Page 150 of A Kingdom of Wild and Power
‘Let’s go,’ he commanded. ‘We’re taking too long. Just burn the whole fucking thing to the ground.’ The order rippled through the courtyard. Flames leapt higher.
Ylva noticed two witches trailing behind him, each commanding large wooden crates with their magic. Something precious was inside, carefully packed, not cast to the fire.
The scrolls.
Had he saved them? Would she still be forced to sit at his side and read to him while he plotted the ruin of kingdoms?
Hagan’s head tilted slightly, as though he had plucked the question straight from her mind.
He strode towards her. With a flick of his wrist, he dismissed the warlock holding her invisible chains. For a fleeting second the magic dissolved, the pressure easing from her throat and wrists.
Only to snap back into place.
Stronger.
Colder.
This time, the power coiled around her at Hagan’s command.
‘You’ll be travelling with me,’ he said, not even bothering to look at her.
‘No, but I—’ Panic flared sharp and immediate. Her eyes flew to Arden. If they were separated during the march, their chances of escape would fracture. They needed to move together. They needed to watch and wait as one.
Hagan’s gaze shifted to her, reading the fear in her expression as easily as parchment.
He gave the chains a vicious tug.
Ylva stumbled forward, nearly crashing to her knees.
Arden stepped towards them, jaw tight, green eyes blazing with restrained fury.
Hagan noticed.
And he smiled.
‘Did you think me so foolish as to allow you two to be alone together?’ Hagan spat, his grip tightening as he dragged Ylva nearer, until her shoulder nearly brushed his chest. ‘I don’t think so.’
Arden’s entire body went rigid.
‘Get your filthy, magic-rotted hands off her,’ he snarled.
Hagan laughed. ‘Do you not also use magic? Go on then. Use it.’
Ylva’s blue eyes flicked to Arden. She saw the moment he tried. The tension in his jaw. The way he tried to flex his fingers and nothing. His hands would not obey him.
Understanding crashed into her. Hagan’s blood magic had already wrapped itself around Arden, binding him silent and powerless.
Arden cried out suddenly, the sound ripped from him as he collapsed to his knees.
Hagan released Ylva and sauntered towards him, slow and deliberate, like a man admiring a fallen trophy. He stood over Arden, satisfaction gleaming in his purple eyes, and reached down to seize one of his antlers, yanking it cruelly.
Arden did not react.
Would not give him the satisfaction.
Hagan spat in his face, then shoved him backwards onto the stone.
‘Do not question your position here, Black Lotus,’ he said. ‘You may have been feared once. But now? You are nothing compared to us. We will create a new world. A better world.’
