I. I make slow work of walking toward him, my gown cascading behind me on the cool night’s breeze. I hope he remembers how well he trained me. I hope he’s thinking about how he took me in only to betray me.
I hope he knows I thought of him like a father.
The pain that slices through my skull is startling and my hair pulls back hard as I’m shoved to the ground.
Nala pounces on top of me, her legs straddling me as her hands fasten around my throat.
“We could have been friends.” Her pretty eyes are alive with a manic expression.
“I don’t have any friends, you fucking Jungle Book whore.”
The outrage on her face pulls her brows together so hard I think she might cry.
“It was the Lion King. The Lion King, Alexa. How hard is that to remember? You’re a terrible friend.”
As her small palms tighten with rage around my throat, I blink back the pain, trying hard to catch a breath as I shove at her shaking arms.
Armond lowers himself between us and Derek stands over my mentor’s shoulder, watching with rapt attention as Armond places his boney fingers against my temple and then places his other palm over Nala’s.
Happiness pulls at her lips. She’s beaming from his attention. Of all the dangerous assassins, he chose her and I can see that she feels very much like the chosen one in this moment.
“Relax, Alexa.” Nala coos, a wash of her power trying to invade my mind. “Stop fighting me.” Her smile is fucking frightening in that creepy Chucky Doll way. The evil underneath her Barbie exterior seeps through.
I consider the knife against my thigh but it’s too far out of reach. I try to calculate the best way to get out of this. Armond made my power to stop time yet he’d never allow me to use the simple ability. He’s prepared too much for this night.
Armond’s energy pulls at mine, nearly paralyzing me as he pulls wisps of my life force from my body and transfers them into Nala. She moans like she’s got a vibrator between her thighs and Armond’s eyes light up, momentarily distracted by her wildly inappropriate reaction to my life essence. The world is spinning around me, fading black around the edges, when his body is jerks away from mine. A hulking man leaps over me, slamming hard into Armond and throwing him to the ground.
Rory plummets his fist into the man's face. Derek takes a rushing step toward them. Rory raises one hand, holding Armond down with the other while he uses his powers to lift Derek entirely. He’s struggling. I can see how hard Rory’s struggling to hold on to his own reckless powers. I fully believe he could end us all right now.
But then he doesn’t have to. With a touch of his palm against Rory’s chest, Armond steals all that dangerous energy away. Rory stiffens, his wide shoulders tensing as Armond leans up, keeping his hand pressed flat against Rory’s chest. With a hard thud, Derek hits the ground.
The anger in the assassin slips away. A look of lost uncertainty settles into his pale green eyes as his lips part without words. A dull thudding sound is all I hear as he falls to the ground, as if he isn’t the strongest man I’ve ever met in my entire life.
My heart pounds, shaking through me and demanding I move. Everything in me needs to help him before Armond steals away the last little piece of Rory’s life.
I shove my palms against Nala’s face, and static energy buzzes through me as too much power lashes out. As much as Armond drained me, giving my power to Nala, what I have left refuses to be snuffed out. I pull at the power that I stole from Jameson. Some of it is gone, but there’s enough left that sparks light up the night, brightening her features as lightning flashes from my palms. The sound of her agony thunders with every bolt of electric energy until she’s left shaking at my side.
An awful smell lingers, but I don’t have time to dwell on if I just killed her or not. I don’t even spare her a second glance as I rush away, preparing to fry Armond just as I did Nala. My legs shake as I force my muscles to move, but strong arms wrap around me and pull me back, tearing me away before I’ve even taken three steps.
“You’re more impressive than Armond said. Your energy would have destroyed that girl had he given it to her. Even if she would have been easier to handle.” The man’s voice is a curious sound, like he’s in awe, but I can’t focus on a word he says. My eyes are locked on Rory’s prone form. I shove away from him only to be thrown in the dirt with a hard shove of his hand. My heels catch against the grass as my palms land against the ground.
Suddenly, Derek too is on the ground, right at my side. Tylin lords over us both in all of his dark, deadly glory, and then he strikes. His fist collides hard against Derek’s already bloody nose. A flash of lightning white washes over the lines of gravestones, and I know the cavalry has arrived in full effect. Derek halts the attacks in an instant, that peculiar barrier solidifying around him. The blue and white current of his protective structure bounces Tylin right off of him. The transparent force field protects him from every lashing strike of Jameson’s powers as he walks toward him with a deadly look in his eyes.
