Breathing deeply, she tried to settle the stark panic wrapping her in dark, nightmarish anxiety. The guard following her had to be close behind. She couldn’t turn back.
Moving as quickly as she could in a low crouch, Celina rounded the far side of the horse pen. Peering through the corral, she saw a few more men prowling aggressively, searching amongst the horses and calling out to each other in their search.
Kavesh! Of course they staked out the stable.They must have split their group, hoping to catch her and Rodric.
Once she reached the stable wall, she paused to gather her magic in a fiery gold rush. Her fingertips felt hot, sparking with magic under the surface. If she was going to get caught, it wasn’t going to be without a fight.
“Over here! I got her!” the man who’d been following her shouted as he came into view, stalking toward her with a dangerous expression.
Which meant he was clueless as to why his friend had collapsed, or dumb.
Either worked for her.
Sending a wave of love to Rodric, just in case, she stepped out from behind the wall and hit the man coming around the corner head on.
Zap!She slammed the sleep command into his lifeforce, already moving around him to touch the next guard as the first one fell.
She ran the longest stretch of fence toward the pasture gate in the opposite direction. If she could get far enough away to see them coming, she still stood a chance. Her magic raged through her in a steady stream, letting her feel the strong heartbeat pulsing in her fingertips.
A new guard launched himself at her from the left, getting an arm around her. She growled in rage, twisting her arms to keep them free. Gloved arms dug into her, blocking her access to his skin.Dammit!
Dropping her body like dead weight, she slipped toward the ground as the guard struggled to hold on to her. Reaching up when he bent to catch her, she slammed her head into his face, her forehead making contact with his cheek as she released a wave of magic.Zap!
An instant headache bloomed as he fell to the ground, but she kept going.
Spinning to defend against the approaching soldier, she tripped over the tangle of the fallen guard’s legs. Grabbing her around the waist, the new soldier wrestled her to the ground, pinning her beneath him. Gloved hands again secured her arms, and this one wisely dodged her head, keeping just out of her range.
“Careful! She’s using magic. No contact,” he yelled as the final soldier approached—the man from earlier in town. At least she was making things difficult for them.
Deep inside their bond, Rodric’s rage lit her soul and fueled her to keep fighting. Screaming her rage, she glared at the man pinning her—the captain who had recognized Rodric.
He shook his head. “You put up a better fight than your friend, but you’re going to regret it.”
“Never.”
He nodded at someone behind her. “Do it.”
The heat of a hand hovering over her skin had her turning her head just as the pinch of a needle jabbed her neck. She flooded the spot with magic, blocking her feeling to the area and increasing her body’s resistance long enough for her cheek to make contact with the bare hand at her neck. Idiot.
He jumped back, staggering with a drowsy swaying motion that told her she hadn’t given him quite enough.
Her magic faltered as it came into contact with whatever drug they’d injected, fluttering and vanishing under the assault. Feeling returned in a rush, the drug burning from the inside as it seared through her body, darting in fine lines through her chest.
Celina screamed, this time in pain, writhing away from the awful sensation. Tendrils of fire raced through her body, swirling like snakes around her core. She pushed gold against the fire, only for it to grow into a murky wall encasing her magic. Each attempted use of her magic increased the livid pain and added fear to her frantic movements and terrified cries.
The man pinning her increased the pressure on her arms, settling more of his body weight over her to quiet her bucking movements as if having expected them. He kept his eyes on her, lips moving, but her pain-drenched mind refused to interpret the words he said.
Desperately, she reached for Rodric through their bond and felt his answering roar as the world went dark.
Chapter 27
Armspinnedbehindhisback, Rodric fought Cass’s hold. Dark, shimmering mist curled around them, disorienting him to a sickening degree. A second ago, it had been daylight, the midday clouds parting occasionally to release a ray of sunshine.
Rodric!Celina’s frantic voice was a whip to his soul. Excruciating pain burned through him. The blood in his veins felt like acid, and his body wrenched from the sensation.
Celina!He had to get to her. Had to stop the pain. One last burst of feeling, and the sensation vanished, as if it had never been. Roaring in rage, he inhaled the strange mist and choked, the thicker-than-air substance startling him.
“Donotmake me put you under, Rodric!” Cass growled in his ear. Her fingers drilled into the back of his skull in warning.
