Page 99 of Fated for Dawn

The others shouted, too.

“I’m sorry. I have to do this. Please forgive me,” I said through the bound; I looked to Adrien, who was a little further back with Viper and Raven and gave him a small nod.

My friend’s expression was grim as he raised a shield around Eris and me, his magic shimmering faintly in the air like a protective dome.

A strangled growl tore from Ryker’s throat. “No. No, Evelyn!” My dragon was next to us in a split second as his bloody fists slammed against Adrien’s shield, the force making the magic shimmer.

“Drop it,” Lucien snarled at Adrien, his eyes burning with rage. “Right. Now.”

“I can’t,” Adrien gritted out. “Sheknewyou’d try to stop her.”

Viper and Raven positioned themselves in a protective stance in front of Adrien.

Rafe’s voice cracked.“Evelyn, please, don’t do this.”

Through the bond, I felt their helplessness.

“Little witch…” Chad’s voice sounded broken.

“Evelyn, my love, I can’t lose you,” Alister said with desperation.

I looked at them—my mates, my loves—desperately wishing things could be different. Their faces were a mix of horror and disbelief, tearing at my fragile resolve. I had to believe this would work and they would understand why I was doing it.

“I’m sorry,”I said through our link.“But if you love me, you need to let me do this.”

I turned to Eris and extended my hands. She took them without hesitation, her grip strong. I extinguished the flames in my palms to ensure they wouldn’t hurt Lia. The fire receded, leaving only my human touch’s raw, open vulnerability.

My mates pounded on the shield, calling my name.

“Do it,” I said, my voice steady despite my heart tearing apart.

Eris’s eyes glowed triumphantly, her lips curling into a wicked smile. “Don’t worry, dear. I’ll make good use of you.”

Her essence began to pour out of Lia’s body, a swirling, writhing mass of shifting light and shadow. It shimmered and twisted in impossible patterns, colors bleeding into one another like a fractured prism, both beautiful and horrifying. The air hummed with raw, chaotic energy as tendrils of radiant, seething power snaked toward me, alive with intent. As it made contact, I braced myself, shielding my mind to hold steady, locking every part of me into place.

The essence of Eris slammed into my body, a powerful, suffocating force that clawed at every corner of my being. I could feel her trying to break me apart, to infiltrate my mind, my soul. Her voice yelled in my head, a thousand chaotic thoughts, a deafening cacophony trying to overwhelm me.

I gritted my teeth, summoning every ounce of control I had to shield my mind.

I closed my eyes and reached for my core power, the one linked to my life force, and unleashed it.

All of it.

Feeding my flames everything I had left.

I screamed, the effort of holding her at bay tearing through me.

I held on as much as I could.

She thrashed inside me, desperate to take over.

My shield collapsed, but it was too late.

My life force had run out.

Trapping Eris.

Darkness surrounded us as I landed in the shadow realm one last time.

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