Page 119 of A Bolt of Magic

I reach for my magic. Desperation clawing at me. To my relief, the power responds immediately, flooding through me like molten gold, crackling along my skin in visible sparks.

“What the hell are you doing?” I snarl.

“I was waiting for you, fae king. I thought we could have a little chat, just the two of us.” She laughs, the sound cold and sharp.

“A chat? You don’t throw a fireball at someone you want a conversation with.”

“That was nothing. Just a warning. It was never meant to kill you since you’re too valuable to us alive.” Another bolt of lightning erupts from her hands, and this time, I’m ready for it.

She wants to take me alive.

That tidbit of information gives me the edge.

I throw up a shield of raw energy, the two magical forces colliding in a shower of sparks that illuminates the mountainside. The impact sends shockwaves through the ground beneath our feet as my barrier falls.

Dammit! I’m not a magic wielder.

“But if you end up dead, I would be fine with that, too.” She laughs, and unfortunately, I believe her. So much for my edge.

“You should give up now and surrender, Kian. You know that you’re no match for me.”

“Why? What do you have planned? What do you want with me? What about the alliance?” I say through gritted teeth, trying to raise another shield, but all I get is raw energy that blasts a hole in the ground just ahead of me. “Was any of it real?” I project my voice since she is a little way down the path.

“Oh, it’s very real,” Lilith replies, her purple robes whipping around her as magic swirls through the air between us. “We are going to work together, just not in the way you imagined. Do you give up?”

“No, of course—” I don’t get to finish.

Fire erupts from her palms this time, a wall of flame that rushes toward me with deadly intent. I counter with my own magic, and raw energy explodes from my hands in a massive rush that not only extinguishes her flames but scorches the rocksaround us black. Lilith throws up a shield as if it is nothing and then counters.

I curse under my breath, leaping behind a bank of rocks, where I hunker down until the onslaught is over.

I stand, facing her. I have no choice.

“It’s a pity, Kian. I had hoped we could be civilized. This is your last chance to give up. To surrender.”

I know I don’t stand much chance against the likes of her, but I will never go willingly. I know that whatever she has planned will be against my best interests.

I shake my head but before I can say anything, Lilith swings into action, moving like the master artisan she is. Her magic flows from her in elegant, deadly patterns – binding spells that try to wrap around my ankles, cutting winds that slice through the air where my head was a moment before, earth magic that makes the ground beneath me shift and crack.

I try to counter. I try to block. I fumble my way through.

“You’re not good enough for her,” she says as we circle each other, trading magical blows that light up the sky. “Did you think a failed king with no throne, no kingdom, no prospects could be worthy of my daughter? A fae, at that?”

Her words hit harder than her magic. “McColl doesn’t care about any of that,” I say through gritted teeth, working hard to keep my shield up.

“Doesn’t she?” Lilith’s smile is cruel as she sends a barrage of ice shards my way. “Or did you simply hear what you wanted to hear?” Her magic comes easily.

I deflect the ice with another wild burst of power that turns the projectiles to steam, too busy for a while to answer her. When she slows her attack, I shout, “We love each other.”

The words ring true. Lilith did this. Lilith tore us apart so that she could get me alone. She, too, is acting alone. The two of us may have been too much for her to take on her own. McColland I have always been strong together. Now it’s just me and Lilith. Cold fear grips me.

Where is McColl now?

Has Lilith done something to her, too?

The laughter that erupts from her throat is like breaking glass. “Love? There is no such thing, you naive fool. There’s desire, there’s usefulness, there’s power – but love?” She shakes her head. “That's a fairy tale for children. McColl is an adult now. It is time for her to act like it.”

McColl.

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