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Rather than tell her what to do, Fiona showed her scenes from the past, a dark, turbulent past between two people anted to hate each other but couldn’t stop the lust Fiona’s abduction of the prince, then the king Fiona’s treat she had seduced

"She’s still out there," Bride told the king without turning away, "still watching you You can feel her, but you can’t read her and you can’t stop her But I can read her, and she can read me She’s been an outcast her entire life because of what she is Everyone thought she was dead, killed as a child as ordered But they couldn’t do it, and sent her away Throughout the years, she reirlUntil your brother killed her She retaliated And somehow in the process, she became connected to you instead Now she needs you to survive and has asked h the hate in theain, if my husband’s life is threatened in any way, I will destroy you without any hesitation"

He will not, Fiona told her I will ure disappeared frouards closest to the ropes that held the cage suspended in the air "Gently lower the lazed as they rushed to obey, and soon the cage was settled on the ground "Open it" Only I have the key, the king projected

"Then give them the key" It was another command he couldn’t resist

He reuards Weak as his throas, the key thuuard strode forward, swiped up the key, and returned to the cage Metal scraped againstwide

So close to victory Just a few minutes more "Devyn, McKell," she said

Come on, love, Devyn said inside her mind He still couldn’t move She hadn’t freed hiet out of here and go home I’ a da it was torture I have tostay What are you talking about? Of course you--

She blocked his voice--char, even leave with hiive herself when she destroyed hih the entire underground Because of the thoughts of the va at her with that horror, she knew it as intiuards lurked Knehere traps lay Any and every threat, she eliminated

And then she faced Devyn, determined, soul-sick "Youinside her chest "McKell will lead you to the surface, and neither of you will return here Ever You will not send anyone after me" She could have erased herself fro moment, she couldn’t force herself to do so

Both of their bodies obeyed, heading toward the entrance to the hallway that would take the to the surface Devyn peered at her over his shoulder, clearly trying to force himself to stop

"Come withtoo rowled

"I can’t," she shouted, finding her voice "Look at me Look at what I can do"

And of course, he and everyone else in the roo else, the co theush from her

"McKell," he shouted, panicked, desperate "There has to be a way to contain her powers again Tell her there’s a way"

The warrior had never appeared so sad "Her father was most likely able to do it because Bride trusted him inside her mind and allowed it I know Bride trusts you and would allow you to do it, but you wouldn’t kno You could cause ood, lock up too much"

"No" Devyn violently shook his head "We’ll find a way, Bride I swear it Kyrin once told me the Arcadians are like cousins to the va powers Let him try"

Hope bloomed Let him tryit was a lifeline she desperately wanted to clutch Then she shook her

head You’re doing it Letting him convince you What if Kyrin failed? How many people would she hurt? Would she destroy Devyn’s friends? Make Devyn hirow to hate her That precious love would wither and die

"No" So badly did she want to reach for hi And if she reached for hi hih force to knock the air out of his lungs "I’ll stay here I’ll make sure no one comes for you"

"Bride!" There was true fear in his voice "I don’t care about that They can chase me the rest of ame But I can’t live without you Please!"

Her heart shattered like glass against a hammer She didn’t want to live without him, either, but to keep hio!"

McKell obeyed

Devyn coround She felt hiers were trying to latch on to her energy and control her, but she easily swatted theroan His head lifted, his eyes narrowing A vessel had burst in his forehead, and a bruise was already spreading fro," he gritted out "We’ll battle this out if we have to, but love, you’re stuck with h McKell hadn’t reached it yet Over forty AIR agents rushed inside, pyre-guns raised They didn’t stop to see who their targets were, they just started firing Blue beams, stun

Bride could have stopped theh the crowd, faster than they would have been able to see her, plucking their guns frohts, a jued it They didn’t plan to kill the people here, or even take them all above They planned to leave them, to let them live as quietly as they wished, foret Devyn the hell out

She pivoted on her heel She would leave them to it She needed to find soer anyone but could s Perhaps Fiona would help her, after all

"Dallas, shoot Bride," Devyn called, "and fucking keep shooting her!"

A second later, bea her in place She could still feel her power, but it was unusable at the moment, held captive as her body continually absorbed stun ray after stun ray

Dae behind her, blue bea She saw it through her hts of others Panic, so much panic Fear, so much fear Who are these people? the va to do? They sh their veins swiftly, sweetly Her is too ents had each of the vampires locked by stun The battle had been easier than they’d anticipated Because I already did the work, she wanted to shout And this was how they repaid her?

Footsteps echoed behind her, then beside her, louder, and then Devyn was standing in front of her He was grinning sly

"You commanded me to follow McKell, just not when I had to do it Still, that’s what I’ you with me I told you I’d find a way"

Devyn paced the confines of his bedroom It was a mess Wrinkled clothes littered the floor, and there were food wrappers on the dresser Bride perched at the edge of the bed He and Dallas had rigged a pyre-gun to the wall across from her, and it fired a continual beam directly into her chest