Page 109 of Enchanted Kisses
The door crashed down on top of Caiden. I ran to him, stopping as soon as a man—no, a monster—entered the room. The giant had a man’s body, but the face of a beast. His gray, rough skin was covered with scars. His long, black hair hung in a braid over his shoulder with tiny pieces of what looked like bone or maybe teeth strewn through it. Two silver horns stuck out at the crown of his head and curved backward. He snarled and kicked the door. It slid across the stone floor with Caiden beneath it and smashed into the wall on the other side of the room.
“Caiden!” I yelled.
The monster stopped and looked around the room, searching. His gaze passed right over me. “Show yourself.”
From the corner of my eye, I saw Caiden move. I needed a distraction. Something to make the man-creature think I was on the other side of the cell.
I patted my pockets for anything. All I had was a tube of Chapstick, which I chucked to the far side of the room. It hit the ground and the monster loped in its direction, arms stretched out, ready to grab.
I ran to Caiden, gripped the door, and lifted. It didn’t move. I tried again, straining to get it off him. Caiden pushed up on his arms and, in one quick movement, sent me and the door toppling backward. Wood smacked against the stone wall, and I fell to my butt.
Before I could stand, Caiden shoved me under the crevice between the wall and the door. “Stay.”
As the creature came at us, Caiden charged him at a speed so fast, he blurred. He knocked the monster down and landed on top of him. Caiden popped up and motioned for me to run to the door. “Go. I’ll follow.”
I hesitated for a millisecond, then ran.
The man-creature materialized before the door and swung his burly arms at the air.
I slid to a stop on thin dirt.
He clipped my head, but the full impact of his swing didn’t get me because Caiden threw me out of the way.
I flew sideways, crashed into the wall, and crumpled to the ground.
For a moment, I couldn’t see. I blinked stars. When my focus cleared, I watched Caiden tackle the creature, taking him down, and then pound his fists into his face—his movements sped up, like watching a movie on fast-forward. I blinked again, pain throbbing at the back of my head. My eyes closed and didn’t reopen.
28
I Had To, To Save Your Life
“Lily, wake up.”Clap, clap. Snap, snap.“Please, wake up,” Raysa said, her tone urgent. “I don’t know why she’s not waking up.”
I wanted to respond and tell her that Briella needed to get Caiden now, but I couldn’t move.
Clap, clap.“Lily, can you hear me? Wake up. I command you to wake up.” The desperation in her voice mirrored the panic in my heart.
Why couldn’t I respond?
My muscles felt weighed down. I flexed them repeatedly until they twitched. I tried to lift my arms and managed to reach out. I grasped at the air, reaching around for Raysa. Finally, my eyelids responded by opening, just as my hands found her. Her image was hazy, and I couldn’t yet speak.
“Thank the gods!” Raysa pulled me up for a hug, burying my face in her shoulder and silky hair.
Smothered and unable to turn my head, I blew her strawberry tresses from my face. It sounded like I was spitting. “Your hair,” I muttered, trying again to lift my head.
“Sorry.” Raysa leaned back from me, and suddenly, my neck muscles worked. “I’m so relieved you’re awake. I’ve been calling you out of the trance for twenty minutes. Nothing like this has ever happened before. How do you feel?”
“I’m exhausted from fighting a monster and healing Caiden, but other than that, I’m good. Raysa, Isawhim!” Saying it gave me energy and I sat straighter. “I found him in the dungeons. He was beaten and burned. I couldn’t heal him with my powers. They wouldn’t work, but my blood did. He drank it. I know it sounds gross, but it wasn’t. It was…I can’t explain it. Anyway, he’s better, or at least, he was until the beast-man came. Raysa!” I gripped her arms. “Briella has to go now. He’s not completely healed. If they torture him again, he won’t survive.”
She didn’t respond, just looked at me with worried brows.
“You have to believe me.”
“I hear you,” she said. “I’m trying to process it.” Her lips puckered as she mulled over my words, takingforever. Finally, she met my anxious gaze. “I believe you, but I don’t think it was real. It couldn’t have been. For one thing, you could never get through the charms cast over the dungeons.”
I opened my mouth to protest.
She placed a finger to my lips. “But that doesn’t mean you didn’t experience the events on a subconscious level. It’s possible you unlocked parts of your brain most people can’t tap into.”
