Page 147 of Seduce Me in Shadow

The moment Shock magically seals me in the cell and drags Sydney away, ice floods my veins. Panic claws at my throat, threatening to choke me.

What the fuck do I do now? Shock’s magical seal might as well be Fort Knox, but I’ll be damned if I sit here while that traitor serves up my mate to Mathias like a sacrificial lamb. The thought alone makes me want to tear this place apart with my bare hands.

I unleash every martial arts move I know on the walls and bars, but it’s like punching smoke. No trap doors, no vents, no bloody way out. I’ll have to get creative with magic. The irony isn’t lost on me—after spending so long running from it, magic might be my only hope to save Sydney.

Swallowing my pride and fear, I force myself to focus. I must know something that can save her. Sitting here while my mate dies at Mathias’s hands is unthinkable. No. It’s not happening.

But I’ve never done big magic…except at transition.

Then it hits me: I have one special power Mathias doesn’t know a damn thing about.

Hope surges through me, but I temper it with cold logic. I was high on magic when I cloned myself, operating on pure instinct. Common wisdom says a wizard never reveals his special power unless it’s life or death.

This is beyond life or death. This is Sydney.

I sit on the cot where I so recently made love to her and squeeze my eyes shut. I clutch the bed frame. My arms shake. And I picture my clone separating from me, materializing outside these godforsaken bars. Every muscle in my body tenses as I pour everything I have into this one, desperate act.

Seconds stretch into eternity. Nothing happens. I curse, ready to scream in frustration.

Then I feel it—my insides being ripped apart.

The pain is excruciating, like someone is reaching into my chest and is slowly tearing me in two. I clench my jaw so hard I taste blood, fighting against the agony threatening to split me apart.

Suddenly, it stops. I slump against the wall, utterly drained, praying it wasn’t all for nothing.

“I’ll come back with help.” My own voice, yet not, echoes in the cell.

My eyes fly open, and there he is—me, but not me, standing on the other side of the bars. Relief crashes over me like a tidal wave.

“Save her,” I rasp, every word an effort.

My clone nods and vanishes. And now comes the hardest part of all—waiting, helpless, while a part of me races to save the woman who’s become my whole world.

Sydney

At Shock’s urging, I rise on wobbly legs. I knew he wasn’t a good guy, but now I’ll find out exactly how bad he is.

“Faster,” he snaps. “You’re keeping me from my fun, and Mathias from valuable information.”

His command enrages me. If I’m going to die, might as well let the bastard know how much I loathe him.

“How inconsiderate of me not to run to my death. Must be a real bitch for you.”

Mathias laughs, the sound scratching an icy path up my spine before his expression turns to pure menace. “You’ll give her extra pain for that, I hope?”

“With pleasure.”

“Wait!” Mathias barks. “A disturbance in the security. I think the Doomsday Brethren have arrived. With them out of the way, we won’t need this chit anymore. And if we kill all the warriors, Olivia Gray and Sabelle Rion will be alone and unprotected. Certainly one of them can be persuaded to help our cause.”

“Don’t touch my friends!” I scream.

“You’re in no position to issue orders,” Mathias snaps, then turns to Shock. “Why don’t you go greet our company? Take the Anarki with you. I’ll stay with our lovely guest.”

I swallow down my terror.

Worse, the Doomsday Brethren trust Shock—well, mostly Bram—for reasons I can’t fathom. I’m worried they’ll be easily duped—and quickly killed.

Magickind’s entire future rests on the whims of the big, bad wizard walking out the door.

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