Page 96 of Heavensent & Hellbent

At the end of the aisle was Keyon. He wore a black tunic with matching diamonds decorating the front. His jaw was set, eyes boring into mine with what appeared to be distaste.

“Great, just amazing,” I muttered to myself. I had to talk to myself, somehow see light in this, or else I would crumble right here in this suffocating dress, with these stupidly thin heels and a train that felt like walking with a duvet on my back.

The music came to a natural end as soon as I stood directly in front of Keyon. I heard a small gasp and turned. In the front row was Azar. Her eyes were teary, but pure rage radiated from her. Her cheeks were pink, eyes narrowed, and even though a solitary tear fell down her heavily made-up face, she shook her head. Next to her, Zahhak was watching me carefully, an unnatural smile on his face, like a proud parent. They both wore finery, extravagance that matched my dress.

Across from us, the palace loomed large. And there, far away, were the open doors I had stood in when I spoke to Pouran. She stood by them, so small I could barely see her.

Between Keyon and me was a short man, the officiant. He stood in front of a table where artifacts meant to bring good luck to the bride and groom were displayed. A mirror and lit candle sat at the center. Reflected in the mirror were my and Keyon’s grim faces, with the onlookers behind us. This supposedly symbolized light and love. There were other items, such as apples, eggs, and walnuts, in separate bowls, meant to bring fertility. My mum had taught me about Persian wedding traditions; I had imagined adopting them for my own wedding one day, but not like this.

The officiant smoothed down his black and silver tunic as he told the guests to sit. They obliged, and once everyone was seated, he rattled on about the importance of unions between families. It was all so generic, and ordinary, that I tuned it out.

Keyon continued to glare at me in the mirror as though he was the one being forced into this and not the other way around. I narrowed my eyes right back at him.

Iwas the one who was being punished for falling in love with Zain—for always, inevitably falling for him. For our souls being fated.

For loving him in this lifetime too. I didn’t even know if he was dead or alive, if he hated me or loved me back. And if I didn’t get myself out of this, I’d never know.

My palms began to heat with that familiar burn.

Your magic is weakened in the palace. He has warded these walls against it.

The walls—but we were not within the walls anymore. And just as I let the flames grow, just before the officiant and Keyon noticed, I heard feral roars.

And then screams.

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Keyon’s hands wrapped around my shoulders, heavy and firm, as he yanked me behind him. I opened my mouth to yell at him when I realized that the screams from the guests had nothing to do with the fireballs I’d produced. No, they were a result of the dozens of beasts that were flying in the night sky, surrounding us.

The beasts were at least eight feet tall, with the bodies of superhumans rippling with muscles. It was their faces, though, that caused me to back away, against Keyon’s grip, which was now tight on my waist. It was almost like he didn’t want me to see them as he angled his body in front of mine, but I peered over anyway, observing their slow, calculated movements. Their faces resembled demonic hyenas. They had horns on their heads, and sharp teeth that were bared at the wedding guests. I didn’t know what they were, but they certainly were not human.

Guests began disappearing, using their powers, either through teleportation or by becoming shadows that moved like smoke out of the garden. Very quickly, the hundreds of guests became only a handful. The Jinn King stood, roaring with displeasure. Guards and soldiers appeared, surrounding him, while the beasts began their attack on the remaining guests. I caught eyes with a black-eyed guest, who had procured a dagger from beneath his cloak and slashed at one of the beasts. He missed, and the beast clamped his teeth on the jinn’s neck, bone crunching as the jinn’s head was removed clean from his body and rolled across the ground.

After that, it was a blur of screaming, shouting, and shuffling bodies, though Keyon attempted to shield me from it all. I pushed his back.

“Get away from me,” I hissed. This was our chance. Azar stood mere feet away, but her back was to me as she watched the chaos unfold.

“I’m trying to help you,” Keyon said through gritted teeth. “We need to get out of here.”

His grip on me was tight—even one-handed he was stronger than me. I pressed my hands to the middle of his back and willed heat to grow beneath my skin. He yelped, pulling himself away from me and turning so we faced each other. His jaw was set, eyes filled with pure rage. One of his hands encircled my wrist.

“Your powers are mere child’s play,” he said, though I knew it had hurt him. “We need to go before they take you.”

My stomach sank. The beasts? Over his shoulder, I lockedeyes with Azar. She was trying to tell me something, but before she could, one of the beasts flew directly at her.

“Azar!” I yelled, my throat raw. The beast came down just behind my sister, chairs clattering and breaking in the process.

That was when I noticed that the Jinn King had left with his men. He had left us here like sitting ducks.

Azar wasted no time in using her powers to speed over to us, missing the beast’s claws by only a fraction of an inch. Her body moved like smoke blowing through the air. Even though she had told me about her power, seeing it in action was surprising, a reminder that we were jinn.

“If you don’t get your hands off my sister, I will kill you,” she said with such certainty that I believed her capable of such an act.

Keyon was taller than my sister, significantly so, and yet from her stance, the way her chin jutted up at him, it was as though he had met his match.

His lip quirked up, eyebrow raised. “Is that so?” he murmured before placing an arm around her shoulder. A noise of anger almost came out of her mouth but was muffled by our gasps as we were lifted into the air, jolting us out of the wedding setup and into another part of the gardens.

I stumbled on my own feet as Keyon let go of me. I had to bend, which was almost impossible in the corset, holding my thighs for support as I breathed deeply through my nose and mouth, dizziness taking over. In the distance, I heard the clashing of weapons, growls, and yells.