I continued, “I figured it out by touching one of the rotted fields, and?—”
“Of courseyou did.”
“—sort of sucked the blight right out of it. And when I did, I got my magic back. Just for a little while, though. It isn’t permanent.”
“That’s how you saved her,” he said slowly, glancing back down at Katrine and Rose. “You took the magic of the curse out of her.”
I was about to bend down to help her back to her room when Galen approached from the tree line. I’d seen him look worse forwear before, but this…he was like a ghost of himself. A tortured, devastated ghost. His clothes were covered in dirt and leaves, his arms trembled at his sides, and his hair looked as if he’d been clutching at it and pulling hard.
My fox half writhed with anger beneath my skin at the sight of him.
Hedid this.
I strode the distance between us before he could reach the group. Extending my arm, I willed my hand to shift into a paw, red hair and sharp claws forming as I grasped his neck and shoved us both back into the shadows, several yards out of sight.
“Howdareyou?” I snarled, slamming him into a tree.
He struggled to breathe and grabbed at my forearm, but I held firm. His voice was strangled as he forced out, “Clarissa, I?—”
“Not so happy I can touch you now, are you?” I snapped. “What were you thinking? You almostkilledher, Galen. In front of all those people. What iswrongwith you?”
His hazel eyes pleaded with me, the veins around his irises growing redder. With a growl, I eased my hold on him slightly so he could breathe. One of my claws dug into the side of his neck, and he winced as I drew blood.
Good.
I’d forgotten how much wrath my fox side brought. How it heightened all emotions, making it difficult to control or keep my head clear. And now, all I saw was red.
“I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking,” he rasped. “Please, let me talk to her?—”
“Absolutely not. You will stay away from her, unless you want me to cut the skin from your lips and see if your curse still works then,” I seethed. “Everything I’ve been doing is to help you and your people, Galen, and you can’t keep it together forone night.” I pushed him out of my hold as the small burst of magic faded and my paw went back to a hand once more. He stumbled to the ground and scrambled farther away from me, rubbing at his neck.
The soft crunching of leaves came from behind me. I turned to see Thorne, who eyed the scene before him, his gaze landing on Galen with a flash of rage.
“Get up,” he said across the forest floor to Galen, his tone icier than I’d ever heard it. While Galen groaned and rose to his feet, Thorne lowered his voice toward me. “Rose is with Katrine. She’s going to be alright.” His fingers grazed my arm, and I moved closer without thinking. “You saved her. That was amazing, Empress.”
Galen let out a scoff. “I should have known.”
His eyes were locked on Thorne’s hand still brushing mine. I hastily backed away, but it was too late.
“You always did want what was mine, didn’t you,friend?” Galen said. “Even as boys.”
I winced. “Galen, don’t?—”
“What, was I not good enough for you? You won’t letmetouch you, but you’ll lift your skirts forhimand let him?—”
Before I knew what was happening, Thorne lunged at Galen and punched him in the jaw, knocking him flat on his back.
“Thorne!” I cried. His chest heaved as he glared down at Galen, his long hair whipping wildly in the wind, eyes churning like the sea.
And then he blinked.
His lips parted, and he took a step farther away, the tan color of his skin already fading.
A crack like crumbling stone appeared on his cheek.
I rushed across the gap between us and grabbed his neck, my heart pounding in my chest. When the magic spread through me once more, I let out a sigh of relief.
“You’re an idiot,” I said, my voice wavering. “Why would you touch him?”
