Page 12 of Heir of Broken Souls (HOBF #3)

Chapter 12

Knox

D elilah!

Her name tears from my heart. I pound my fist against the door of her mind again. My panic spirals out of control, consuming me as the door remains locked, my mate on the other side no doubt doing something that will get her killed.

I ram my shoulder into it this time. Pain ricochets down my body, but it barely buckles.

It’s too late.

I’m pulled back into my body as the energy around us changes—charges to a current so palpable I feel as if I can reach my hand out and grasp it. It makes everyone pause, even the demons.

The demonic creatures’ claws retract as they turn to what they may mistake as the setting sun, but will soon realize is something far more precious.

Blinding golden light erupts from atop Aurora, who pauses her descent to hover midair as Delilah stands atop her. My heart lodges in my throat as Delilah floats, her feet no longer touching Aurora.

Delilah—my beautiful mate—tips her head back, stretches out her arms, and glows . Not like a flame or a candle that can be snuffed out within time. No, this is permanent; I can feel it within the depths of my bones and along our bond.

My heart soars, for once not in agony but in relief, as if it knows something I do not.

For weeks—months—Delilah and I have been working on her magic, on how to keep herself tethered to a part of this world, to keep it from swallowing her whole as it grew day by day. Never in a million years did I think we were fighting against something so beautiful.

I’m witnessing a consumption of power, but I can feel the rightness of it along the bond. It isn’t something to fear. In fact, as the demonic creatures begin to quiver, I believe it’s something to celebrate.

In awe, we gaze upon a fallen star reigniting in the sky.

Delilah’s golden wings unfurl, drawing sharp gasps of breath from the men surrounding me. I snap up a shield of protection around them all in case the demons turn and pounce, and openly gawk at my mate.

As if the universe aligns with Delilah, music swells. An unheard orchestra guiding her body, mind, and soul through a transformation into who she no doubt was always meant to be. The music sings down the bond, lulling my body into a calmness. At its crescendo, Delilah’s body rises higher above Aurora until the griffin can turn and gaze upon her soul pair.

A golden tendril of her power stretches from her palm, circling her body, round and round until there is no part of her left untouched by the magic. Her wings, as golden as they usually are, glow anew, sparkling ever so bright as Delilah becomes one with the full depth of her magic.

It’s as if she stepped into who she truly is. As if the curse that was placed upon her was never fully broken.

This is what her magic has been demanding of her.

The golden rays burn brighter than before, turning molten until they erupt into flames.

Delilah tips her head down, and her eye contact upon us breaks the spell. The melody stops. Time begins again, and the demons remember why they’re here.

Death. Destruction. War.

But they have more to fear than the one they call the golden witch. The door to Delilah’s mind flies open, and standing in the doorway is my golden angel with a promise of vengeance in her gaze.

Delilah begins to fall, plummeting through the sky. Before I can move Aurora is there, catching her, but she doesn’t stay in her saddle for much longer. She jumps from her back into the thick of the raging battle.

Upon seeing Delilah, her wings unfurled, golden flames jumping atop them and her palms encased in golden power, the hounds begin to attack with a frenzy fueled by fear.

I can’t let the shock settle within me that they’re finally petrified of something, not when they come swinging, hissing, and lunging for our jugulars. They slash and claw their way through my protection shield, crumbling it within seconds as the dark magic pounces against my pure one.

Allowing Nolan to take my spot I work my way back through the line of my army, my gaze never leaving Delilah’s.

Fear seizes my heart, making my brain short-circuit. Thoughts for my safety fly out the window as I teleport to her, only to find golden flames exploding in all directions, making the hounds shriek in fear.

Those the golden power touches fall. And for once, they don’t get back up.

We finally have something to kill them with and it just so happens to be the love of my life.

Amidst the demons, she’s a golden princess, making them bow to her command. She runs, her chest heaving as she screams with such ferocity it steals my breath. While the hounds flee howling and my men seem stricken, I stare upon my mate with passionate awe as she unleashes herself upon our enemies.

Swinging from her palms is not a sword made of steel but one of golden power. It strikes those around her, decapitating heads and piercing hearts. But she doesn’t stop, hurrying for something in the distance.

Without any explanation I chase after her, her magic parting for me, fighting off the hounds and Phookas around me. It’s truly as if her magic has become one with her, having a consciousness of its own that sees what she cannot.

Delilah’s hands strike out, wrapping around the necks of demons and launching them into the sea of darkness. She screams with such a mighty roar I have to slap my hands over my ears. “ Axel! ”

The terror in her voice threatens to bring me to my knees.

Especially as she continues, killing any demon in her path until she finally comes to a stop and lets out a keening wail of sorrow.