MERYN
This is a dream,” I whisper to myself, staring in growing horror at the man who betrayed me so thoroughly.
Who stole my throne.
Destroyed my sister.
Not to mention everything he did to me…
My shoulders start to shake in anger.
Just a dream. People wake up from dreams.
Killian’s lips curve into a dangerously familiar smile, his fangs on display. “If this is a dream, why am I having it, too?”
My muscles strain so tightly that my joints hurt.
Killian takes a step and disappears into the shadows. He reappears several feet from where he vanished, eyes tracking me as he strides smoothly through the swirling black mist.
I suck in a sharp breath, staggering back, disgust flooding my veins.
Wake up.I scream the words in my head. If sheer force were enough, I would be free.
Killian pauses. Finally, his eyes leave me. They dart around the shadow-filled space we inhabit. He cocks his head, going unnaturally still. And then he turns to look at me.
“We’re alone.”
I don’t know what that means. Does he mean the voice I’ve heard in this place? He’s silent now, but—
Killian sighs in relief, some of the predatory tension leaving his body. “Wherever we are, Alistair isn’t here.”
Oh.Killian is alone in his mind.
He steps through the shadows and reappears closer to me. His gaze is soft and imploring. He looks so much like the man I thought I knew. The man who would take care of me after my fights, who looked after my mother.
The man who won my heart. Who kept it and then shattered it beyond repair.
Ihatehim. Rationally, I know that I hate him. But being this close to his intoxicating presence—to his beautiful face, to those lips that have traced every curve of my body…
My head is spinning.
“Hear me out, Mer, please,” he begs, reaching a hand toward me.
I swat it away. “Fuck off,” I seethe.
I fell for this shit once before. Not again. Especially not now.
He raises his hands in defeat. “I won’t touch you. I just need you to know—what happened today, with the pack communication. That wasn’tme. It was Alistair. He’s so strong, so powerful in his blood magic, and he has a millennia of knowledge about the Sturmfrost line’s powers. He knew your ancestors. His control over your magic is incomprehensible.”
I raise my wrist, face burning, and shake the engagement bracelet at him. “So that’s what this is, right? He’s taking my powers through it, corrupting the Bonded magic.”
Killian inches closer. “Yes. It’s not entirely working the way he expected, but still. You will never be able to defeat him.”
My stomach twists. I might be sick.
“But now that we’re alone, I can tell you that I’m on your side. If only you’d come back to me, give me a chance.”
It’s a fucked-up retread of a conversation we’ve already had. How many times does he expect I’ll fall for this? How many times does he believe I’ll forgive him?
