Page 122 of A Clash of Stars

“You can’t keep fighting me, Clara. You keep pissing me off, and that messes with our plan.” I thought that was intriguing. ‘Our plan.’

He paused his attack, and I turned my body to face him.

“Our plan?” I questioned him.

He laughed as he started his attack again. Every single time I blocked his strike, and every time he grew more and more enraged about my defending against him.

“I don’t need to tell you for you to know who else is involved, Clara.”

I thought about everyone in my life and kept toggling back and forth with who it was. I assumed King Alex was the god Theo, but maybe I was wrong.

I became angry. I swung and struck. I kept going until he was worn down. As I did in Sefida against Evander, I knocked Alex’s legs out from under him and disarmed him. I knelt over him, pressing my knee into his chest and sword at histhroat. The blood was dripping off my face, but it was starting to clear. I was healing all on my own. The darkness was fading only to reveal a darker reality.

“Who is it?” I asked through clenched teeth at the King.

His laugh radiated through the air, but it was full of malice. “Madok of Ophera.” My breathing quickened as I pulled back slightly. “You couldn’t figure that out, Clara? He’s been running the show. This entire time, I was only the face of the plan.”

My heart started to race, and my thoughts swelled as the King’s face appeared. I grabbed his shirt and pulled him up to his feet with supernatural strength I didn’t know I had.

“Tell me what he is planning to do. Now.”

His smile disappeared as he looked into my eyes. Being this close, I realized that he was simply human.

“Isn’t it obvious? He’s going to kill your mate. Then he’s going to kill y—“

Before I could strike him, a sword came from the side of me, and it latched onto the king’s neck, slicing his head clean off his body. That’s when my focus turned to the man holding the sword. Was he a guard? I stood to look him in the eyes, and they were ocean blue.

I immediately threw my arms around him.

“Luke!”

His hands reached around me, and he dropped his sword. I pulled back and put his face in my hands. Then I slapped him.

“Why the fuck did you just do that! I was going to kill him. How did you sneak in with the guards?”

He laughed and adjusted his jaw before he spoke. He gestured to the guards, “I told all of them that he truly wasn’t a King, and surprisingly they believed me, so now we have them at our disposal. Besides the point of me killing him, I couldn’t listen to his bullshit anymore. Besides, you were taking too long.” I pulled backfrom my hug. His stare became more serious, “Clara, we need to go. Madok has Evander.”

“Where are they?” I asked Luke.

“He has him, along with your mother and his mother, imprisoned in Artesia. He has taken over your home.”

“Then we need to go to him now—”

He gripped my shoulder, stopping the movement of my horse. He shook his head.

“No. We’re not going there yet. You need to solidify your powers, Clara. We must go to Sefida—right now.”

I glanced around at my group of friends and stopped when I reached the sweet redhead.

“Lettie? Are— Are you okay?” I asked her softly.

Her eyes were fixated on her father’s lifeless body bleeding out on the dirt-covered ground. I thought I would feel sadness from her, but I feltrelief.

“I’m fine, let’s go,” she declared. And so, we went.

Chapter 38

The trip back towards Sefida was quiet and full of nerves. The other guards with Luke were extra supportive of what we were doing.

---