Page 86 of Thorns of Deceit: The Beast Within

A lifetime flashed before her. Arye’s laugh. His touch, warm on hers. The way he looked at her when he thought she wasn’t aware. A life that was and a future that could never be, crumbling to dust.

The Gryphon surged, threatening to overtake her. Its presence blurred her vision, fire in her veins.

No real choice. The pact would force her hand eventually.

Damn it all to hell.

If she was going to lose everything anyway, if death was inevitable, let it be on her terms.

For him.

“Arye!” The scream tore from her throat, raw and primal. She lunged forward.

Horror dawned on his face.

Skylar closed her eyes and embraced the inferno within.

The world would burn, and she would be the one to light the pyre.

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Skylar’s scream ripped through her throat, raw and primal. The sound barely registered in her own ears, drowned out by the roaring in her head.

The Gryphon surged within her, its presence filling every cell of her body. No longer dormant, but a raging inferno threatening to consume everything in its path.

For once, it wasn’t a burden. It was power. Raw and untamed, waiting to be unleashed.

And for the first time in her life, Skylar didn’t fight it.

Hurry.

Take everything.

No matter the cost.

Just save him.

Please.

Pain exploded through her body. Excruciating. Unbearable. Worse than anything she’d known.

Lavender filled the air. Heavy. Suffocating.

Skylar’s back arched unnaturally. Bones cracked, shifting beneath her skin. Muscles tore and reformed. Every nerve ending screamed in agony.

But she embraced it all.

Let the agony wash over her. Through her.

She welcomed the strength flowing through her veins like liquid fire.

A guttural moan escaped her lips as the Gryphon grew inside her, clawed at her insides. Its talons scraped her bones. Each movement a shockwave through her body…

Skylar’s vision blurred, the world tilting and spinning. Colors bled into one another, faces distorting into grotesque masks.

A hand gripped her shoulder. The touch seared through her, amplified by her heightened senses. A voice called her name, distant and distorted. Arye? Her mother? She couldn’t tell.

It didn’t matter.

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