Keeper(92)

I picked my head up.

The Master was clapping his hands, almost doubled over in merriment.

He stood up, whipping his arms out, and addressed the crowd. His smile was so feral the crowd shrank back from it.

“Now,” he said, his voice loud and booming, “how’s that for entertainment?”





CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE


The words hung in the air like smoke.

No one moved; no one breathed a word. The only sound that filled the room was the rise and fall of the Master’s laughter.

Gareth’s head lay cradled in my lap. His blood—still warm—stuck to my skin. Heat pulsated through me, enflaming the gaping hole where my heart had been.

Time itself seemed to stop. There was only this moment, every detail searing itself into my brain, etching into my bones. Only this.

The Master’s laughter grew louder, echoing in my ears like a drum. I was moving, before my mind even registered the movement. I slipped out from underneath Gareth’s body, laying him gently against the ground, and stood up.

His blood had soaked through my clothes, staining the fabric of my gown. I didn’t care, though. The crimson banner was my war paint now. Inside me, something was taking hold. It was surging through me, eating away at my senses. Green lightning crackled between my fingertips, and I shivered from the flashes of energy and heat that swelled within me.

“You killed him.” My voice didn’t sound like my own. It was cold and flat. The crowd had grown restless, but quieted at my words. “You. Killed. Him.” The heat underneath my skin was getting hotter, boiling me from the inside out.

The Master stopped his cackling long enough to plop down in his chair, throwing his legs over the armrest. “Oh, no, love.” He smirked at me. “You did that.”

I could hardly hear his voice over the sound of my own blood rushing in my ears. I was on fire, every cell within my body drunk on the flames that no one could see. Power. Pain. Heat. It wouldn’t take much now. Lighting a match into my endless supply of gasoline. I could feel it rising, and I welcomed it.

“You killed him.” My voice was louder this time, and energy surged through my body, taking hold. I stepped forward, a burning inferno, every part of me engulfed in flames and fury.

“You killed him!” I screamed, letting go of the last ounce of control I had left. I threw back my head and unleashed the magic within me. It shot outward, a massive shock wave of electricity that exploded from my fingertips.

The sconces on the wall reacted first, growing brighter and brighter until they shattered in a rain of sparks. The guests screamed as the lights overhead began to burst, one after another.

My screams grew louder, and I raised my hands over my head, consumed by my own power and magic. I wasn’t in control anymore. There was no Lainey, nothing but the insatiable heat, the conflagration of flames that consumed me.

The crystal chandelier hanging in the center of the ballroom detonated like a bomb, showering the room in broken glass and tiny sparks that danced with a life of their own. They floated through the air like fireflies, setting fire to everything they touched. The tapestries on the walls went first. The flames spread like wildfire, devouring everything in their path. They moved unnaturally fast, and screams filled the room as it quickly turned into a firestorm.

I stared unseeing, as everything began to blur together into hazy patches of gold, crimson, and amber. I couldn’t make sense of anything anymore. There was nothing but the flames. As the last ounce of my strength evaporated, I sank to my knees.

My hands were red and blistered. Black spots swam in front of my eyes, and when my vision finally failed, I welcomed the darkness.

I didn’t fight the hands that caught me, yanking me to my feet. I didn’t resist when I felt the swaying motion of someone carrying me.

Just let me go. I wanted to stay in the comforting darkness forever.

The last thing I heard before I sank into nothingness was a terrible wail, a visceral scream of rage that resonated in my bones.

Then, at last, stillness.



It was the light tap of fingertips on my face that woke me. I opened my eyes to a glittering sky, the moon a shining silver orb nestled among a blanket of stars. Maggie’s face appeared then, blocking out the moon.

“Lainey?” she said, her voice hoarse, as though she’d been screaming for hours. “Can you hear me?” She prodded at my face again, unsure if I was really conscious or not.

I nodded, though I didn’t speak. Seeing the movement and realizing that I was at least somewhat coherent, Maggie’s face crumbled and she began to sob. She launched herself at me, squeezing my shoulders and gripping me as though she’d never let go.

It was her tears that broke through the fog inside my head. I struggled to sit up, but Maggie’s weight made it nearly impossible. “I’m okay, Mags,” I said, wincing at the rawness of my throat.

I managed to push her off of me enough to pull us both upright. Her face was pale, and her nose was red from crying. “Are you okay?” I ran my eyes over her, landing on the wound on her arm. I yanked the arm closer for inspection. The wound had stopped bleeding but was puffy and red. Bluish-black lines ran in all directions like a spiderweb from the indentation that looked like . . . teeth. All of the blood rushed from my head. I looked up at her face.

“Maggie . . . is that . . .” I broke off, unable to say the words.