Page 56 of Escaping Hallow Hill Academy
The pain is blinding. It explodes, starting at the base of my spine. I scream and feel my knees buckle beneath me.
“Stop!” Styx growls.
Feet pound over wood.
Rue’s hand comes down along my arm, and I feel his energy slide all through me with that one little touch.
His pain tears through me, traveling down our bond. I feel it deep in my soul, our connection fracturing as the pain explodes into agony. The metal clings to my spine, and the harder Sialen pulls, the tighter they hold.
I know I’m screaming. My throat is hoarse, and darkness flickers on the edges of my blurred vision.
“Don’t stop!” I tell him. Even with the agony ripping through my whole body, I will pull through it. I bite my tongue and taste blood.
Emmera!Rue’s voice fractures through my mind with his own agony.
“Emmera!” Sialen pulls away, but the pain is still there. “You’re connected. I’m fucking hurting the both of you.”
I fall to the floor and firm hands hold me before I can faceplant. I’m laid out on my stomach, my limbs spread out.
Thick fingers press into my scalp, but I can’t feel the pleasure when the sharp bursts of pain override it all.
Alpha. . . Styx’s fingers slide against my skin just as his voice slides into my mind.
My sweet puppy doesn’t seem to have taken my pain the way the vampire has. Our strange bond seems to only stretch to certain things.
And luckily, skin-ripping torture isn’t one of them.
Down the bond with Rue, I feel his pain. It mingles with mine. It is mine, but our connection augments it to painful proportions.
“Rue.” My voice comes out as a croak. “I’m sorry.”
“I can feel your sorrow. Your hurt.” His voice is grave and as raspy as mine. "I—I didn't know I could. This is new . . ."
I didn't either. When he got hurt before, I hadn't felt it. Our bond had been new, fresh, and everything had been overwhelming.
“I’m sorry,” I tell him. The metal clings tighter, like it knows it needs to burrow deeper into me to save itself. Darkness flickers along the edges of my vision. “I’m sorry, Rue. I’m sorry.”
“Never again. Never fucking again.” Sia’s words hold so much anger that I know it’s regret.
And I regret asking him to do it.
I’m cradled against Styx’s smooth shoulder, his fingers playing against my hair. Rue lies next to him, slouching against the wall. He looks tired, but his chest rises with a steady rhythm. I reach for his hand and squeeze it, hoping it conveys how sorry I am.
“I didn’t know it would be like that. I—I didn’t know you could feel my pain.”
I know Styx can sense my heartbreak. Even if we don’t share the same physical pain, he can feel every beat of my soul. We’re connected, even if I don’t know how. He bends and presses a kiss to my forehead and that action alone is highly comforting.
“I didn’t know either.”
Sialen kneels in front of us. His scowl is prominent on his features. Fuck, he looks pissed. “Never fucking again.”
“Yeah, I heard you the first time, asshole.”
Did I say that out loud?
The narrowing of his eyes tells me that I did.
“That was a shittily-thought-out plan, and it put the both of you in fucking danger. You’re too fucking reckless. It’s a wonder you’ve lived this fucking long at all.”
