Page 49 of A Sun Scorched Bloom

"It’s okay, Noah," Gray said stoically, raising his chin and meeting his gaze.

"No! Please! Don’t kill them. Just give me a second!" he begged, staggering forward and dropping to his knees. He looked at Gray, then Erik, pleading with his eyes for them to dosomething. Why weren’t they fighting back? Why weren’t they using their magic?

"Decidenow. You kill them, swiftly, or I start carving."

With shaking hands, Noah slowly drew his sword, the metal clanging in its sheath as it scraped free.Please gods, help me.

At his hesitation, Jordan raised his eyebrows. "Coward," he spat. "Kill them," he ordered the soldiers as a cruel smile crossed his face. "But take your time."

Noah screamed as he was grabbed from behind. Two soldiers he hadn’t seen forced him to his knees, holding his head back by his hair as the guards shoved his friends to the ground and, with their gleaming daggers and swords, began hacking away pieces of their bodies in a bloody massacre.

Chapter 31

Lea

"Howmuchlongerwillwe ride?" Lea asked, rubbing her arms. "I’d like to get my cloak when we stop. I’m freezing."

"I was actually thinking the same thing," Janelle called. "I might fall off this horse if these chills don’t let up."

Erik scoffed. "As if I would ever let that happen. Though," he rubbed the back of his neck, "I don’t feel like myself. Maybe just a few minutes of rest would be good, Gray. It might help us cover more ground in the long run."

Gray rolled his head from side to side, stretching out his shoulders. "Fifteen minutes. We can’t afford to lose anything more than that." Pulling back on Obsidian's reins, he stopped the horse abruptly.

An odd sensation pricked in the back of Lea’s mind. Something’s not right… The Gray she knew would never stop so abruptly without finding a resting spot with a good vantage point before thinking through every possible scenario and assessing the risks.

Lea turned in the saddle, reaching backward to cup Gray’s cheek. Hisverywarm cheek. What in the gods’ names…

"Gray, you’re on fire." Lea jumped off the horse, landing with a thud that vibrated up her shins. "Emma, can you come here?" Lea’s stomach rolled as she watched Gray slide off his horse. His movements were slow, far less graceful and fluid than she’d become accustomed to. His olive skin had paled, a sheen of sweat causing his strong jawline and cheekbones to glisten.

Lea placed the top of her hand against Gray’s forehead, just as her mother had done to her a million times growing up. "He’s feverish, Emma."

Emma followed Lea’s lead, placing her hand on Gray’s sweaty cheek.

"Gods, Emma! Your arm!" Lea felt a shockwave of fear through her chest, her breaths growing shallow. She would recognize those black bumps on her forearm anywhere.

"The Lonely Death," Erik said solemnly.

"Janelle, Erik, stay back." Lea cried out, placing her hands against Emma’s hot skin. The disease couldn’t touch her… Not now that she had married Gray. Except…

"Open your shirt, Gray," Lea reached toward the top button of his shirt.

"As much as I’ve been imagining you ordering me out of my clothes today, maybe now isn’t the best time—"

"Cut the shit," Lea cut him off, "and open your shirt." He was stalling. The absolute terror she could feel pulsing down the bond told her that he already knew what she would discover when he bared his chest.

He looked down, a deep breath rattling in his throat as he pulled apart the neck of his dirty tunic. Red rashes gave way to oozing, black welts.

"How is this happening?" Lea demanded, her hand going to the necklace at her throat. "What do we do?" she cried out to no one in particular. "Erik, how is this possible?" Lea turned her head to see that Erik and Janelle had dismounted their horse. They were both staring at each other, tears in Janelle’s eyes as she took in the bloody, black wounds climbing up Erik’s neck. Erik pulled up the hem of Janelle’s shirt where a matching rash wrapped around her torso.

"No…" Lea breathed, disbelief causing her thoughts to shut down. "It’s not possible." The words became a mantra in her head. "It’s not possible. It’s not. It can’t be."

"I’m so sorry," Gray cupped her cheek, the sorrow in his eyes causing her breath to catch. He’d given up. Her Gray would never, and yet, hewas.

"We’ll fix this. You saved me. You did! When it was impossible, you all saved me! I can find a way to save you, too!"

"Little Flower…" Gray coughed, blood running down his chin and dripping onto his shoes. "There is no cure. We got lucky, saving you. But the rest of us? We’re too far away to find anyone to help."

"That can’t be true!" Lea was panicking, her hands shaking as she hyperventilated, pushing every ounce of healing energy she could find into Gray’s chest, then moving to Emma’s arm. Tears rolled from her eyes, blurring her vision. The wounds only grew. "Why isn't it working?" Lea sobbed.

---