Page 123 of A Clash of Stars

Apparently, King Alex wasn’t very kind to anyone. I didn’t know how Evander or Lettie could have endured him this entire time.

I just needed to see him and hear from him. I was so worried about him, and I couldn’t lose him. I finally had what I had always wanted, love.

We passed by the guard’s body that I destroyed earlier, and Luke spoke, “Wow, what happened here?”

Griffin laughed, “Clara. That’s what happened. Just Clara.”

“Damn, and here I thought I needed to protect you. You can protect yourself completely on your own.”

I sighed. Bethany leaned around me on the horse, propping her chin on my shoulder.

“Are you doing, okay? Any communication from Evander?” Bethany questioned me.

I sighed, “No, I haven’t had any communication with him. If he is captured, Madok will tie up his power.”

She lifted her chin off my shoulder as she whispered, “Clara, even though that type of communication is power, he’s your mate. That’s stronger than any magic. Why don’t you try again.”

I breathed deeply, “All right, I’ll try, but it probably won’t work.”

She nudged my back, “Just humor me.”

Evander, if you can hear me. I need to know that you’re okay. I miss you.

I refocused my attention on the forest in front of me when the itch started on my neck.

I’m okay, but don’t come to Artesia. It’s a trap. I need you to go to Sefida, to find Luna. She will help you with what you need to do next.

Ev, I need you. I need you to be safe. I can’t lose you.

You could never lose me, Clara Bear. Find Luna. She will show you what you need. By the way, I hear you are quite a warrior. That’s sexy.

I smiled at the thought of him smirking at me. Wanting me. When would I see him?

What will I do after?

Luna will let you know what to do next. Whatever you do, don’t try to save me, I’ll be fine.

You say that like you won’t make it out of this.

We will make it out of this, Clara. Remember that once this is done, we’ll find each other again. I love you.

I took a deep breath to withhold the tears in my eyes. Deep in my bones, I felt I wouldn’t see him again. What worried me more is I felt like he was preparing for something I’d have to do that I would disagree with.

He was adamant that he— we would be different. Maybe I didn’t want to break this curse.

What if we just hid somewhere in Carondelet and lived our lives together? Who would stop us from doing that? Then, I thought of my father and what hesacrificed for me to save our people, stop the curse, and free us. To whatever world was before this one. I needed to do that for him.

The castle of Sefida didn’t look any different than before. It was large, with large gray stones, and expanded across the entire center of the land. The harshness of the castle was complemented by the lush greenery surrounding the property.

We dismounted our horses, and not one guard was there. Which was odd, but we kept moving toward the entrance.

Opening the doors, it was quiet and eerie. I knew where Luna’s office was and bee-lined it straight there. Getting to her door, I felt the power surging from the room, pulsing.

She had it protected, and there was no way to get in. I banged on the door anyway and yelled as loud as possible to get her attention. Everyone else was behind me, looking at me like I was a lunatic, and maybe I was.

“Luna! Open the door! It’s Clara.”

Instantly, I was thrown into a trance, my head snapped back, and I lost control of my entire body. I heard a voice.

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