Page 75 of Unmasked Prophecy

Oh God.

“You’ll never be free,” he croaks, his voice broken and barely a whisper.

“I already am,” I say, twisting my hand just slightly.

I said it would be me who ends this. That’s what I’m going to do.

I watch the light leave his eyes and then he slumps down on top of me.

I can’t breathe. I can’t move.

He’s dead.

The world starts to spin, and I hear it, distant but growing closer—the roar of engines, the wail of sirens, the crack of gunfire.

They’re here.

Like they promised they would be.

Then Talon’s voice again, a fierce, desperate shout.

My father’s body is hauled off me, and then he’s there, staring down at me, his eyes glassy and red as he takes my face in his hands. “Baby, no.”

“I did it,” I croak.

“Stay with me, Nia. Dammit, stay with me. Don’t close your eyes. Please, baby, don’t fuckin’ close your eyes.”

I did it.

I saved Lily.

I saved us all.

My world goes black.

19

The room is bright, painfully so, and I blink against the harsh glare, my eyes struggling to focus. The only sound I can hear is the incessant beeping of machines. I can't move, can't think, the fog in my mind thick and suffocating. I try to lift my hand, but it's heavy, weighed down with wires and tubes, the IV pulling at my skin.

Where am I?

My heart lurches, and panic claws at me. I try to sit up, the effort sending a sharp jolt of pain through my body. The sound of footsteps, quick and purposeful, and then a voice—soft, calming—a nurse appearing at my side.

"You're awake," she says, relief in her voice. "It’s okay, Nia. You’re in the hospital. Don't try to move. I'll get the doctor."

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