Page 195 of Heir of Broken Souls

Aurora continues moving throughout the skies, ripping out the necks of her enemies who can’t see her coming.

My head snaps down from the sky, my eyes flaring as a hound slips past my magic. Before it can get to me with its outstretched claws, I unsheathe the twin dragon swords at my back and decapitate it with both of them at once. The hound’s dead weight drops, but before I can move past it, I pause, something within its decapitated neck stopping me.

There.

Lined around its dark oily blood are small golden flickers of amber.

I startle, jumping back just in time as the hound erupts in golden flames, turning into nothing but ash.

My heart hammers wildly in my ears, the twin swords in my hands now suddenly clammy from my wet palms.

I was right.

Join your steel and lunge with a roar, and weave your golden fate.

And so the scales shall devour their dark souls.

It’s theblades. The blades can kill those who are corrupt. He doesn’t even need to show his true face. I just need to get close enough to?—

A scream tears from my lips as pain like an inferno erupts along my spine.

“Hello, Angel.”

In my periphery, I see Knox’s dashing face as he holds the blade embedded in my back. Blood dribbles down my mouth and I’m helpless to do anything as he smirks.

There is nothing behind those eyes I love so much.

Not even a flicker of light.

“Let’s leave the princeling unaware of this, shall we?” he drawls. The voice, while familiar, does not resonate with my heart.

That grabs my attention, and I snap forward to where I thought Knox was.

Up ahead, he still rages against the demons, and shortly behind him, a girl follows that looks like…me. The demonic creatures keep a wide berth from her and it won’t take Knox long to realize it isn’t me. She can’t replicate the golden power.

Before I can try and get my magic to stir, the blade embedded within my back moves, grazing my spine in such an agonizing move my vision tunnels.

My magic snaps, striking out like the serpent it is.

My entire body glows golden, my wings snap open, and the movement and my power push the blade from my spine. The Fae imposing Knox at my back curses and drops me.

Before I can allow the pain to engulf my body, I spin, bringing the twin dragon blades to his neck. Avoiding his sapphire eyes, I grit my teeth and spit, “Show yourself.”

“I was looking forward to having an audience this time,” it pouts.

I push the swords in further, wincing internally, until black blood oozes down his neck. Until his eyes widen at the golden ambers dancing along the cut that no doubt burn like the depths of hell.

Fear tinges their eyes and mold into their true color—soft blue.

I can’t help but grin. “I was hoping to see you.”

Chapter72

Knox

Through the whirlwind of my steel I see a figure running toward me. It takes me a moment to realize it isn’t one of the hounds but one of my own. Relief is swift as it flies through my entire body, despite the hounds and Phookas running at me in every direction.

Through the haze of steel, black blood, and demonic creatures is Nolan.