Page 128 of The Crown of the Dark Prince
I couldn’t see them. I couldn’t hear Clay anymore.
If she had hurt him…
"You can't stop me," I heard her whisper behind me and I spun, jerking my elbow towards her nose, but there was nothing.
"Let me go!" I demanded.
Then I heard their screams.
I felt their blood pour across my skin.
Their pain reverberated through my very soul.
Time was meaningless. Their deaths came again and again. I heard it over and over. I felt that blood splash over me until I felt like I was drowning it.
I felt the pain of their deaths a thousand times over.
And I broke.
“I’ll do it!” I screamed, the words spilling from me in a torrent of tears. My legs gave out beneath me. “I’ll do it.”
Her magic released me, leaving me gasping and hollow. Pasnia tossed Clay forward like a broken doll, and he collapsed heavily to the ground.
I scrambled toward him on my hands and knees, pulling his face into my hands.
“Don’t do this,” he pleaded, his voice raw.
Gently, I brushed my lips across his, pouring all of my love into that one soft touch.
“I can’t lose you,” I whispered, choking on the words. It was selfish, I knew that. I knew everyone would suffer because of this choice.
But Clay chose me over his kingdom.
And I would choose him over this realm if it came to that.
“Enough!” Pasnia snapped, her hand clamping around my arm. Her nails bit into my skin as she dragged me to the center of the room. Clay launched towards me, but a guard stepped forward in Pasnia's place, holding him back. “Lower the Veil. Now.”
I fell forward, hands aching from where I had tore them on the stone outside. Everything ached.
And I was so fucking tired.
I raised my arms, my power trembling at my fingertips. The golden light of the portal shimmered before me, growing wider with each passing second. My friends screamed, begging me to stop. But I couldn’t.
Not yet.
Not when I still had one last trick up my sleeve.
Pasnia stepped closer, her eyes gleaming with triumph. “Make it larger!”
“You’re going to see Hyrax very soon, Pasnia,” I promised her.
Her smile faltered, confusion flashing across her face.
Then I struck. My magic snapped out, coiling around her waist, and I yanked.
Chapter Thirty Six
Pasnia stumbled forward, her heels scraping against the marble as she strained against my magic. The grunts of frustration she let slip echoed through the desolate hall. For a fleeting moment, I thought I won.
