Page 107 of Synodic

Aliphoura’s look of hungry possession wasn’t lost on Caeryn either. “I thought you told me he was dead,” he said.

She’d made Caeryn believe she loved him. But now after years of servitude and blind loyalty, he could finally see the truth written across her face. She didn’t love him. She never had.

“I said he wasprobablydead.”

“You stabbed him in the heart. How could anyone survive that?”

“I must have narrowly miscalculated.”

“Conveniently miscalculated.”

My heart lurched. The massive and mottled scar on his chest was from her? I could have never fathomed it was put there by someone he loved.

“Rowen, come to bed. I’ve let you play in the forest with the elves for far too long. My sheets are in need of your warming.”

“You’ll let her go?” His voice was rough and his emerald eyes pleading.

“Rowen. No. Don’t!” I wailed against Caeryn’s arms.

“Yes, on my word,” Aliphoura said. “But you are to never leave me again. Ruling by my side and keeping me satisfied as you were always meant to do.”

Rowen snatched her by the throat, snarling and exposing the peaks of canines. “Then lead the way, my queen.”

She smiled with satisfaction, motioning for her personal guard to stand down their quickly drawn blades. Would they follow them into the bedroom, be watchful guarding eyes as Rowen pleasured her with his body, forcing him into the role of an enslaved plaything?

It enraged me how thoroughly Aliphoura was debasing Rowen, using me as the bargaining chip.

Watching the man I love give in to this sick woman's pleasure raised a furious wrath within me I didn’t know I was capable of. It surged ravenously through me, destroying everything in its path until I was nothing but my blood and fury and hatred.

Every molecule, every atom, everything I had within me was directed at Aliphoura in pure and unadulterated rage, and my fingertips swelled.

The light was small and barely there, but I could feel it all the same.

I called for it, coaxing it to grow.

There was no denying it anymore—my powers were inextricably linked to my emotions, and my emotions were inextricably linked to Rowen.

I felt the power building within me and I grabbed on, breathing in tandem with the budding silver tendrils. I just needed to buy more time.

“Caeryn, do you hear that? She’s taking another man to her bed,” I said through the strain in my neck. “She never loved you. All this time she was using you to get to him.”

Doubt loosened his grip.

Aliphoura’s lioness eyes snapped to mine murderously before smoothing over and landing on Caeryn. “My dear, that simply isn’t true. This man betrayed and hurt me deeply and now I demand his debt be repaid with absolute fealty.”

“What about my fealty?” he asked.

I had him now. “Think about it, Caeryn, delivering me to her was sure to bring him here. You are nothing but a glorified errand boy. She didn’t choose you. She’ll never choose you.”

He looked to Aliphoura questioningly, demanding answers.

But she would give none. “Guards,” she ordered, gesturing to both Caeryn and me. “Kill them both.”

“Wait!” I yelled just as Rowen screamed, “No!”

Some cosmic gong rang inside me, sending a single pulse throughout the ether of my body, awakening my senses to a new level of awareness. It was ancient, wild, and it was terrifying.

The flux of energy was taking too much. I couldn’t stop it.

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