Page 120 of Empire of Flame and Thorns

The twisting thorn forest appears around me.

I whip my head from side to side. Based on the position of the sun, it’s already late afternoon. Just as I estimated, it took almost an entire day to reach the city from the position deep in the forest where all of this started.

To my left, the river crests the tiny hill and rushes downwards on the other side.

Hope sparkles through my chest as I spot the city wall through the trees. But the cluster of impatient sparks is coming from the fields between the city and the Golden Palace, so I take off through the woods and towards that spot instead.

My heart thumps excitedly in my chest.

But somewhere deep inside, there is a sharp jabbing pain that refuses to go away. Because I can’t help but feel guilty. Guilty for tricking Draven. Guilty for fucking him and then just leaving. Guilty for pretending that it meant nothing to me, when in reality, it flipped my entire world upside down.

That guilt and pain twist inside my chest like thorny vines. I shouldn’t have slept with him. I shouldn’t have crossed that line. We’re enemies. We will always be enemies. He has been actively trying to ruin my life and get me kicked out of the trials from the day he saw me on that field.

And even if we could put that behind us after I win the Atonement Trials, it won’t change what he is and what I am. The commander of the dragon shifter army and the fae rebel who is trying to destroy everything he is protecting. It would never work.Wewould never work.

We’re on opposing sides in a conflict that has spanned millennia. Whatever we could have been was doomed from the start. So I should never have crossed that line. It would have been better to not know what it feels like to have him. Because now, I don’t know how I’m supposed to forget.

My feet pound against the ground as I sprint towards the edge of the woods.

A jolt shoots through me as hints of people become visible through the trees. Afternoon sunlight glints against two pairs of silver wings. Excitement pulses through me.

This is it. Just a little farther, and then I’m going to win the Atonement Trials. I’m going to be given winner status and permission to leave the Seelie Court and be given funds to set up a new life in the world outside. I’m going to be able to start building a network of rebels in the human cities and coordinate a real resistance. I’m going to make a difference. I’m finally going to matter and I?—

A body slams into me from the side.

Air explodes from my lungs as I crash down on the ground with a heavy body on top of me.

CHAPTER FORTY

Gasping air back into my lungs, I throw my elbow out as I try to roll away. A grunt of pain echoes as my elbow connects with something soft. The weight crushing my side eases for a second. I use that second to throw my body sideways and finally roll over on my back. Dragging in another breath, I blink furiously to clear my head and expect to see Draven above me.

Dread washes over me when I instead find Kevlin straddling my chest.

He must have been hiding here by the finish line, waiting for people to return with the rings. Goddess damn it, that’s a clever strategy. Why spend days searching for the rings when you can let everyone else do it and then just ambush them and steal a ring when they return?

I yank my hand away as he lunges for the ring on my finger. Squeezing my hand into a fist, I try to keep the ring safe while I jerk up my leg and slam my knee right into his ass.

A yelp rips from his throat. Because he was leaning forwards over me, trying to get the ring, the hit from behind sends him tumbling over my head and rolling off me. I scramble around and push to my knees right as he whirls around as well. Pain shoots through my face as he slams his fist into my jaw.

The force of it is hard enough to snap my head to the side. Black spots dance before my eyes as I shoot to my feet while reaching for the knife at my thigh. But before I can draw it, Kevlin aims a kick at the side of my knee. Abandoning my attempt to reach my knife, I’m forced to leap back to avoid getting my kneecap shattered.

“Just give me the fucking ring,” Kevlin growls at me, his eyes wild as he advances on me. “I have waited over three hundred years for this! I’m not going to lose a third time.”

I yank out my knife right as blinding light explodes across the forest.

A gasp rips from my lungs, and I throw my hand up to protect my eyes. But it’s too late. Kevlin, just like Alistair’s friend Jeb, has light magic. And when he summons it in a gloomy forest, the sudden difference is so intense that it leaves me temporarily blinded.

Blinking furiously, I try to get my vision back while I slash blindly around me with the knife. A hiss informs me that I almost managed to hit Kevlin with it, but he just keeps coming.

Winds rush through the trees, making the leaves rustle. It masks the sound of Kevlin’s feet as he moves.

Panic clangs inside my skull as I spin in frantic circles while swiping my knife in every direction. I have no idea where he is. All I can see is a harsh white light. I blink furiously, but the effect of his blast isn’t diminishing.

That’s when it hits me.

He hasn’t turned off his magic. It’s still blasting around us.

Terror crashes through me.

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