Page 364 of Born of Blood and Ash

A terrible sound came from me, a scream of rage as I pushedoff the pillar. I flew past Ash as he rocked back. I knew he would be okay, buta part of my brain had simply clicked off. Veses hadhurt Ash.

And that would be the last fucking time she did.

Essence roared through me, matching the terrifying soundscoming from above as Nektas fought in the sky. An orbof crackling power burst forth from my palm, and the guard who had beencharging me slumped to the ground, an unspoken scream frozen on his lips.Another guard neared me, shadowstone sword raisedhigh. Flipping my dagger, I ignored the scalding heat of the bone burning myfingers and slowed, sliding under his arm as I threw the weapon at the femaleguard. The blade slammed into her chest, piercing her armor. I popped to myfeet and spun, grabbing the other guard by the hair. I jerked his head back andturned, shoving him into the path of a shadowstonesword. Death echoed in my chest as I prowled forward. Gold-and-silver eather powered down my right arm, streaking out andslamming into the stunned guard who had just taken out one of his comrades. Istopped at the female guard. Her skin was doing something strange, flaking off.Dipping, I tore the bone dagger free, then rose, the corners of my vision fillingwith eather. Two guards in front of me dropped theirswords and ran. I started to pull on the eather butstopped myself at the last minute as words Holland had once spoken to me intraining resurfaced. There’s no honor in striking those who run. Airhissed between my clenched teeth, but I shifted my attention to those who’ddecided to die today.

My dagger sliced through the air, meeting an attacker’sflesh. It sang a quiet song of ending, one I had heard many times before. Maybetoo many times. But it would continue singing as I snapped under the swing of ablade and slammed the dagger into a guard’s back.

My gaze connected with Ash’s as he stalked down the hall.His linen shirt was burned on his shoulder and stomach and stained with blood.It was all I could see as the palace shook once more.

“I’m going to destroy Veses,” Ipromised, each word hissed with heat and vengeance. “I will lay waste to everyguard.” Power swelled inside me, pulsing through every vein. The floor trembledbeneath me, cracking tile. “I will bring what remains of her draken to the ground.” My left arm snapped out, catching aguard. I turned my head toward him. The hand I had around his throat shone thecolor of the sun. His eyes widened with fear. “And I will lay waste to herCourt.”

The sword slipped from his grip. “Please—”

A rumble came from the back of my throat, and I felt mynailbeds sting. My fingernails started to lengthen. I squeezed, tearing intohis throat. Blood poured down his chest and splattered off the floor. His headrolled back and then fell as his body crumpled.

“Breathe.” Ash was at my side. “Breathe through the anger.”

I looked down at him—wait. Down at him?

“You’re levitating again,” he said, his silvery gaze full ofheat. “And you’re burning as brightly as the sun. It’s fucking making my dickhard.”

I blinked.

“But you’re also close to shifting.” He turned as shadowy eather rose, stabbing through the head of a guard. “Youcannot shift, liessa.”

The babes.

I dropped, landing on my feet. The quick reminder eased therage pummeling through me just enough for me to pull in some semblance ofcontrol. I’d been this close to…

To fucking snapping.

I will not lay waste to her Court, I remindedmyself. Kill her? Yes. Yes, I was going to do that for sure.

“You good?” Ash had a shadowstonesword in hand again, presumably taken from a fallen guard. He deflected a blow.

“Yes.”

He struck the man down. “Then let’s finish this.”

We moved in unison like dancers swept up in a melody ofviolence. The winding hallways of the palace became our stage, every turn apotential ambush, every shadow a hiding place for death as guards kept comingat us. But Ash and I were two halves of a single deadly entity.

“Left,” he called out, and I trusted the instructionimplicitly. My turn was sharp, just in time to parry a wild swing aimed at myhead. With a twist and a thrust, I reminded myself that hesitation was a luxuryI could not afford.

Up ahead, guards waited in front of the double doors.

Ash tossed his sword aside as he moved forward. One of theguards got jerked up and away from the door, her body twisting and writhing.Another exploded into a fine shimmery dust. Ash threw out his arm, stopping mea second before draken fire burned through theceiling and the remaining guards, leaving smoking piles of shadowstoneand, well…stuff I wasn’t going to look too closely at.

Ash lowered his arm, and I raised mine. My eyes narrowed onthe doors. I blew them off their hinges. I caught a glimpse of Veses in her diamond dress just as one of the doors smackedinto her.

Ash laughed.

Sheathing the dagger, I shot forward. The door lifted from Veses, smashing into the curtained bed. She rose, brushingdust off her glittering gown.

I was on her in a heartbeat, driving my knee into herstomach as I caught her arms, pinning them to the floor. I smiled down at her.“I told you I’d be seeing you again soon.”

Her eather-soaked eyes stareddaggers at me. “I thought you were trying to be a better person,” she sneered.

“I was.” I rose, grabbing a fistful of those ringlets as Idragged her to her feet. “As in the past tense.”

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