Page 64 of Enchanted Shadows (The Enchanted Kingdom #6)

He swiped out with his dagger, but having listened to the flare of my power, I met it with my sword and shoved hard, the dagger going flying.

The darkness was all around me, nipping at me from every angle. It felt like he was trying to filet my skin from my body, but I kept my focus on my glowing power, on Calix’s form as he pulled what shadows he had in, trying to get himself free.

On and on we went, I sent out another vine at his feet, and another aimed at his free hand. If I could get them both bound, a barrier on his hands, this would be over.

But his shadows sliced through my attempt at his hands. One of the vines I sent at his feet caught and held. When it did, I didn’t hesitate to try to get a hold on one of his hands. His left foot and right arm were now covered with dark green magic.

He sent the full power of his mass of shadows back to focus on me, and I hissed under the pressure of them. They were focused on my weapon, trying to pry it from my hand. Would my skin be bloody and raw at the end of this?

My shoulder dropped as I fought against them but was thankfully able to see Calix now, as they concentrated on my arm.

I refused to drop my sword. While keeping my hold on Calix, I sent numerous determined strands of dark green magic out to attack the shadows on me.

But I was not prepared for the sharp onslaught of them to my face.

I threw up my arm and sword to block them, feeling the burn of one along my jaw, and then they moved, wrapping tightly around my arm. Twisting in different directions.

I let out a curse just before there was a crunching noise, a pop in my forearm. I gasped out as my sword dropped. I looked down at my arm still crawling with my green magic for only a moment but could see the fractured bone peeking from my skin, blood dripping towards my fingers.

If the shadows retrieved my sword and gave it to Calix, this would be over. And not in my favor. For one painful second, I feared the worst—that I wouldn’t succeed in this, would never hold my wife again. So, I ignored the piece of bone sticking out of my arm and quickly looked for my sword .

I watched as the dirt swallowed my weapon where it landed.

The ground rumbled and vibrated in that spot, and without warning, a root launched out of the dirt, slamming Calix into the ground.

The surprise and shock of it were enough to lose his hold on his shadows.

Miles and I both sent them outward and everything came into sharp focus, all shadows gone.

Bright white circles of light hit my vision as pain flooded my system.

But Calix was stuck, the shadows gone. Chased away by a power that none of us understood, that all of us underestimated. The queen’s tree.

“Raikes,” Miles called before tossing Calix’s sword at me.

I caught it in my left hand, the grip of my right hand wrecked and causing me nothing but a blinding pain. I strode for Calix, needing this to be over. Before I collapsed or couldn’t see from around the pain again.

He was struggling and wiggling, trying to get free from the roots of the tree.

Weapon in my left hand, I bent and moved the sword, his own weapon, to his throat.

I didn’t hate a person in the realm like I hated this man.

This man who had used and manipulated my wife, who had known how powerful she was but tried to taint it, claim it, hold her back.

Who had been fool enough to presume he could tame her.

“Does it eat at you?” I asked him. “To know that my name will be on her lips so long as we both may live?”

His eyes went wide, but I moved, using my left hand and slicing his throat.

Knowing from past experience this would be a gruesome death, one which could lead to him choking on his own blood depending on the exact location of the slice, I let my power build in my palm and up my arm.

I swung around and downward. His sword made a sick wet noise as it embedded in his chest cavity.

I sent my magic chasing down his sword, willing that it would stay, no lingering shadows to help remove it .

As Calix bled before me, I gripped my hurt forearm and looked to Miles, who stood above Bram. Somewhere in the chaos, Miles had retrieved the dagger that went flying and was using it now to properly motivate Bram. Bram, who was now awake again.

It was that moment I wondered what this would mean for tensions with Agria.

The fact that we had killed an heir to the second most powerful Agrian bloodline.

But the prick had more than deserved it.

I should think an attack on the queen of Wylan would be enough to get us out of whatever political mess we found ourselves in.

The blood pool expanded beneath him, his head lolled to the side, eyes permanently open.

And when the final ember of life bled from Calix Cyncrest, the rooted cage around us began shifting, moving itself, the long, strong strands unraveling to seek out the dirt beneath us.

As if anything else would have been preposterous to consider.

Miles and I stood there watching them shift and move. When standing witness to a miracle, sometimes the only reaction was to take it in, in all its glory.

The last of the roots finally back sleeping beneath the dirt, an explosion of dirt brought my sword back into view at my feet.

My sword that the former queen’s magic had kept safe for me, refusing to let it fall into Calix’s hands.

“Thank you,” I gritted out from around the pain as I crouched to retrieve my weapon. I patted the dirt at my feet before picking it up in my left hand.

Free of the cage and shadows, I looked around to see a ton of people had arrived, including a castle healer who was tending to my wife.

Immediately I strode for them, for Kessara.

She was apparently still fighting off unconsciousness as she gasped, “Owen?”

I moved to be near her, sitting on the ground, dropping my weapon, and pulling her across my body with my good arm. “I’m here. It’s over. He will never hurt you again.”

As she sobbed into my chest, the healer informed me, “She wouldn’t take this tea until she knew you were okay. She’s been in and out of consciousness.” The healer took a better look at me and said, “Sir, your forearm.”

I suspected I’d need a surgery in addition to time to heal. “I’ll be fine.”

“But the bone, sir, is protruding from your arm.”

Kessara, still droopy, moved to look at me. “You’re going to be okay?”

Though pain was still wracking my body, I was happy to say the words, “I’m going to be a pain in your ass the rest of our lives. We’re going to be okay, so drink the damn tea.”

Someone draped a blanket over us as she did, the fact that I was still without a shirt becoming painfully obvious as I finally felt a chill from around the adrenaline and power easing out of my veins. Only a few sips in, Kessara finally fell asleep in my arms.

And then Wren was there, finding us and throwing her arms around us.

“He has a broken forearm,” the healer said with disdain, shoving her away.

She made a disgusted face at it and moved away from my arm.

And then Molly joined us. Vivian. Sam.

“Not another group hug?” I groaned as the healer began scolding each of them. I didn’t care, though. In fact, I thought I might rather be becoming a fan of the group hug. Not that I was going to tell my team that anytime soon.

“Oh, shut up and take it,” Sam said.

“Wait,” I quickly counted. We were missing a team member. “Where’s Pippa?”

As we all shifted to look for her, we found her stomping toward Bram. Miles had Bram’s hands held in his magic and was trying to explain to Pippa that he was not going free, but she wouldn’t hear it.

Just before she got there, her eyes found mine. She already knew what I would say. To tighten her core and throw her whole body behind it.

So that was what she did as she punched outward, her fist colliding with Bram’s nose beautifully.

“Not again!” he groaned as blood began spurting everywhere.

“Mess with the Slay Sisters and get wrecked,” Sam called.

And though it wasn’t really the time or place for it, I couldn’t help but laugh. “Pippa the Pepper, everyone.”