Page 78 of King Elijah (The Zemiran Chronicles 2)

Twenty-Eight

JANELLE SAW THEtop of the mansion through the trees, but they were still at least a mile away. The forest was the only thing separating her from her imprisonment.

“I need to pee,” Janelle said. “Please, I can’t hold it.”

“Pee inside the house when we get there!” Victor said.

Her blood turned to ice as he glared at her, but she continued. “I’ve been holding it for hours. Let me off before I pee all over your animal. Now!” she cried.

Victor mumbled vulgarities at her before pulling back on the reins.

“Two minutes!” he ordered as she jumped off the horse.

She hurried, skipping behind a grove of trees. She relieved herself, and thankfully, the sick bastards weren’t watching. A thrill bounced in her belly at the thought of taking off, even though she knew she’d not get far before they stopped her.

Janelle also realized she had nowhere to go. The streets ahead would be vacant, as it was almost dusk. The Shadow Creature came out at night to hunt and feed on the people caught unaware. Kieran had ordered the Newick citizens to lock themselves behind closed doors after sundown, banning all magic until dawn.

Janelle’s heart pounded in her chest at the thought of fleeing into the wilderness. However, one flick of her captors’ wrists and they would knock her to her knees with their magic. At least for now, she was alone for the first time in hours; that gave her a little peace.

After Janelle had sorted out her clothes and stood up, she looked around. The trees cast shadows along the grass, but a dark feeling came over her as if they were being watched. A strange rustling sound came through the darkness of the forest floor.

She closed her eyes tightly to hone in on the sound getting louder with every second.

Janelle looked up, turned around, and narrowed her eyes through the trees behind her. The pounding sound of her heart rang in her ears. They were exposed. That creature would find them, and they were too far from the gates to escape.

What is that?

As soon as the figure came into focus, Janelle felt her eyes grow wide. It wasn’t the creature at all. It was someone on a horse, galloping at breakneck speed, leaning down over the horse’s neck with his cloak dancing in the wind behind him.

“Elijah,” she whispered into the air.

Janelle never thought the sight of the man she had hated for nearly two decades would fill her with that much happiness. She could feel the memory of his touches from the night before, ghosting over her skin and leaving tingling trails behind.

She set off running for him without a second thought. Victor and Lars called after her, their angry voices chasing her as she ran, but she was undeterred. She’d make it to Elijah; she was sure of it.

Elijah’s hands tightened on his horse’s reins, bringing it into a turn as he prepared to make a leap for Janelle. As soon as he launched himself from the animal, magic sparked from his fingertips. The black smoke shot through the air, wrapping itself around Victor’s throat like long, inky black fingers.

As Elijah’s boots hit the ground, his other hand came out. His powers took hold of Lars next, cutting him short as he tried to throw his own dark power at Elijah. Janelle saw Victor raise his arm and a black mist gathered at his fingertips. The bolt of magic aimed at Elijah’s heart flew. She cried out so loudly that a burst of light from her body sprang out, toppling the brush around them and throwing Lars and Victor back. The blast broke Elijah’s hold as she kept her power up to shield him from the attack. Janelle tried to push back Victor. However, she couldn’t save herself as she, too, was flung back off her feet. Sharp pain stabbed at her back as she fell against the rough, thorny rocks.

She quickly rolled up and turned to Elijah, ensuring he was safe. Elijah stood tall, his arms still out as the men struggled to draw their swords, climbing to their feet.

The men’s magic pooled out, ready to strike when Elijah’s black mist took hold of Victor and Lars’s waists, severing their attempt. He lifted the two men in the air as his magic crept over their skin, squeezing their life out, bit by bit. Elijah looked strong and confident as he watched them with his arms outstretched. Janelle could see every muscle in his body tense and his face was a mask of total focus—the entire strength of his power crushing the men to death.

There was a moment, just a moment, where he looked like something utterly terrible. Janelle was powerless to do anything but look on in horror as Elijah snapped his wrists sharply. A sick crack rang through the air, and the two men’s spines broke clean in half.

His work done; Elijah’s magic released their lifeless bodies to fall to the ground. They were nothing more than worthless sacks of meat now,wet with their own blood. The dull thud of them hitting the ground made Janelle’s stomach churn even further than it had when their spines snapped.

A stillness settled over the two of them as Elijah slowly turned to look at Janelle.

The last time she had used her light magic was when Queen Cassia stole Aiden, the only family she had left, and banished him to the Woodlands. Several fairies and elves died that day from the blast, being taken by the light’s force. She was afraid to fight with her abilities because Newick magic was far more powerful than hers. They would have killed her.

Janelle breathed heavily as her eyes locked on Elijah’s. Shame filled her as she had promised to never unleash that kind of power, no matter the reason. But at that moment, she thought only of killing the two men before they hurt Elijah as they did her. It didn’t matter what power he held. She wanted to save him, too.

But he had saved her first. He turned into something vicious to do it, but Janelle realized that even as he was choking the life out of those men, she never feared him. As wrathful as he became, she only felt safe.

Janelle had spent a lifetime being a tool for committing violence on behalf of others. She had been trained and molded into a warrior. She had immeasurable violence done to her in the process to keep her in line. Kieran had threatened to kill her more than once.

No one had ever killed for her.No one ever protected her.

---