Chapter fifty-two
Adreamerexisted…twiceover.
Lux reeled, and her fingers on the syringe slipped. Dozens of fractured souls and partial brilliances made up Corvin Alesso. Only two paths were left whole.
And they were the same. He and Alix began thesame.
He didn’t have to use his brilliance to create nightmares—he chose to.
If she’d any doubts over the morality of what she did, they were squashed beneath the revelation. Lux fumed. She gritted her teeth. All it took was the lightest touch to realize which was being consumed and which was untouched. In the end, she didn’t need much precision, not at all, when she could see so clearly. Lux drew back the plunger.
She was done by the time the gargantuan statue protecting a madman’s throne came fully to life.
“Why does no one ever listen to me!” shouted Aline, grabbing hold of her.
Stumbling backward, Lux knocked into Shaw and his sister. In her hand was the syringe. Its tip glinted like starlight. Her eyes flicked to Corvin’s, the fresh blood trailing down his cheeks. He looked murderous, snarling in forced silence. Already, his mouth had reverted to its decay.
And she smiled.
A smile that was wiped clean from her face when the stone saint raised its arms. The wall behind it cracked and crumbled as the limbs broke free from their constraints, and Lux froze in her steps when the faceless being focused on her.
“Destroy the intruders!” the mason shrieked.
Matthias.He’d filled her insides with stones and now he’d have her pulled apart by one.
The sentient giant raised one carved foot—and crushed the pedestal beneath it. Shattered onyx sprayed across Corvin’s throne; he tried to cover himself and couldn’t. His hands were still secured fast. And already, the sanctum was emptying, leaving them behind to die—Corvin and Alix too. The saint swept out an arm toward them.
Shaw grabbed her around the waist and flung them both toward the empty table. The saint stretched, its head reaching the domed ceiling. The sound of cracking stone reverberated throughout the room, splitting Lux’s skull. Her head pounded and her heart raced. The saint’s palm splintered the table apart; Lux leapt over a fractured piece.
All this time, she held onto Alix, dragging him along with her.
His eyes, once every shade of darkness, were dulled a lifeless, charcoal grey. “You had better help us fix this when you’reyouagain,” she growled. Then she shoved the needle beneath his eye.
Alixsander Alesso collapsed against Shaw. Before he could fall, Shaw flung him over his shoulder. With his good eye trained upon her, he said, “Anything else before we go?”
His tone reeked of exasperation, but Lux scanned the room quickly, regardless. They all pressed against the wall when the giant stepped upon the ruined table. Very slowly, it turned toward them. It lowered its head.
“Run,” gasped Lux.
Aline sprinted away first, followed by Shaw, and though Lux could have passed by him with his heavy burden, she waited. When the saint lumbered toward the exit, she shifted too. Enough to ensure Corvin remained chained at its back.
Which he was.
But only by one wrist.
No…
The other swung free and, using Shaw’s own trick, he painted along the opposite shackle.Devil below,they’d harvested the soul of an artist. Stolen their brilliance. And Lux had seen enough. Spinning on her heel, she dodged the swipe of stone fingers and ran out of the sanctum.
Lux knocked into Shaw outside it; it was the same as running into a wall. She ricocheted backward and caught herself at the arched entrance.
“Watch out!” Aline cried.
The guarding statues on either side lunged, but this time, Lux wasn’t fast enough. The blow to her cheekbone landed brutally. Something cracked, and she knew it belonged to her.
“Go!” she cried, holding her face as she ran. She could feel it swelling beneath her fingers. Could see Shaw’s darting looks to ensure she stayed beside him.
The manorgroanedat their backs.
