Page 14 of The Serpent Prince

“I don’t know,” Imani replied through quivering lips, her body still racked with pain.

“You were merciless earlier.” It was almost a whisper, heavy with a certain reverence, as if Kiran didn’t know he was speaking aloud.

And he just stayed there, his knuckles brushing down her neck, both trapped in some strange suspension of time.

Imani’s breath stopped. It was here, in this gaze, that she was seen. Whether it was by Kiran or the creature that lived inside him, he took in every incongruous part of herself.

Nothing had ever flooded her with such sweet, agonizing terror and happiness.

With that thought, her body jerked, and she gasped as she started convulsing. Pure pain ripped through her. Sobs rocked her chest. Darkness hovered at the edges of her sight as she stared at him, the last of her relief vaporizing.

The pain wasn’t over yet.

She might have cried out pathetically as sheer torture collapsed in on her like an avalanche of snow, covering her beneath its depths.

Imani surrendered to it.

CHAPTER 5

“What the hell happened to her?” Esa asked, her voice floating into Imani’s ear.

Imani’s eyes wouldn’t open, but she could imagine Kiran shrugging.

“It could be a number of things. Her magic was too much for her body, though. She needs to learn control over her power—and fast.” A pause. “It’s strange … but I’ve never felt that amount of power coming from Imani before, like she’s acquired more. But that’s impossible without a master brand.”

“We need to keep her alive long enough to complete our agreement. She should start to learn more control.”

Kiran sighed. “I’ll probably have to ask Zadie to train her.”

Esa huffed a laugh. “She’ll never agree. Not after training you for all those years.”

With a heavy head weighing her down like lead, Imani tried and failed to wake up. Finally, after three attempts, she groaned and rolled onto her side. Grasping at the blanket someone had laid over her, she brought it to her nose, inhaling Kiran’s masculine scent. Her body heated from it alone, and his healing essence rushed through her, as well.

Disgusted, she kicked it off her body and looked around.

Her unfocused gaze took in the scene around her. They were still in Kiran’s carriage.

Across from her, Kiran’s head bent toward Esa’s. Imani couldn’t see his face, but she could see Esa’s as the pixie threw back her head with silent laughter and a hand over her mouth, showing the gorgeous, long column of her throat. She looked incandescent with joy, his attention the light in which her beauty shone especially bright.

A cutting jealousy tore through Imani’s chest. In this moment, she was an outsider, and while not a new feeling, it was highly unpleasant.

If she hadn’t been dizzy with the residual effects of almost dying, Imani would have laughed at herself for such a foolish reaction. Instead, she rubbed her face and turned her gaze toward the window.

Suddenly, the laughter stopped, and a zing of energy crossed the air. Imani snapped her eyes to both of them, but she kept her mouth thinned.

Silence reigned in the coach as Imani waited for them to speak first, to ask their questions.

A pit in Imani’s stomach grew. She knew how Esa and Kiran operated, and from now on, she’d always be prepared to give up a secret or make a bargain. It didn’t make her any less nervous wondering what answers he wanted from her. She couldn’t let them know her true desires—her true weaknesses. More than anything, she prayed they didn’t know about the Drasil.

Especially Kiran. If he knew what she wanted more than anything—and knew how much information she had on it—he’d manipulate her down to her bones. He’d know exactly how far he could push, what to offer, and what she’d never refuse, always giving him the upper hand.

Aching to fill the silence, Imani asked the first inane question that popped into her head. “How long until morning? Also, why aren’t either of you asleep?”

“What makes you think it’s nighttime?” Kiran asked.

“It’s dark,” Imani deadpanned. Glancing out the window, she noticed they had traveled a bit farther into Niflheim but had clearly stopped for the night with Kiran’s shield up protecting them again.

“Ahh, is it?” He tsked. “I don’t think you know what dark is, my darling.”