Chapter 34

Elouera

I felt like I was drowning in a storm of freezing cold and blood.

The hard armor on Callan’s uniform pressed painfully against my cheek, but I couldn’t move away. The Crown Prince held me tightly against his chest, his strong arm wrapped around my waist like a steel trap.

Through his thick coat, I could feel his heart pounding wildly. The deep growl coming from his throat was so strong that I could feel it through my bones. It was a warning to every Alpha around us to stay away.

My Omega instincts told me to submit, but I was too terrified to understand what was happening.

All around us, the Grand Conservatory had turned into a nightmare.

Steel clashed as Callan’s sword met the weapons of the Imperial Guards. Men shouted from every direction. The nobles ran for safety, knocking over tables and slipping on spilled wine and crushed flowers.

Through the chaos, I could hear Stirling Vance shouting my fake name. He was forcing his way through the crowd, fighting anyone who stood between us.

But I could barely see anything.

The room was breaking apart before my eyes. The golden lights above me stretched into bright, blurry lines, while everything else faded into dark, sickening shadows.

Uncle Holden’s poison had reached its worst stage.

This was no longer an ordinary fever.

It felt as though someone had poured molten metal into my veins. The heat inside my body was so painful that my vision turned completely white with every beat of my heart.

Cold sweat covered my skin, yet I felt as if I were burning alive.

Breathe, I told myself desperately.

Just breathe.

But I couldn’t.

When Stirling grabbed me earlier, the linen bindings around my chest had torn apart. However, they hadn’t come completely loose. The thick strips of cloth, soaked with sweat, had twisted together and tightened into a painful knot across the middle of my chest.

Now, with Callan holding me tightly against his armor to protect me from the guards, the tangled cloth pressed even harder against my body.

It felt like a rope was squeezing my chest, slowly cutting off my air.

I opened my mouth and tried to take a deep breath.

Nothing.

Only a weak, broken wheeze came out.

My lungs felt crushed. I couldn’t draw in enough air, and Callan’s tight grip only made the pressure worse.

Black spots began appearing at the edges of my vision.

I was losing the little strength I had left.

“Callan,” I choked out.

My fingers weakly grabbed the lapel of his dark velvet coat.

I tried to pull at it, hoping he would understand that something was wrong.

I couldn’t breathe.

And I was terrified that if he didn’t loosen his hold soon, I would pass out in his arms.

He didn’t look down at me. He couldn’t. He was busy fighting three royal guards with one sword, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the men who wanted to kill me. His left arm tightened around my waist, lifting my feet slightly off the marble floor as he tried to keep me hidden and protected beneath his cloak.

“Don’t move!” Callan growled. His voice was filled with so much anger that it sent fear through the room. “I’ll kill every last one of them. I swear to the gods, I’ll slaughter them all!”

He meant every word. He was ready to kill his own mother’s guards just to keep me safe.

For one brief moment, the heavy fog in my head caused by the heat toxin cleared. My instincts to survive kicked in.

If I stayed in his arms, I would die. If Callan killed the guards, the Empress would send the entire palace army after us. And if Stirling reached us first, the two Alphas might fight each other to the death right over me. I would be caught between them and pay the price.

My mother had died in this very palace because she trusted an Alpha to protect her from the crown. I wasn’t going to make the same mistake.

I needed air. I needed to escape.

I stopped struggling against Callan and let my whole body go limp for a brief second.

Callan shifted his weight to block a guard’s attack with his sword. As he did, his arm adjusted to support my suddenly limp body.

That was my chance.

With a desperate scream that scraped my throat raw, I placed both hands against the middle of Callan’s chest armor and pushed him with every bit of strength I had left.

The sudden force caught the Crown Prince completely off guard. His boots slipped on the wet marble, and he stumbled backward. His tight grip loosened just enough for me to twist free from his arms.

Cold air hit my skin.

I didn’t waste a second. I reached into the torn collar of my silver tunic and grabbed the twisted linen binding that was choking me. I pulled it down with all my strength.

The thick fabric tore with a loud ripping sound.

My lungs finally opened up. I dragged in a huge, painful breath of air. It tasted of smoke and the sharp smell of lightning.

“Elouera!” Callan roared behind me.

His voice was filled with both fury and panic as he struggled to regain his balance.

I turned on my heel and ran.

I pushed through the crowd like a frightened animal running for its life. My heavy boots kept slipping on the smooth floor, and my legs shook so badly that I could barely stand.

A high lord reached out and grabbed my cloak as I passed. I didn’t even stop to look at him. I pulled the small silver knife hidden in my sleeve and swung it blindly at his fingers.

He screamed and let go. I kept running.

The large wooden doors leading to the servants’ corridor were just ahead, slightly open. I threw my whole body against them and stumbled into the dark hallway, leaving the screams and bloody chaos of the Grand Conservatory behind me.

I staggered down the narrow passage, dragging one hand along the rough stone wall to keep myself from falling.

Every step felt like I was walking through thick mud. The little strength I had gained from the adrenaline was quickly fading. The unnatural heat caused by the poison was spreading through my body, making it harder to move.

The strong scent of wild honey and rain was pouring from my skin. It was so powerful that I could almost taste it in my mouth.

I just needed to reach the outer gardens. If I could get out into the cold rain, maybe I could cool my burning body. I could hide in the shadows of the hedge maze and wait for the heat to pass.

But before I could get any farther, my knees suddenly gave way.

I crashed onto the stone floor, and the silver knife slipped from my hand, clattering away into the darkness.

A weak, broken sob escaped my throat as I tried to push myself up. I placed my hands on the floor and struggled to get onto my knees, but my arms were too weak to hold me up.

The poison had left my lower body completely numb. I couldn’t move my legs at all.

I was trapped in the darkness, burning from the inside, with no strength left to defend myself.

Then I heard a sound coming from the far end of the corridor.

Click. Drag. Click.

The familiar sound of Uncle Holden’s brass cane striking the stone floor echoed through the silence.

I froze.

Despite the terrible heat burning through my body, I suddenly felt as if all the blood in my veins had turned to ice.

I couldn’t lift my head. All I could do was stare at the floor as a pair of polished black leather boots slowly emerged from the darkness.

They stopped just inches from my trembling fingers.

“I told you, little bird,” Uncle Holden whispered.

His voice was calm and cold, but I could hear the cruel amusement in it.

“You can run as fast as you like. But you’ll always end up crawling back to me.”