her magic.”
Kell gritted his teeth to keep from saying the first things that came to mind, mainly involving calling Dev out for his continued insulting behavior. He was a prince after all. If they’d been in Ranello, he could’ve had Dev arrested. But since he was on foreign ground, he needed to show he was above such behavior. “I care for her far more than you can imagine.”
“I suppose there’s some truth to that. After all, you haven’t tossed her aside once you’ve bedded her, unlike your prior conquests.”
His pulse throbbed through his limbs. It took every ounce of self-control to keep his voice low and calm as he said, “If you continue to demean my relationship with Arden, I will be forced to defend her honor. Remember, your shields are no match for my sword.”
Dev’s lip curled up. “You have no idea what you’re messing with.”
“I think I can handle you in a duel.” Kell pressed his palm against the table, lifting himself up so he sat higher than his rival. “Shall we take this outside?”
Dev remained sitting. “You arrogant little fool. You act like you know her, what she is and what she’s capable of doing, but you live in a blissful world of ignorance. You have no idea of the creature living inside her and what he will eventually do to her.”
Kell sat back and rolled his eyes. “If you are referring to that fake god whose soul you claim lives inside her—”
“Shut up and listen to me for once.” Dev leaned forward, his green eyes glittering in the firelight like a feral cat’s. “Loku destroys his Soulbearers, one way or another. He’ll eat away at her soul until she’s nothing more than a hollow shell of who she once was. And the more you test her, the more you ask her to draw upon his power, the faster you will curse her to madness.”
“And what if I said I don’t believe a word of this.”
Dev lunged forward, but Fane placed a hand on his chest to hold him back. “Gentlemen, please, let’s not draw any unwelcome attention to ourselves.”
“Dev made the same threat when Sulaino was terrorizing Ranello. He told me that after the battle, she would awake a different person. But he was wrong then, just like he’s wrong now. He’s done everything in his power to keep me away from her, but he’s failed time and time again.” He stood. “I’ve grown tired of these lies. Good night.”
The scrape of the wooden bench shocked the room into silence. Dev caught up to him and grabbed his arm, jerking him close so no one would hear him say, “Keep living in your fantasy world, little princeling. One day, you’ll have to face the cold, hard truth.”
Kell shook his arm free and shoved Dev back. “Maybe you’re the one who needs to face the cold, hard truth. I love Arden, and I intend to do everything in my power to keep her.”
A sudden gust of wind ripped the door off the hinges, blasting the room with cold rain and dousing all the candles. The fire followed, plunging the room into darkness. Gooseflesh puckered his skin, and a rising wave of nausea churned in his stomach.
A bolt of lightning flashed, briefly illuminating the stricken faces of the people in the room. The wind howled. Kell raised his hands to his ears, hoping to ease the sharp pain that filled them. A sinister tingle crawled along his scalp.
Something was very wrong about this storm. When the lightning flashed again, the glimpse he got of Dev’s face confirmed his suspicions. They both ran toward the stairs.
Dev managed to get a few steps ahead of him before the room erupted in pandemonium. The walls imploded, shattering the sturdy beams that supported the building like twigs. A hand pulled him down to the ground, and the familiar warmth of magic enveloped him in a shield. Screams mingled with the cracking of the wood and the ever increasing roar of the wind. Tables and chairs overturned and flew through the air, as deadly as cannonballs.
Pressed against the floor, Kell’s hair whipped
Kell gritted his teeth to keep from saying the first things that came to mind, mainly involving calling Dev out for his continued insulting behavior. He was a prince after all. If they’d been in Ranello, he could’ve had Dev arrested. But since he was on foreign ground, he needed to show he was above such behavior. “I care for her far more than you can imagine.”
“I suppose there’s some truth to that. After all, you haven’t tossed her aside once you’ve bedded her, unlike your prior conquests.”
His pulse throbbed through his limbs. It took every ounce of self-control to keep his voice low and calm as he said, “If you continue to demean my relationship with Arden, I will be forced to defend her honor. Remember, your shields are no match for my sword.”
Dev’s lip curled up. “You have no idea what you’re messing with.”
“I think I can handle you in a duel.” Kell pressed his palm against the table, lifting himself up so he sat higher than his rival. “Shall we take this outside?”
Dev remained sitting. “You arrogant little fool. You act like you know her, what she is and what she’s capable of doing, but you live in a blissful world of ignorance. You have no idea of the creature living inside her and what he will eventually do to her.”
Kell sat back and rolled his eyes. “If you are referring to that fake god whose soul you claim lives inside her—”
“Shut up and listen to me for once.” Dev leaned forward, his green eyes glittering in the firelight like a feral cat’s. “Loku destroys his Soulbearers, one way or another. He’ll eat away at her soul until she’s nothing more than a hollow shell of who she once was. And the more you test her, the more you ask her to draw upon his power, the faster you will curse her to madness.”
“And what if I said I don’t believe a word of this.”
Dev lunged forward, but Fane placed a hand on his chest to hold him back. “Gentlemen, please, let’s not draw any unwelcome attention to ourselves.”
“Dev made the same threat when Sulaino was terrorizing Ranello. He told me that after the battle, she would awake a different person. But he was wrong then, just like he’s wrong now. He’s done everything in his power to keep me away from her, but he’s failed time and time again.” He stood. “I’ve grown tired of these lies. Good night.”
The scrape of the wooden bench shocked the room into silence. Dev caught up to him and grabbed his arm, jerking him close so no one would hear him say, “Keep living in your fantasy world, little princeling. One day, you’ll have to face the cold, hard truth.”
Kell shook his arm free and shoved Dev back. “Maybe you’re the one who needs to face the cold, hard truth. I love Arden, and I intend to do everything in my power to keep her.”
A sudden gust of wind ripped the door off the hinges, blasting the room with cold rain and dousing all the candles. The fire followed, plunging the room into darkness. Gooseflesh puckered his skin, and a rising wave of nausea churned in his stomach.
A bolt of lightning flashed, briefly illuminating the stricken faces of the people in the room. The wind howled. Kell raised his hands to his ears, hoping to ease the sharp pain that filled them. A sinister tingle crawled along his scalp.
Something was very wrong about this storm. When the lightning flashed again, the glimpse he got of Dev’s face confirmed his suspicions. They both ran toward the stairs.
Dev managed to get a few steps ahead of him before the room erupted in pandemonium. The walls imploded, shattering the sturdy beams that supported the building like twigs. A hand pulled him down to the ground, and the familiar warmth of magic enveloped him in a shield. Screams mingled with the cracking of the wood and the ever increasing roar of the wind. Tables and chairs overturned and flew through the air, as deadly as cannonballs.
Pressed against the floor, Kell’s hair whipped
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