Page 71 of Beastkin

Thomas laughed. “That’s not how this works. You come with me now, I’ll drop it here and your friends can save him. Or he dies. The choice is yours.”

I stared into his smug face, at the boy who had watched me for months, who had betrayed me to my parents, who had plotted to own me like I was property. The boy who had struck me and threatened to break me. And now he was trying to take everything from me again.

Something inside me snapped and the flames around my hands went out.

“I’ll go with you,” I said, my voice barely audible.

“You’ll be mine?” Thomas asked, lifting an eyebrow. “Thoroughly and completely?”

“Anything you want,” I nodded. “I’m yours.” I took a step closer.

Thomas watched me suspiciously, but when I made no move to lash out, he just smiled. “That’s a good boy,” he growled, wrapping his free arm around my waist and pulling me tight against his body. “Now kiss me to prove it.”

The bond flared with anger and desperation from Karrick, but I pushed it away. Then I leaned closer, opening my lips, and let Thomas take me.

His mouth pressed against mine, hungry and demanding. I felt his tongue push past my lips, claiming me for himself like I was something to be owned. And that’s when I struck.

Fire exploded from deep within me, channeling through our connected mouths. I poured every ounce of rage and hatred into the kiss, my magic surging from my core straight into Thomas’s body. His eyes flew open in shock, pupils dilating with sudden terror as he realized what was happening.

He tried to pull away, but I gripped the back of his head, holding him in place as flames coursed down his throat. His muffled screams vibrated against my lips, his body convulsing as my fire consumed him from the inside out.

“This isfor Karrick,”I thought as I pushed more magic into him, feeling his insides begin to cook.“And this is for me.”

Thomas’s skin began to glow from within, orange light shining through the veins in his face like molten lava. His eyes bulged, tears of blood streaming down his cheeks as the heat expanded inside his skull. His fingernails dug into my arms with inhuman strength, desperate to break free.

I didn’t relent. I couldn’t. Not after everything he’d done.

The others were shouting something, but their voices seemed distant, muffled beneath the roaring in my ears as my magic poured forth uncontrolled. Thomas’s body began to smoke, his clothes charring at the edges. The smell of burning flesh filled the air, acrid and sickening.

With one final surge of power, I released him. Thomas staggered backward, clutching at his throat, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. No sound emerged, just flames, licking up from his lips, his nostrils, his eyes. He fell to his knees, his entire body now glowing from within like a grotesque lantern.

Then, with a sound like glass shattering, Thomas exploded. A blinding flash of light erupted from his body as it disintegrated into ash and embers that scattered across the manicured lawn.

I swayed on my feet, drained and dizzy. Where Thomas had stood seconds before, there was nothing but a blackened patch of grass and a small glass vial that had somehow survived the inferno. The antidote.

I lunged for it, scooping it up with trembling hands. My vision blurred as I stumbled back to Karrick, collapsing beside his motionless form. I could still feel him through our bond, but barely. He was little more than a flickering presence growing fainter by the second.

“Please,” I whispered, uncorking the vial with shaking fingers. “Please don’t leave me.”

I lifted Karrick’s massive head, cradling it in my lap as I poured the clear liquid between his parted lips. For a terrifying moment, nothing happened. Then his throat worked, swallowing reflexively.

“Come on,” I pleaded, placing my hands on his chest.

I could feel his muscles relaxing already, the antidote taking effect. But he was still bleeding profusely from the wound in his gut. The knife had gone deeper than I thought.

I didn’t hesitate. Using what little strength I had left, I pressed my hands against Karrick’s wound and summoned the last dregs of my magic. Unlike the destructive power I’d unleashed on Thomas, this was different. It was a gentle warmth that flowed from my core down through my arms and into my fingertips.

“Please work,” I whispered, feeling my body tremble with exhaustion.

The magic responded sluggishly at first, then built momentum. Golden light seeped from my hands into Karrick’s flesh, knitting the torn muscles and vessels back together. I could feel the poison neutralizing, his heartbeat steadying beneath my touch. But the wound was deep, and my reserves were nearly depleted from my confrontation with Thomas.

“Stay with me,” I begged, pushing harder, drawing on energy I didn’t know I possessed. My vision began to darken at the edges, but I refused to stop. “I can’t lose you. Not now. Not after everything.”

Through our bond, I felt Karrick’s consciousness stir, his presence growing stronger as the antidote and my healing magic worked together. His breathing deepened, and his eyes, which had been glazed with pain, began to focus on my face.

“That’s it,” I encouraged, even as my own strength waned. “Come back to me.”

The others gathered around us, their voices distant and muffled as if underwater. I was vaguely aware of someone, Wild perhaps, telling me to slow down, to save some energy for myself. But I couldn’t stop. Wouldn’t stop. Not until Karrick was safe.