Page 83 of Savage Is My Kingdom

Raziel waved to the males turning our way, trying to figure out what was happening. “You should get inside. I’m not hanging around, because if the king finds out I had anything to do with this, he’ll have Lyrae carve my heart out and feed it to Crux.”

35

ANARIA

Raz faded into the shadows while I frantically dug through the debris for my scrap of black fabric, wrapped it haphazardly around my hair.

The magichurt. Burned inside me like an inferno. Pounded at my insides, trying to get out.

The group of collared males abandoned their fighting match and were racing across the open field, they’d reach me in minutes.

I stumbled toward the door, fought my way through the stream of servants emerging to investigate the explosion. There was no other way back into the Keep, unless I wanted to circle the entire wall and go in through the front.

The magic was heavy, as if I dragged an oppressive weight along with me, something vast and eternal.

Every step took effort, until I sank to the floor inside my room, panting with fear, a killing panic leeching into my bones, my stomach turning when I pictured the betrayal in Raziel’s eyes.

How could I have fucked up so badly?

Magic spun in the air around me, dancing with stars, and through those enormous windows…I crawled over, yanked the drapes closed.

Fuck.” I made it to my bathing chamber and locked myself inside. “Fucking Hades, what have I done?” This room had no windows, a good thing, since the brilliant white glow could be seen from miles away.

I was a mess—my hair, face and body coated in a thin layer of black dust—also a good thing, because my white hair was hanging down for all to see.

For all to mark exactly what I was.

A High Fae female, forbidden magic bleeding out of me like ink from a pen—if that ink was white and sparkled with bands of starlight.

And the magic—

The timeless, whispering power consumed me from the inside, eternal and terrible, deathly cold and awful, too great for someone as small and weak as me to ever contain.

And now I would die.

Because I am stupid and foolish.

Frost coated my mouth, slithered down my throat.

“Water. Please.Water.” I croaked, and the tub filled while I stripped off the filthy dress, Raziel’s musky scent growing stronger as I dragged myself to the scalding hot bath, the water hissing when I slipped in, steam curling around my frozen face. I sank beneath the surface, staring up at the ceiling. Then shut my eyes, trying to erase the look of utter devastation on Raz’s face when he’d realized what I’d done.

The mistake I’d made.

Because claiming this magic was a mistake.

The magic was an out-of-control monster, trapped inside my fragile mortal body, clawing like an animal to escape, a haze of pain clouding my head as my lungs burned from holding in my screaming.

I’d never had to control this power on my own before, I’d always had the collar to do it for me. How I wished I had that iron collar now. Even beneath the water, orbs of light spun and danced, whirring around me like fairy lights on a summer night, chasing the darkness away.

But the water helped, hot enough to put warmth back into my frozen flesh, enough I didn’t feel like I was being ripped apart from the inside out.

When I broke the surface and sucked in a deep breath, the entire room glowed with starlight, a shimmering presence unto itself, as if I’d emerged into the heavens above.

“You ignored Torin’s warning, didn’t you? You went ahead and claimed the magic.” Zorander stepped from the shadows, and I froze, the air stalling in my lungs.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, even though I had a bad feeling I already knew.

“Reports of an explosion. A blast of power that leveled a storage building behind the Keep. Raw, Fae magic found at the scene. There was only one explanation that made sense.You.”

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