Page 305 of The Lands Defying
I need my Vihnarn for a moment.
“I don’t know how, but they are still going, Darius. Is it really over now?”
I weave through the mass of creatures that are still sinking into the ground, helping others stand and giving them directions on where to congregate.
“Darius?”
Still no answer. He must be busy, but he’s never too busy to answer me.
I spot Maverick as I continue, and he smiles tiredly, nodding his head when he sees me. “Heir of Zahariss.”
“It’s just Rhea,” I tell him, rolling my eyes.
“You are with Alpha Darius, I do not want to lose my head over a title slight.” He smiles, teeth bloody.
“Have you seen him? Darius, I mean.” I look around, trying to spot him.
He tilts his head, nodding behind him. “I last saw him heading toward a large pack of rogures that way,” he points to the right. “He wanted to make sure they wouldn’t come this wayas it would have been more than the people here could have handled.”
That makes sense.
“Thanks,” I tell him, heading toward the direction he told me.
I heal a few people on the way the best I can, knowing I need to be careful with my power. I try to ignore the dead at my feet, trying not to step on them but far too many were lost, and I swallow a few times over the lump in my throat.
Darius will be sending out more letters than I think he ever has.
War is never pretty, but to see it right in front of you is enough to lose the contents of your stomach.
The further I go to Darius, the more the creatures and people dissipate. I still see no sign of him or his brothers, but then I look down and notice his magic.
I pause, crouching and placing my hand on top of it. I feel its coolness seep into me instantly.
I smile and look up, seeing Leo heading toward me through the scattered, frozen creatures.
I rush to him, relief coursing through me with a smile on my face. I like the male now, and I like how protective he is of Darius.
“Hey,” I say to him when I reach him, smiling wide with elation. “Do you know where…”
Leo doesn’t say anything, but he does look at me.
His mouth turned down, his posture slumped, but it’s his eyes that stopped me.
They are sad, dull.
“Leo…?” I ask, daring to place a hand on his arm. Darius would rip it off of him if he saw. “What’s wrong?”
“Rhea,” he starts, turning his head to look behind him.
My brows furrow and I look in the same direction that he is, and my heart stops.
Just…stops.
Rogures are sinking into the ground, littering the field in the dozens, frozen in various states of attack.
But that isn’t what stopped my heart.
Darius does.
