“But it seems we all have to make sacrifices every now and then to get what we want. And what I want more than anything is to make you scream for the shit you pulled yesterday. And having Gray watch will make it even sweeter. Because there are always consequences to our actions, right?” Chrome took a step closer to us.
Light ignited from Slate’s palms as he released my wrist, but remained planted in front of me. With his sword hand, he arched his blade to swipe through Chrome’s shadows. As if it were a corporeal being, it worked. A chunk of it dropped to the ground. Then, with his free hand, he flung a ball of silver light at Chrome’s chest, throwing him back against the wall.
Chrome laughed. It was a sinister, chilling sound that felt toxic to the air. I summoned my element and drew upon my Kinetic power as he continued his advance toward us, seeming unbothered by Slate’s attacks.
One of Chrome’s inky shadows lurched forward for Slate, and at the last second, I stepped around him, blasting a stream of blue energy into his chest. He froze, his eyes going wide with shock at my move. But I knew this wasn’t the real Chrome. I refused to let him fool me. Adding to the gusts pummeling the cliffside, I directed my element at him, causing a torrential wind to whip around him. I stood beside Slate, my hair thrashing between the two of us as I formed a tornado with Chrome in its center.
“Gray! Don’t fucking?—”
“It’s what the real Chrome would want,” I said, more to myself than to anyone, as I flicked a hand off the side of the balcony, tossing Chrome over the edge and into the sea.
“Let’s go.” Slate didn’t waste a second before he bolted into a sprint, towing me toward the door. When we reentered the Druid kingdom once more, we found it unoccupied, but there was noise down below.
Great, the fucking stairwell, again.
We jogged to the death trap and began our descent. If I didn’t kill myself on these first, I was sure Chrome would eventually kill me for what I’d just done.
Carefully but with haste, Slate and I jogged down the steps, me in front and him behind. If I seemed unsteady, he latched onto me to give me enough leverage to right myself. The further down we went, the louder the battle echoed.
What had Chrome done?
At last, we reached the expansive library that Brecken had brought us into yesterday. At the scene unfolding before us, my mouth fell open, and my heart sank.
No.
A battle waged within the library, sending papers and books sailing throughout. Beings covered in blackened veins moved with striking speed and precision against the Druids, who fought back with equal speed andfluidity.
“Those aren’t the Endarkened, are they?” I asked Slate, horrified, knowing the truth.
Slate shook his head. “No. Worse.” He unsheathed his sword again; the look of confidence at what we were about to face was not inspiring. “Infernals.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Cotton
“Cotton.” Onyx stepped in front of me, blocking my view of anything but him and his beautiful fucking face.
I clenched my teeth and tightened my fists at my sides, wanting to punch something. Anything.
“Fuck her, okay?” Onyx said. “We’ve always known how much of a cold bitch she is. Don’t let her get to you.”
It was rare for me to lose control of my emotions. I’d learned after my mother’s death that showing emotion was ammunition for the king to use against me. But I’d just lost it, and Onyx had to pry me away from the cage that Royal was being held in and carry me out as I fought against him.
It pissed me off more that he seemed to be protecting her from me. I shoved him off of me, making him stumble back a few steps.
Onyx held his hands up in surrender. “Hey. I get you’re pissed by what she said, but we have to stick to the plan. It sounds like we don’t have much time to get Gray.”
My shoulders shook from the effort it took me to contain my rage, but Onyx was right. There were more important things than fighting for my pride.
“Fine. Let’s go find the farm buildings.”I shoulder-checked Onyx as I stormed past him in search of where the Mystics kept their animals.
Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Onyx’s shoulders drop in relief, and then he swiftly spun around to catch up with me. He didn’t speak this time, and for that I was grateful.
I followed the carefully manicured pebbled path that led to the town center. My little cottage was just down the way, but I remembered seeing a stable and fence in the open field near the row of guest houses.
I took the opportunity to use the walk to calm myself down, despite it not being a leisurely one. Royal’s words struck a sharp chord. I couldn’t get the memory of my mother’s horrified screams out of my head, or my father’s pleas as my tongue was being sliced off in front of him. I couldn’t put him through that again.
My father had been an integral part of the insurgency back in the day, and our choice to enter it had been due to my mother’s death. We were lucky that Forest had never discovered his role in it after Chrome’s disappearance. I could only hope it remained that way.
