Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 123779 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 619(@200wpm)___ 495(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 123779 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 619(@200wpm)___ 495(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
It feels like the shadows that are moving inside me are a moment away from engulfing this world in darkness.
Not looking at Ares, I whisper, “I’m not ready to forgive and forget.” I suck in a quivering breath. “My memories are different than yours. They’re not filled with guilt but with unbearable pain.” I start walking to where Raighne is standing with his arms crossed over his chest, watching Ares like a hawk.
“It’s funny, you know.” I shrug before giving Ares a last glance. “Here you are, changing into this good person and asking for forgiveness, while I’m…” I wrap my arms tighter around myself. “I feel cold and dark, like I’m becoming this malicious thing. It’s like we’re swapping places.”
“Alchera, no!” Ares snaps as he stalks toward me.
Raighne’s arm flies up, and it looks like Ares walks into an invisible barrier that keeps him from taking another step.
I move to Raighne’s side and say, “This talk …” I wave my hand between Ares and myself, “whatever this is. It’s finished. I’ve had enough.” I take hold of Raighne’s hand so he’ll release Ares. “Next time, I won’t stop Raighne. Stay away from me.”
While the others gather in a group, Raighne pulls me to the side, muttering, “You’re not becoming a malicious thing.”
Unable to make eye contact with him, I glance down the street. “We both know it’s bound to happen. There’s no stopping the shadows from growing in me. I’ll do my best to get the chosen ones to Vaalbara, but there’s no way I’m getting through this without turning into the same thing as Adeth.”
Raighne lifts a hand, and taking hold of my chin, he forces me to look at him. “You’re not turning into Adeth. I won’t allow it.”
I try to smile but fail, and before I can say another word, I notice the clouds gathering above us. It looks like they’re churning.
No.
Pressure hits me full-on, and turning to the others, I shout, “Cover your ears!”
We’re hit with one hell of a blast of energy, knocking us off our feet. Raighne falls over me, his body covering mine just as another wave hits us.
When I manage to lift my head, blood trickles warm down my neck. Then I hear and feel everything - trees screech, birds drop dead, people cry, and one after the other, heartbeats stop.
A cloud of ash blocks the sun as it fills the air.
“Raighne!”
I let out a sob as Raighne helps me into a sitting position, and when his hands cover my ears, I feel him work overtime to still the chaos in me.
There’s a deep rumbling coming from the ground before it starts to quake beneath us.
Crouching in front of me and holding my head to his chest, he shouts at the others, “We have to move! Get everyone up.”
With the ground shuddering uncontrollably, Raighne helps me to stand, and I shake my head to rid myself of the dizziness left over from the blast.
I think the volcano just erupted.
Shit.
I groan as a gale-force wind whips through the park, making the hell around us worse. I hear people screaming not too far away, and worried for my chosen ones, I glance wildly around me.
Massive gaping holes appear as chunks of earth fall away beneath people’s feet. I watch in horror as they plunge to their deaths.
This time, it isn’t just a vision. It’s the real thing, and it makes horror bleed into the darkness growing inside me.
“Alchera!” I hear Raighne shout above the wind.
A tree whips past us, one of its branches missing my face by mere inches as he yanks me out of the way.
“We have to move.” Raighne holds my arm tightly as he pulls me toward our group, that’s clearly rattled by the hell being unleashed on us.
Jason picks up Sarah, and she buries her face against his neck as sobs wrack her weak body.
“I’ve got you. We’ll get through this,” Jason tells her, his worried eyes meeting mine.
Doug is watching the disaster unfolding around us with dread tightening his features.
Get your shit together, Alchera. Your chosen ones need you.
Matt holds Sky tightly while Dylan glances around us, his military voice booming over the sound of the wind, “Let’s move, people. If I say stop, you stop. If I say run, you run. We leave no one behind.”
“I can just shimmer us to a safer place,” Ares says.
“This is where my vision of Riccardo brought us to,” I snap at him as I follow Dylan, who’s making his way to the side of the town that looks less affected by the disaster. “I’m not leaving without him.”
With Dylan guiding us and Brenna, Finian, and Griffith protecting us from behind, we make our way through the rubble and scores of frightened people.
Shit, where is Riccardo?
The ground rips open behind us, and Griffith shouts, “Run!”