Page 114 of Royal Captive
Eve laughed. “That’s your massive plan? Fuck up your world and then come invade ours? Fat chance. Ellis?”
She was right. Whatever problems this world had, we had to get back to our realm and take care of our people. While I wasn’t opposed to taking a few people across for a better life, what Feyanna was suggesting could start another war. And I didn’t trust her.
“I want to believe that we could help each other, but I have to protect my lands first,” I said. “You had your chance with your lands.”
As I finished, a clap of thunder erupted over our heads. Was it my imagination, or did the bleak, empty landscape creep closer to us?
A storm gathered in Eve’s eyes, her face darkening like clouds before a blizzard.
Another boom of thunder erupted over us, so loud my skin vibrated and my bones rattled.
“Princess! The land … something is wrong!” A fae male emerged from the entrance of the cave, stopping short at seeing us literally at each other’s throats. I recognized him from the picnic at the first manor we’d been brought to—Alm. The crowd of fae and humans emerged by the passage behind him, wary.
The ground shook underneath us, loud cracks and groans drowned out by the cries of hundreds of people trapped in the cave.
“What is it? What’s happening?” Eve cried out, but not lowering the knife an inch.
Feyanna grabbed a fae male who had been lingering on the edges of the crowd, and threw him over the edge of the cliff, toward where the barrier supposedly was.
His screams faded as he fell, eventually hitting the ground with a muffled ‘thump.’
Eve gasped in shock, and the crowd reared back in fear, away from their beloved princess.
Enraged, Feyanna whirled on Alihandro.
“What did youdo?”
Alihandro smiled beautifully.
“Show her your fae mark, gorgeous,” he purred at me.
Feyanna’s eyes zeroed in on the mark on my neck, and she exploded.
“You ungrateful, little—”
“You think you’re the only one allowed to make decisions out of passion or decide what’s in everyone’s best interests?” Alihandro quipped, but there was no humor in his voice.
There was silence, broken only by Eve’s labored breathing.
“You … you …” Feyanna couldn’t get the words out, overcome by shock and anger. Eve wasn’t in any better shape.
“You used me to close the barrier,” I whispered. “It hasn’t been open. It–”
“Closed the second I bit you. Not that anyone was enough to check,” Alihandro huffed.
My hatred for Feyanna grew as did my begrudging respect for Alihandro.
Lightning struck the top of the mountain, throwing us all to our bellies. An earthquake ripped through the land, the solid mountain under us turning to liquid jelly swaying back and forth like a new sapling.
The voices from my past dreams and screams from the present combined into a noise so loud it felt like my head was going to explode.
I had no idea what was going on, but Feyanna did. She whirled, pointing her sword at Eve’s chest.
The sky exploded above us, turning completely black.
Helpless. Out of control. Powerless.
No, I wasn’t. Not anymore.
