Page 194 of Spoils of war
I exhaled. At least she wasn’t dead, but the sheets were damp and twisted beneath her, clinging to her skin. If only I could make my power listen. If I could justwillit to work, she wouldn't be lying there like this. She was in so much pain, and I’d done nothing. I should’ve helped her already.
“Wake up,” I said, my voice broken. I bent over her, shaking her shoulder gently, my hands trembling. “He’s here. Will’s here. We can leave. But you need to get up. Please. You have to.”
She groaned, a tiny sound that cracked something in me.
“I’m tired, Kera…” she whimpered. “It hurts.”
I swallowed the panic clawing up my throat.
“Please,” I whispered. “Let me help.”
Her eyes blinked open, slow, heavy, like her body was fighting it. Then she nodded, and her hand found mine, limp and cold. Eyes closed, I reached inward, searching for the light buried deep beneath everything else. Warmth stirred in my palms. Then came the glow. Soft and golden, kindling between our hands.
Thank you.
I poured everything I had into her. For a long, breathless moment, nothing happened. Then slowly, color began to return to her cheeks. Her breathing steadied, and as the tightness in her limbs began to ease, a wave of relief crashed over me.
But it wasn’t the only thing that hit me. Something between us cracked open, and it felt as if our bond became a bridge. I wasn’t just taking away her pain; I was pulling it into myself.
And it tore through me without warning, like lightning striking from a clear sky. A scream built in my throat as pain lanced through my skull, sharp, blinding, and brutal. My knees hit the floor and I gasped, ripping my hand back just as the light retreated back into me.
“Kera?”
Licia’s voice was clear, but her face blurred in front of me. I staggered, pressing a hand to my forehead, fighting the dizziness crashing through me.
“I’m fine,” I rasped. A lie so thin it barely made it out of my mouth. “It just takes… a lot.”
I forced myself upright.
“Can you walk?” I asked. As if she was the one having problems staying on her feet.
She looked down at her legs like they weren’t hers, like she didn’t trust them to obey. Then slowly, she swung them off the bed.
“I think so… yeah,” she said.
Good enough.
Will was there when we stepped into the hallway, and the instant his eyes landed on Licia, his entire face shifted.
“Hi,” he breathed.
There wasn’t time for a reunion, we had to move. Quickly.
“Guards?” I asked.
“Aran is distracting them.” Will responded.
A sudden crash tore through the corridor, a metallic, shattering echo that sent Licia stumbling into me with a startled cry.
“What was that?” she whispered.
Will glanced toward the sound, jaw set. “It’s okay,” he said. “It’s part of the plan.”
Will took the lead, and we followed, hugging the walls, ducking past half-open doors and shadowy corners. They weren’t the same halls I’d been dragged through when I first arrived.
“Aran said they threw him out the back door last night,” Will whispered as we moved. “There’s a second exit. It should be just ahead—”
Footsteps.
