Page 41 of Heart of the Summer Queen

Darkness washes over me. Consumes me.

For a long while, there’s nothing.

Then I feel steel clenched in my hands. And blood. Everywhere. It coats my fingers with its nauseating stickiness.

“A-Adara.”

I look down to see Elaric under me. My dagger lodged in his chest, piercing all the way through.

I scream. No sound comes out. Every part of me shakes.

“Why?” he breathes. “After everything, after all the kindness I’ve shown you, this is how you repay me?”

“Because I’m a monster,” I choke, tears spilling down my cheeks. “A monster of the worst kind, blinded by fury and hate.”

His eyes close. He does not move.

I stay there, my gaze fixed on him. My hands are glued to the dagger wedged in his broken and bloodied chest.

I beg for him to move. For his eyes to open. For his fingers to twitch.

None of that happens.

He’s dead. Killed by me and my hatred.

I grip his shoulders and shake him, but he doesn’t awaken. All I achieve is covering myself in blood.

His blood.

“Elaric, Elaric,” I call, though I know it’s useless. He’s gone. Because of me. “Elaric!”

I call his name until my throat is raw. Then I collapse beside him, my limbs so heavy I can no longer move them.

But when my head meets the pillow, Elaric’s chambers vanish. Along with him.

I’m alone in a dark room.

Blue light flickers, illuminating the edges of the surrounding statues.

I stagger onto my feet, legs unsteady beneath me. When I look down, my hands are still crimson. Covered in Elaric’s blood, though he is nowhere to be seen.

From the corner of my eye, I notice the face of the girl lying beside me on a slab.

Dalia.

I stumble over to her, grabbing her arm. My fingers smear Elaric’s blood across her translucent skin.

“Dalia,” I gasp, squeezing her arm. Hoping it’ll wake her up. She looks so perfectly serene in her slumber.

Her eyes flash open. They’re filled with blue light—the color of Elaric’s magic.

“You,” she hisses.

Before I can step back, she catches my wrist. I let out a surprised yelp.

“You failed me.”

While the harshness in her tone sounds nothing like my sister, there’s no denying it’s her voice. My knees collapse beneath me.

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