~ Shade ~
Knox steps through the pathway before me, and I follow him, entering the ballroom. We’re hidden from the queen’s table by a thick stone pillar, and I’ve only taken one step from the portal when I spot a headless body that lays on the floor in front of us. I only just manage to hold in my scream as I stare at the bloodied mess of red fabric.Please don’t be Kenzie. Please don’t be…
“It’s not her,”Knox tells me, like he knows exactly what I’m thinking.
I stare at the body for a moment longer, feeling a little guilty at the relief that filters through me. It might not be Kenzie, but there’s still a dead student in front of me.
“Look at me,”Knox says, drawing my gaze to him as he reaches for me, his shadows curling in the air around us.“The games are designed to spill blood, and we won’t be able to intervene when you’re out there. We’ll be able to send shadow whispers to you, but otherwise, you’ll be on your own. It’snot too late. We can leave through another pathway if you’ve changed your mind.”
I exhale slowly.“No, if I can somehow make it through the games, I’ll gain my immortality,”I say softly, my stomach churning as fear washes over me.“I can’t run from this, Knox. I can’t hide while my friends are in the games.”
“Then you’d better fight,”he says, brushing his lips against mine.“Because if I lose you again, I don’t think any of us will survive the aftermath. I’ll do whatever is in my power to help you, my love.”
My heart stutters at his words, and his hands linger on me like he doesn’t want to let me go, but then he disappears in a cloud of shadows. I can still feel him hovering, watching me from somewhere out of sight, and I swallow hard.
My head feels like it’s about to explode as Knox’s words repeat in my mind.My love.It’s like the memories of my past are conflicting against everything Knox has shown me these past weeks, but every time I think of his cruel words, I get flashes of warmth. Flashes of Knox’s smile as he pleasures me in my dreams, making me feel like when I’m with him, life is worth living again. He made me feel like I could breathe again. Even if I can’t remember what it was from my past that pulled me into the darkness.
More memories press in my head, and the sound of my laughter from a time long-forgotten sounds in my mind, but I don’t have time to focus on the memories right now. The ballroom shudders when another roar carries throughout the space, and I apologize as I step over the body before me, moving further into the room.
Taking a deep breath, I peer around the pillar to where there’s a massive, furred beast in the middle of the ballroom. Patchy black fur covers its wrinkled skin, and it stands on four short legs. Darkness leaks from its huge claws, the shadowsbleeding into the marble and darkening the space where it walks, and its wide head leads into a long snout with razor sharp fangs.The akzoran.According to Raith, if it touches me its shadows will fill me with a crippling despair. It’s completely blind, but the creature senses fear, and it lifts its snout, sniffing the air before turning its head to the left.
Across the room, the queen and the originals are seated at the long table surrounded by shadows as they casually watch the scene unfold. I step out, and Thane, Galen, and Raith all stare at me, but I’m distracted as the akzoran leaps with its powerful hind legs, snapping at a student. The student screams and there’s a horrible crunch before the student is silenced and the akzoran swallows them whole.
Lifting my hand to my mouth, I fight hard not to throw up.Oh, fuck me,I hiss in my head.
“It’s not advisable to try and mate with an akzoran, girl,”Elgen quips back, and I realize I must have transmitted my words to her via our connection.
“Hmmm yes, its swollen member grows a few feet long and would likely tear you apart,”Tarlaz adds matter-of-factly.
I make a horrified face almost failing to keep the contents of my stomach down.“What? I don’t want to sleep with it. I meant—”I make a frustrated noise.“Never mind. Have you seen Kenzie or Jensen?”
“We were too busy trying to locate you, child,”Elgen replies.“Where did the dark one take you?”
“That doesn’t matter. Are you sure you haven’t seen them?”
Before either of them can reply, the ground shudders, and I find myself face-to-face with the akzoran as it moves further into the room. The giant beast steps closer to me, sniffing at my dress.
“Nice, beastie,” I say, wondering if I should throw some snacks at it or something, before remembering thatI’mthe snack.
I don’t move and I force myself to try and calm my racing heart, remembering that the beast can sense fear.
“Oh great. She’s going to die before the games even begin,”Elgen comments dryly.
“And we never even reached the dessert platters,”Tarlaz complains.“Truly disappointing.”
The creature leans in close, and its hot rancid breath puffs into my face, nearly making me gag.Please don’t eat me. I’ll…I’ll give you indigestion!
I can still feel Knox watching me from somewhere close by. I know he won’t let me die, but he’s not going to intervene unless he has no other choice. Not when the queen is around.
The creature moves its snout closer to me, and it opens its jaw, revealing a long set of bloodied fangs. Bits of torn flesh cling to its teeth, and I turn my head to the side, trying not to look at it. The blood pounds in my ears, and the creature tenses.
“It’s okay, beastie dear. It’s okay, no snack is here,” I sing to myself under my breath, trying to channel my inner badass but failing miserably. Yep, I definitely should have stayed in the forest with Knox.
The akzoran doesn’t agree, because it’s clearly ready for another meal, but just as it’s about to snap me up, it senses a group of students that surround it. Jerking its head to the side, it turns its attention to them as they all use their shadows to bind the creature’s legs. Satine, Izzy, and Paiton are amongst the students, but their power isn’t enough to keep the akzoran contained. It’s about to break free from its binds when someone yells, and before the beast can free itself, Ian jumps up from behind. He drives his sword down into the base of the beast’s skull, the blade wreathed in shadows. There’s a sickening,squelching sound, and I watch in stunned silence as the beast huffs a pained breath.
“Move, girl! Before it falls on you!”Elgen shouts a warning, but I’m paralyzed by shock as I stare at the falling beast, not sure why my chest fills with sadness as the light dims in its round dark eyes.
Shadows coil around my ankles at the last moment, and I sense Knox’s power. My mate’s shadows are subtle, but it’s enough to make me fall backward.
