Page 123 of Queen of Legends and Lies
My lungs seize as time comes to a halt.
“Fuck.” Sterling scrubs a hand over his jaw. “Not Ezra.”
It’s not Quinn but her husband. Rose’s father. The explosion split the door into a million jagged wooden weapons and must’ve nailed his body to the wall.
A tidal wave of sadness threatens to crush me, but panic fights for dominance, quickly overcoming my grief.
Rose. And Quinn. They have to be here. Have to be all right.
I race inside, struggling not to look into the dead eyes of the blond-haired, blue-eyed man who died trying to protect his family. “Rose? Quinn? Are you here?”
There’s no response. The house is deserted, with no trace of the little girl or her mother. I sink to my knees, tears stinging my eyes. If anything happened to that sweet, innocent child because of me…
Sterling’s hand rests on my shoulder, his touch gentle but firm. “We’ll find them, Lark. I promise.”
But will they be alive?
I nod, wiping away my tears as I stand up. “We have to check the surrounding villages. Make sure there are no corrupted hiding there.” Grandfather. Alannah. Agnar’s brother-in-law, Ezra. Are they coming after our families on purpose?
Sterling gives the order, and soon, groups of soldiers are heading out, primed to test anyone they come across. I watch them go, my heart weighed down by the knowledge that everything’s falling apart around us.
As dawn approaches, the sky is a twisted mass of storm clouds, edged with an ominous bloodred light. Lightning flashes in the distance, illuminating the southern horizon.
“The corrupted are coming.” My voice is barely audible over the howling wind and the sobs of the survivors now scattered about the streets. “They’ll be here soon.”
Sterling nods grimly, his jaw clenched tight. “We’ll be ready for them.”
How can I offer hope when I’m so utterly hopeless myself?
We reach the palace gates, a twisted ruin of metal and stone. The guards on duty salute wearily as we pass, their eyes hollow with the horrors they’ve just witnessed.
“Your Highness.” A young guard with wheat-colored hair bows her head. “We’ve secured the palace and have posted extra guards at all the entrances.”
I nod, too drained to offer more than a whispered, “Thank you.”
As we cross the threshold into the courtyard, the last of my strength deserts me. My knees buckle, and I sink to the ground, my body racked with silent sobs.
Sterling kneels beside me as he gathers me into his arms. “Shh, love. We did all we could. We saved as many as possible.”
“But it wasn’t enough,” I choke out, voice raw with pain. “So many lost, so much destruction…”
For a long moment, we simply cling to each other, drawing what little comfort we can from our shared grief.
Finally, Sterling clears his throat. “We should rest. We’ll need our strength for what’s to come.”
Chapter Forty-One
My heart aches, a hollow emptiness spreading inside me as I stand in our bedchamber. Sterling lies sprawled across the bed. He’s still in his ash-covered pants and boots. His chest rises and falls in an uneven rhythm.
Barely an hour ago, we dragged each other in here, then wept into each other’s arms over the loss of both Eldor and Alannah.
I watch as Sterling shivers in his sleep, a deep tremor running through his muscular frame. Worry knots my stomach. He’s been freezing lately, his normally warm skin cold to the touch. Is it the constant strain of wielding his water magic day after day? The result of our merging? Or the lingering effects of the corruption that nearly destroyed him?
I brush a silky lock of hair off his forehead. “What are we going to do, love?”
He’s only just returned to me, to us. And now, he’s being asked to give more, to sacrifice more, to push his magic to the brink over and over. How long can he endure this? How long can any of us?
Gently, I unlace his boots and tug them off, setting them on the floor. He mumbles something unintelligible but doesn’t wake.
