Page 47 of Black Hearted
For a moment, I was stunned. But I pushed the thought from my mind and dropped to my knees, pulling Lorelei into my arms.
She was so pale and still, her skin cold to the touch. Terror gripped me as I feared she was dead, and my heart felt like it stopped. Then she let out a soft moan.
“Lorelei.” I shook her gently, but she remained limp. Only the slow, steady rise and fall of her chest assured me she was alive.
My fates, she was even more beautiful in real life than in my dreams. The lamplight cast soft shadows across her upturned nose and full lips. Her long brown hair cascaded over my shoulder in silky waves.
I didn’t know what was wrong with her, but I knew I had to get her out of there and to her mother, who might know how to wake her.
Lifting her delicately, I carried her out of the room. I kept a sharp eye and ear as I moved through the dungeon corridor, passing the empty cells.
“Lorelei. You’re safe now,” I whispered, but her head just flopped back and forth against my chest.
Reaching the stairs, I began to ascend, pausing at the door at the top of the landing.
Aside from the guard I’d knocked out, I hadn’t seen anyone else since entering the manor. But that didn’t mean no one else was there. And the guard could have regained consciousness.
I needed to be prepared.
Reaching for my power, I readied myself. I might not have full access to my magic, but I’d rather use what little I had left than set Lorelei down to grab my blade.
I didn’t ever want to let her go again.
As I reached for my magic, panic rose inside me. This time, I didn’t even feel it at all.
Why? How?
Brushing the questions from my mind, I dug deeper than ever before into the reservoirs of my power until I felt a spark flare to life. There was only a tiny grain of magic left, but it was enough. I’d make sure of it.
Steeling myself, I burst through the opening at the top of the stairs, and sure enough, not one but two guards were headed my way.
“He’s got her,” one shouted.
“What are our orders? Can we kill him?” the other asked.
They were clearly confused, and I used that to my advantage. Shifting Lorelei’s slight weight to one arm, I freed my other hand and blasted the first guard with a black lightning bolt. He fell to the ground, twitching.
I turned to the second guard, aiming my hand and forcing my magic outward.
But nothing happened.
I’d used what little I had left. There was nothing else for me to pull from.
The second guard lunged for Lorelei, reaching as if to take her from me, and I went berserk.
Snapping my head forward, I headbutted him, and he stumbled back with a cry. Lifting my right boot, I kicked him squarely in the chest, sending him backward into the wall. He cracked his head against the stone and slumped to the ground.
I didn’t stop to assess the damage. Running for the front door, I shoved it open with my shoulder, holding Lorelei tightly to my chest the entire time.
Biscuit was waiting for me, loyally standing right where I’d left her.
Carefully, I draped Lorelei over Biscuit before climbing up behind her. Once in the saddle, I pulled her back into my arms. Throughout the whole ordeal, Lorelei remained limp and unconscious.
Fear clawed at my chest—what if she never woke up?
The terrifying thought spurred me on. I squeezed my heels into Biscuit’s sides, urging her forward by the faint moonlight in the direction where I’d last seen Captain Lace.
Pushing Biscuit as fast as she could go, I kept glancing over my shoulder, worried someone from the manor might give chase and catch us before I could meet back up with the Spring Court troops.
