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“The Fire Prince will not cage you. I will not allow it. You are no one’s, Scarlett. You said so yourself. This is your choice.” She could hear the begging, the pleading in his voice. She could see it in his eyes.

A dagger flew through the flames, and Sorin jerked back to avoid it. The wall of flame flickered but held.

“But you must choose now, Scarlett, or the choice will be made for you. I cannot access my full well of power here, even with your ring,” he gasped.

Scarlett stood frozen. A choice?

He was giving her a choice. About her own life.

He was—

Pain lanced up her side. She looked down to find a shirastone dagger embedded in her flesh. As if in slow motion, she turned to see Mikale on the other side of the flames. A look of rage and cruelty lined his features. “You aremine,” he snarled.

“Scarlett, choose.” Sorin was panting for breath. He didn’t move. He didn’t come to her. His arm was still upheld as though he were physically holding up that wall of flame with his palm. “You have seconds, but I beg you, please choose freedom. Please choose what I am offering you.”

Scarlett wrenched the dagger from her side, gasping out in pain. She pressed her palm to the wound, felt her own blood, wet and sticky against her palm. She crossed the distance to Sorin, and he seemed to shudder in relief.

“Tell me what to do,” she whispered hoarsely.

“I can’t explain everything, so I need you to trust me and do exactly what I say,” he rasped, pushing a strand of her silver hair back. He leaned forward, pressing his forehead against her own. “Can you do that?”

“Please, Sorin,” she whispered again. “Please do not give me to the Fire Prince. Do not let him kill me like he did my mother. Please.”

Sorin closed his eyes briefly and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “If the Fire Prince kills you, Love, I will take his life with my own hands.” He reached down and took the dagger from her hand. The one covered in her own blood. He cut his palm and hers, pressing them together, mixing their blood. Something ancient and fiery sang through her. Her shadows seemed to dance around her.

“Close your eyes. Do it.” His voice was soft and commanding, and she did as he ordered. “Focus. Feel our breaths, both of us, together. Try to make them match. In and out.”

She could hear Mikale and the Lord yelling and cursing on the other side of the ever weakening wall of flames. She could feel her blood still flowing against her hand, the pain coursing up her side.

“Ignore them. Ignore all of it,” Sorin whispered into her ear. “Focus on my breath, Love. Focus on me.” His voice caressed her soul. She could feel herself mentally reaching for him. Warmth was flooding through her. “Good. Good girl. Now think of the beach. Think of the cavern, right before we enter it to your sea star beach. Picture it, Scarlett.” She felt his other hand stroking her hair, her cheek. His breath was sensual against her ear. His lips brushed the area just under it. “Callan and Sloan and Finn are there,” he breathed. “Nuri is there. Your Cassius is there, Love. They are all waiting for you. Picture it. Feel the sun and the sand and hear the waves. People who love you are waiting for you.

“Good. Now, this is going to sound strange, but I need you to trust me in this. I know you do not have much faith in me right now, but do you trust that I do not want to see you in Mikale’s hands?”

She nodded her head, not daring to open her eyes.

“Good. Picture the beach. All of it. Picture Nuri terrorizing Finn and Sloan. Picture Cassius there, waiting to wrap you in his arms. When I say go, you need to take a step. You need to hold tight to me, and take a step forward.”

“Sorin—”

“Do not think. Just do it,” he whispered. “Trust me andgo.”

She gripped Sorin with everything she had and stepped forward, her eyes shut tight.

Then she was blinking against bright sunlight. She looked around and saw ocean waves licking at her bare feet. She could smell the salt in the air as she stood in it. They were on the beach. She looked to her right and saw the vine covered entrance to the cavern. She heard gasps and her head swiveled to the left. Callan was looking at them with his mouth gaping open. Finn and Sloan were before him with weapons drawn. Nuri was in black, her hood and gloves in place, protecting her from the sun. Cassius was rushing towards them. Another woman was with them. Her golden red hair was shimmering in the sun. She was in fighting gear, a sword was strapped to her back, but Scarlett recognized her. Alia. She was the cook who had brought her food in the sunroom. She had served them in the manor.Their eyes connected briefly and then her gaze shifted to Sorin.

Sorin, who was still holding her close, staring at Scarlett not with shock as she expected, but like knew exactly what had happened.

“You did it, Love,” he said, kissing her brow and pulling her into him even more, relief stark in his tone. “You did it.”

Scarlett shoved him back violently, dropped to her knees, and vomited into the rolling waves. The darkness engulfed her.

CHAPTER 44

SORIN

Sorin watched Scarlett as she vomited into the sea over and over again. He’d prayed to Anala that he could get her to Travel. He didn’t know how similar it was to portaling, but it was all he had to go on.

He’d known something was wrong as soon as Eliza had led him to the servant’s entrance. In her simple maid’s gown, they had entered under the guise of delivering some supplies from Lord Tyndell. Sorin had been laden down with various bags and packages, sent to accompany the maid. The Lairwood servants, not wanting to haul the items through the house themselves, had let them in to take the items to the kitchens. The servants were too busy to notice or care that the items were dumped into a supply closet and that he had then slipped along the hallways until he found stairs. She called to him. The Mark on his hand may not be visible here, but it drew him to her.