Page 43 of A Trial of the Heart

No!I screamed inside my head.

I didn’t know how it was possible, but I could have sworn that I felt Daxton’s pain as my own while the queen siphoned his magic away. Daxton’s groans of pain echoed as he crumbled to the floor, but Minaeve continued drawing from his pool of power. My heart galloped inside my chest seeing this, feeling like I was going to shatter into a million little pieces.

My animal surged inside my chest as Castor frantically threw his arms around me, hauling me toward the back of the crowd.

“Castor! No. Please!” I grunted as he lifted me off my feet, carrying me backward through the gathering and away from Daxton. “Castor!” He muffled my voice with his hand across my mouth.

“Do not scream,” he whispered in a harsh tone. “Do not draw attention our way. Follow me out the back, Sky. I’ll come back for him, but we need to getyouout of here now.”

I was prepared to tear through Minaeve myself to help free Daxton if I had to, which was exactly why Castor was forcing me to leave. My heart and my animal were begging to stay with Daxton—to do anything in our power to help save him.

Castor wrapped his arms around me, sneaking toward the wall in the back and finding a side door that allowed us to leave unseen. With everyone’s attentionlocked on the queen and Daxton, our departure went unnoticed.

Outside the ballroom, Castor dropped me onto the ground and forcefully pushed me up against the wall. His arms framed my head as he stared at me in silent outrage. I could see the look of pain etched into his features, and I realized I wasn’t the only one who was angry. I cursed at myself for being so selfish.

“Cas, I—”

“Don’t.” His dark brown eyes were an endless sea of regret and guilt that suffocated the words I was trying to form. He pushed off against the wall and paced along the hallway before speaking to me. “Go to the room.”

“What? Like hell I’m leaving.” How could he think that I was going to simply drift into the background and stand idly by asthatwas happening in the next room? It wasn’t in my character to just ignore this. I wasn’t a fully trained healer, but I still had a gift that could help. I needed to help. There wasn’t any other choice for me in this matter, especially when it concerned someone that I cared for.

“Do I need to haul you out of here and tie you to the bedpost?”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Try me.” Castor glared, backing me up against the wall once more. “Skylar, I like you—I really do. But right now, I don’t give two shits about what you want. It’s not about you right now.”

“You think?” I roared back. “It’s about Daxton. I don’t care if I’m safe. I need to help him.” Castor’s stare bore into mine, and for a long, silent moment, neither one of us moved or uttered a sound. I knew this look, all shifters did. This was a dance of dominance. Tosee who was willing to back down first and bend to the will of the other. Well, sorry, Castor. I was never going to back down when it came to protecting those I cared for. He should have known that by now.

“Please,” Castor finally asked, dropping his challenging gaze. “Just go to the room. Can you do that?” Castor asked with a stern, flat expression.

“I can’t explain it,” I confessed, shaking my head. “I just can’t leave without knowing Daxton will be all right.”

“That’s exactly what I’m trying to do, Skylar!” If we didn’t have to keep our voices down, I knew he would’ve been screaming. “Your death will only kill him faster,” he growled, this time flashing his elongated canines as he did so. “Daxton ismybrother.Myhigh prince. It’s my duty to follow and uphold his command, and I was sworn to keep you safe above all else. Do not push me on this and force me to uphold a promise I made to my brother.”

I pushed back the tears from forming in my eyes. Not out of fear from Castor, but from the terror I saw in his eyes for Daxton. Without saying another word, I picked up the skirt of my dress and sprinted down the corridor to our room.

Thankfully, there were no other souls in sight as I stormed through the hall. Reaching the heavy golden framed door that led to our shared quarters, I grasped the metal handle and threw it open, quickly spinning around to slam it shut once more. Racing toward the window across the blue and gold room, I twisted the latch open, desperate for the fresh night air to help calm my shaking nerves. I held my breath as the seconds ticked by for what seemed like hours, and the minutes seemed to stretch on for days. Pacing through the room, I became restless, wringing my hands together andeagerly waiting for my shifter hearing to alert me to anyone coming my way. I hated this, but there was nothing else I could do right now.

My ears picked up the sounds of footsteps in the hall, followed by the scent of fresh pine and mountain air.Daxton.I sprinted across the room and leaped to turn the handle.

“Castor,” I gasped as he and another High Fae male carried an unconscious Dax through the doorway.

“To the side room.” Castor motioned to the other male. They both gripped Daxton’s waist with an arm over each of their shoulders, carrying him carefully across the threshold. “Bastard gave her too much,” Castor cursed.

“Why?” the other male asked. His hazel eyes contrasted against the whispers of silver that highlighted the dark brown hair hanging just below his jawline.

Castor glanced my way, and instantly, I understood why Daxton had freely offered so much to Minaeve. “Adohan.”

I opened the secret door to the smaller adjacent room as the males carried Dax through, carefully laying him on top of the bed. This room held the bare minimum compared to the other, with only enough space for the bed, a small side table, and a dresser on the other side. The walls were a stone-gray color, matching the outside of the castle with an open doorway to the adjacent washroom with a large, plain white bathing tub.

I didn’t hesitate to find my place, kneeling at Dax’s side on the edge of the bed. Reaching up, I brushed the hair away from his face and trailed my fingers across his bearded cheek, waiting and watching for any sign of him waking up.

“Prince Castor, what more can I do to assist you or our high prince?” the male asked, looking at Daxton and then at me.

“Nothing more this evening,” Castor said with pursed lips, clearly more concerned for his brother’s well-being than he was letting on. “Thank you for stepping forward to help, Reece. Dax has all he needs for tonight.”

“Yes, thank you,” I said, reaching out to grasp his hand in gratitude before returning my attention to Daxton. Reece seemed to blush at my thanks, but I didn’t give it much thought. My world was locked on the male lying unconscious next to me.

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