Page 138 of Daughter of No Worlds

I threw myself against the glass again, inhaled a terrible lungful of frantic panic —

A scoff. “Powerless? At a piece of broken wood?”

Powerless.Something clicked. I forced myself to calm.

I had spent my life being powerless. I knew how to find power where there was none.

And so, instead of reaching out to Reshaye with another strike, I reached out with a caress.

I see your wounds. I see how his betrayal hurt you.

No lies. It would know if I lied. Only the most carefully chosen of truths.

Its attention turned to me.

{I have indeed suffered many terrible things.}

I know you have.

It paused. And for one brief moment, I felt it cede to me, brush against my thoughts in an intimacy that made me force myself not to recoil—

In a sudden shock, a slice of terror shot through me, eyes blinded in a memory ofwhite white white—

And then that was consumed by a burst of Reshaye’s fury.

“Do you know what they did to me? Locked me up in a broken mind and a broken body. Nothing but white for so many days, so many days.” My teeth gritted, lip curled. “You had no one left but me, and you still threw me away. Why would you do that?”

Power throbbed in my veins. Magic.

The lights in the room dimmed, growing hazy and dark like the red dusk before a sunset storm. The fingers that braced against Max’s shoulder tingled, and a wince of pain flitted over his nose.

Slowly, so slowly, Max’s left hand slid down my shoulder. Down my arm. “Find a foothold,” he murmured, never taking his eyes off mine. “Find something you can grab and don’t let go, Tisaanah.”

“You speak tome!”I felt a wrinkle slice my nose. “Answer a question for me, Maxantarius. I know your body. I know what it is capable of. You could have her thrown across the room by now. You laughed at my broken piece of wood. But we are still here.”

“That wasn’t a question.”

A laugh scraped my throat. “Perhaps you are right. Perhaps it is no question at all. I have, after all, always seen all of your weaknesses.”

My fingers burned, sizzled over his skin. And a terrible smell coated my nostrils. Max jaw strained, fighting back a wince. His hand curled around my wrist. And I knew he was waiting, waiting until the last possible moment—

The room grew darker and darker. My eyes, beneath Reshaye’s control, flicked to Il’Sahaj.

No.

I fought back my own panic.

What would you gain by killing him?

A silent laugh snaked through my thoughts like a terrible shudder.{Retribution.}

But you say you love him. And if he is dead, you will never have him. And I’ll tell you a hard truth, Reshaye – If you kill him, if you hurt him, you will never have me, either.

{And why would I want you?}

Because you wish to be loved, and I have loved many monsters.

Max’s fingers tightened.

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