My fist connects with his jaw, twisting his head to the side. The shifter smiles before licking the blood trickling at the corner of his mouth. I flick my fingers, desperate to at least produce a small flame.
I watch in horror as the shifter’s hands turn into enormous paws with sharp claws. My fingers frantically slide against my thumb, as I attempt to pull that quiet buzz of power, bringing it to the surface. It refuses to budge, leaving me to fight with my bare hands.
I swing at him again, and he ducks. Without missing a beat, he rears his elbow back. It lands on my side, punching into my healing wounds. All the air leaves my lungs, and my face contorts as I hold back a scream. The pain rips through me, blurring my vision. I blindly kick, landing my boot on the shifter’s knee. He stumbles back. My reprieve is small. It’s just enough to inhale and exhale.
A deep rumble comes from the shifter. He locks his gaze on me and stalks forward. I lift my fists, preparing for his next attack. The sharp points of his claws graze my cheek, spurring me on with the sting. My fists connect with the center of his chest and gut in rapid succession. I veer my arm up, aiming for the underside of his chin. He stops me mid-swing, grabbing my wrist. Digging his claws into my flesh, he twists my arm behind me. His front presses to my back as he grabs my hair and slams the side of my face into the rock. The stone digs into my skin, cold and sharp.
The shifter’s hot breath warms my ear and neck as he says, “You can’t stop us. We will take your land and the weakest of your people, including your parah. I bet she makes the sweetest sounds when you plunge your cock inside her. She will make those same moans for me when I add more scars to her back. Fuck, just the thought gets me hard.”
“You will die for what you did to her,” I spit. My rage churns inside me, stoking the flames of my gift. It grows hotter and hotter until my entire body is ready to combust. I lift a trembling hand to the one holding the side of my head. A wild cry escapes my mouth as I latch onto the shifter. I focus all my energy into my flames, the heat matching the ferocity of my anger. Burnt flesh assaults my nostrils, and I anticipate the second my opponent goes up in flames. Let the bastard burn.
Wails of pain never come. No, it’s laughter that rings in my ears. He likes it. The sick fuck likes being burnt.
What little energy I have drains fast. The heat wanes, and I’m left at the shifter’s mercy. I remove my hand from him, and we both stare at the blistering outlines of my fingers on his forearm.
“After I’m done making you watch what I do to her, I’m going to torture you for the rest of your miserable life, nice and slow.”
I open my mouth to tell him what I think of his plan, but the words never get a chance to leave me. The shifter jerks my headback and slams it forward into the rock. I struggle to keep my feet under me, but it’s useless. My body goes limp, and I’m stuck inside myself as he hoists me over his shoulder and carries me away.
Twenty-Seven
RAELLE
After what I’ve been through, I wouldn’t think a pile of snow-covered rocks could bring me such joy. It feels like Greer, Ashavee, and I left this place ages ago, yet it’s not been two days. The snow is brighter and the sky an immaculate shade of blue. Perhaps nothing has really changed, and it’s just the adrenaline from accomplishing what we thought might be impossible. Pliris is closer to restoration and peace, and because of that, everything seems a little brighter.
I urge Nortus into a gallop and race for the alcove where I left Kyron. He’s going to be upset with me. That’s a given. But I expect his anger to be short-lived when he sees the stone in my pocket. He never gave up on the possibility of fixing everything that had gone wrong. It was his determination that fueled mine and gave me the strength to climb that spire. I don’t care if the man throws a fit as long as he has his arms around me while he does it.
The smile on my face widens, bunching my cheeks into tight balls that hurt. When we reach the rocks, I dismount and guideNortus through the winding turns. With each step, butterflies take flight inside me. The fluttering quickens until it feels like my feet might leave the ground. I release Nortus’ reins, letting Greer tend to him as I run the rest of the way. All I want is to touch him, make sure he is all right, and tell him that we have what we came for.
I round the last corner, ready to see the cropping of rocks where I left him. My feet skid to a stop. The sight that greets me sucks away my bliss and leaves me in a panic. Ulric and Terro are bound and gagged, propped against the far wall of the cave. Their faces are battered, and their clothes are rumpled and torn. My gaze falls to the bedroll and discarded blankets next to the dwindling fire. Terror slices through me.
I dart forward and yank the fabric from Ulric’s mouth. “What happened? Where’s Kyron?”
“They took him.”
“Who took him?” I ask, the words a screech.
“I took him.”
Everything stops. The conversation. The world. My heart. For as long as I live, I will never forget that voice. It lives in my nightmares and is always followed by the cracking of a whip against my back. I inch my head around to look over my shoulder. It’s worse than I could have ever imagined.
Niko holds Kyron to his chest, his sharp claws piercing the tender area under the king’s chin. Blood trickles from a gash in my parah’s head, and the weak hold he has on his captor’s arm will do nothing to stop him from ripping out his throat. The minute Kyron’s lifeless body hits the ground, the wolf and gorilla flanking Niko will tear him apart.
“How?” I say.
Niko doesn’t need more depth to my question. He knows exactly what I mean. “Come now. We knew where you were taken. The question was, when would be a good time to takeyou back? We thought about it when you crossed the border into Sibyl, but your little mission for answers was intriguing. Then to learn the Cruel King’s stone really exists. I had to see if you could do it. We just didn’t want your king to get his hands on it. So, we attacked to make sure he was out of the game. Our air unit says it was impressive how you made it out of that temple alive.”
The Allaji have been a step ahead the entire time. They’ve toyed with us and hurt my friends. No more. This ends now.
I hold my hands up and slowly get to my feet. “Don’t hurt him. I’ll go with you.”
“No,” Kyron grits out, pulling harder on Niko’s wrist.
The smile that spreads over the bear shifter’s face has my stomach turning. It won’t be that easy. It never was with him. He wants screams and blood. Nothing is worth it if he can’t inflict the worst kind of pain. “I know you miss me, but you have something else I want. Give me the Imperium.”
“I don’t?—”
“Don’t say you don’t have it because that’s the only thing I will trade for your king.” As if to prove his point, he pushes his claws deeper into Kyron. Blood forms at the sharp points and slides down his neck.
