Chapter Forty-Four

Ifreeze, knowing I am in very precarious waters right now and any move I make has the potential to not only harm me but the life growing within me. Gods, why was I stupid enough to leave the safety of the wards around the castle? Especially at a time like this? I know the answer; I was so disgruntled I needed to get into nature, and now that might cost me greatly.

These men clearly haven’t accosted me for any wholesome reasons. From the way they’re looking at me, especially after the black-haired one told them who I actually am, it appears they want to tear me to shreds or worse.

The bald one, eyes glittering with menace, says, “Her being the King’s mate is enough of a danger, then she had to go and invite even more of those vermin like her here. You wanna get all shifters killed, girl?”

Looks like not everyone’s on board with the alliance between witches and shifters. That’s something I can unpack at another time, once I’ve gotten myself out of this situation.

Dark Hair takes a few steps forward, followed by the other two. I can’t step back or I’ll fall into the slippery creek, so I stay in place and summon my flame to the surface, preparing for the worst-case scenario; one in which I destroy them with the help of my fire to protect myself, then sprint back to warded grounds.

I hold a hand out in front of me and say, “Stay right there. If you’ve heard of me, you’ve heard what I can do. Don’t make me hurt you.” If I can get out of this without taking life, I’d prefer to. I’m not a particularly kill-happy person—to me, killing is a last resort.

Dark Hair scoffs, saying, “The royals like to exaggerate to protect themselves from rogues like us. See, I don’t think you’ve got half the power they say you do.”

Rogues like us. His casual use of that phrase makes me realize exactly what the strange, erratic energy I sensed from them is: the mark of a rogue. My thoughts flick back to Claire who was a victim of a rogue attack that destroyed her home and killed the inhabitants of her village. I can’t let such a fate befall me; I won’t. There’s too much at stake, especially now. Now, I don’t just have Leisel to protect, I also have the baby inside me.

If these rogues don’t believe me, then they’ll feel free to do whatever they wish with me. I draw forward my flame, ready to put an end to this before it can even begin. To my shock, nothing happens. I feel my fire rising within me until it’s right below the surface of my skin, but for some reason, it’s unable to break that surface and come forward.

Oh, fuck. Odelia warned me that my magic would be erratic; I just didn’t expect that to happen so soon. After all, I’m currently a week pregnant—I haven’t felt any other symptoms of pregnancy, so I hadn’t assumed I would run into magical problems just yet. Shit, shit, shit.

There aren’t any patrolling guards in sight, which means it’s up to me to figure a way out of this. My eyes flick to the forest, towards the direction of the castle. Though I can’t see it, I know where it lies. Even in my frazzled state earlier, I didn’t allow myself to lose my sense of direction—growing up in and around forests has given me a good internal compass. Maybe if I make a break for it, I can outrun them?

It’s worth a shot, and my only option without the cooperation of my magic. I launch into a sprint to the left of where the rogues stand, going as fast as I possibly can. I hear the rogues giving chase behind me as I literally run for my life, fueled by fear and determination like I’ve never felt before. I only manage a couple of steps into the forest before a pair of thick, dirty arms close around my waist and slam me face-first against the trunk of the nearest tree, dazing me.

Despite that, I struggle with all of my might, trying to dislodge whoever grabbed me, kicking and elbowing, even throwing my head back to try to head-butt whichever one of them grabbed me. None of it works, and no matter how many times I call upon my fire, it doesn’t come.

The shifter holding me spins me around and slams me against the trunk of the tree again. My head bounces off the wood, and a wave of terrible dizziness washes over me, blurring my vision. I blink several times to clear it, identifying my assailant as Dark Hair, who strikes me as the most dangerous of the three. He grins down at me, baring a row of yellow teeth.

“What should I do with you now?” he asks, wrapping a filthy hand around my throat to pin me in place.

I glimpse the two others standing behind him, exchanging looks of excitement. I don’t want to find out what these rogues will do to me because if Claire’s story is indicative of anything, it’ll go something along the lines of rape and then murder. Especially if they already view me hostilely for my connection with the witches, and for being a witch myself.

“Let me go,” I manage to say, clutching at the hand holding my throat. “If you release me, you’ll be rich men until the end of your days.” That much is probably true—I imagine I could fetch a very handsome price. There’s little Camden wouldn’t do to ensure my safety, especially now that I carry his heir.

The shifter shakes his head. “I don’t think so. I don’t care about money but what I do care about is some earthly witch inviting the enemy to us. You know how hard it is to survive on our own? It’ll only get worse if there are witches around and witches like you in the castle.”

He inhales deeply, nostrils flaring, and then goes still. Ice-cold fear washes over me as his eyes slowly travel down to my stomach, and I realize he just scented my pregnancy. The new gleam of excitement in his eyes confirms it.

“Well, now, looks like we’ve got ourselves two royals here,” he sneers, bringing his free hand down to rest on top of my stomach. His expression morphs into one drenched with anger, teeth bared as his hand digs into the flesh of my torso. “You think you can bring another abomination into this world? A fuckin’ hybrid?”

I kick out, trying to dislodge him, desperation to get out of here overwhelming me. The only effect that has is for the shifter to shift his stance forward, using his entire body to pin me tightly to the wood at my back. Again, I call to my fire, and again, nothing happens. Tears spark in my eyes as I wriggle and struggle to no avail.

“I don’t think so,” Dark Hair says, just as I feel the nails digging into my stomach lengthen into claws.

My eyes widen with terror and I let out a scream as those claws puncture my flesh, digging deep inside of me, sending stabs of agonizing, burning pain all throughout my midsection. He twists his hand, and I feel his claws slicing through my internal organs like they’re butter. The agony spreads through my entire body, robbing me of breath and making me panic like I never have before. He’s trying to cut the fetus right out of me.

Black fires bursts from me, breaking the barrier of my skin and traveling to Dark Hair with lightning speed, but I fear it’s too little too late. In a matter of seconds, it consumes him entirely, leaving nothing in his wake. I drop to my knees with another cry of agony, my vision swimming as blood pours from my stomach, creating a dark puddle in front of me.

The two remaining shifters exchange looks of absolute shock, before taking off running away from me in opposite directions. The bald one disappears through a thick collection of greenery, but blondie isn’t quite so fast. Fueled by pain and so much rage, anger like I’ve never felt before, I use the last of my remaining strength to hold out my hand and direct my fire to the blonde before he can make it out of my line of sight. My black flame scorches a path along the forest ground, traveling much faster than the rogue can. It creates a deafening racket, crackling and hissing and popping as it rages.

He lets out a yell of pain as the fire reaches him, licking at his heels before climbing up his legs, circling around his waist, and then enveloping him fully in a golden-black shroud. When my fire subsides, he’s gone.

Overwhelming weakness washes over me, either a result of my substantial wound or the amount of power I exerted. I slump to my side, my breathing shallow, and watch as black dots start to float around my vision. Those dots grow in size, as does my dizziness. Dimly, I hear yells in the distance but don’t have the presence of mind to call out or even move. I don’t know who’s approaching, and at this point, I don’t care. There’s no way the life inside of me survived that mauling. I failed to protect it.

That’s my last thought before the black dots take over entirely, pulling me into a sea of darkness.