Page 136 of Of Rime and Ruin
Pressure builds in my chest, threatening to absorb my frantic heart.It can’t be true.
But the clawbeast was there, before my eyes, seconds ago, and it took her. It fuckingtookher, while I stood here and watched.
Goddess fucking dammit, what a fool I’ve been. All this time I thought I was acting alone.
And I destroyed the half of me that could save her.
What the fuck am I going to do? Jump into the Rime in my bare skin and punch the damn thing? She doesn’t needme—she needs my Beast. My teeth and claws. Fighting for her. Protecting her.
I’ve ruined everything.
And now I’m going to lose her for good. Soon enough, her body will wash up on my shore, like the others, and it will be my fault.
My feet slip on the ice. I go down. Hard. Pain explodes through my shoulder. I push to my feet through gritted teeth. Run again.
The beast can’t have her. It cannot haunt my waters any longer—I will not allow it. My kingdom, my future, my love—everything is at stake. I have never claimed to be a good king, but I can try.
I have to try.
Chapter fifty-six
Nahla
Theclawbeastcagesmeagainst her chest as we tear through the water. I thrash within her claws, my tail smacking a fury of bubbles.
She’s smaller than Aethan, but she still dwarfs me easily. A goddess among the fish. One twist of her hands, and I’m dead.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
My face is smothered against her rock-solid abdomen. Claws dig into my skin as I try to wriggle free, and pain flares through my muscles. Her admonishing growl rumbles through me, and I grow still. Scales prickle along my spine, rising in fear.
She doesn’t eat me, yet, and I can’t decide if this is a good thing or not. I glimpse the water passing beneath her arm, darkening as we plummet into the depths. She must be taking me somewhere, then. To feast in private? To feed me to her young?
Shit.I know little about clawbeasts, besides what I’ve learned from Aethan. But he’s an anomaly of the species—part merfolk, driven by more complex instincts. This female is a mystery.
I can’t fight her. Not physically. But I could persuade her to let me go. My magic worked on Aethan. Why not her?
Magic churns in my stomach. I place my hand flat against her stomach’s rough scales. I won’t have much time to subdue her once I make mental contact. She could become violent. I could push her to the brink. As my heart pounds, I suck oxygen through my gills to steel my resolve.
The beast twists, angling us through the gap in the glaciers. The sea floor drops away, and we pass into open water.
Now or never.
With a low note, I lift my mind and spiral towards her defenses. Dark mist swirls around the outer shell of her psyche. They rise at my approach, coiling as if to spring.
I press my fingers into her abdomen, strengthening the connection.
An opening appears in her defenses, a small crack in the outer wall. I slip through and plunge into a sea of emotions.
Chaos greets me. Rage. Pain. Frustration. I weave through, planting a new emotion: disgust. Revulsion. I warp her thoughts to my will.
The beast snorts and shakes her head. Can she sense me? Is it working?
Let go, I urge.You don’t want to eat this vile, disgusting meat. Too much fat on the bone.
She snarls, tightening her grip. Her claws cut into my skin, and the scent of my blood wafts into the water.
Her thoughts converge, swirling to form a single thought: irritation.
