Page 209 of Rebellious Royals

"Fuck your vows!" And I slung my arm to the side, slicing through those limitations with the gesture.

I didn't care how magic worked. I didn't need to know if this would be safe or not. All that mattered to me was making sure this stupid bitch spilled everything she had, because I'd tried to be the hero. I'd done my best to save the fae, their world, or whatever else I'd hoped would be my job.

But Hawke had called me the strong female character, and I was so fucking sick of being hamstrung by what was right and wrong. Harming one to save dozens? To me that sounded like the right decision, and if anyone had a problem with it - well, I'd deal with that later.

"What." I imagined the words building up inside her. "Do." And I made my shadows wrap around them, securing them. "You." Then I pulled. "Know!"

Camila grabbed at her neck, clawing at it like she was trying to rip out the pain inside, but words flew from her lips. "I want Winter gone. I want to have the chance to be more than this. They said I could do that. They promised that if I could make this happen, I'd have a place in the new regime!"

"Who?" I yelled, pulling harder at the truth she had locked inside her.

Blood began to leak from the edge of her mouth. Her teeth were stained with it too, but I didn't give a shit. I was done pampering these assholes who had already hurt so many.

But when she tried to reply, her mouth simply flopped with no words coming out.

"She's bound by a promise," Torian warned me.

"Fuck that shit," I growled - then yanked harder.

Camila's entire body jerked hard. There was a crack from something I couldn't place, but finally sound came out. "Ms. Hawthorne explained it to me. She said I could be the cure for the Exodus. She explained what I had to do! The nail gun was easy to handle with gloves, and I had a charm to protect against the iron. I just had to hit him hard enough..." She coughed up a glob of blood.

The crowd was shifting and a soft murmur proved whispers were flying fast. I could feel all of them watching, but I couldn't stop now. Yes, this was hurting her, but kindness hadn't worked. Maybe torture would.

"Let her go, Rain," Ms. Rhodes said from right behind me, making me think she'd been there a while.

"Why Bracken?" I demanded, completely ignoring the dean.

"Because he's your father!" Camila screamed at me. "I can't touch you, not with that magic, but I can take him out. You're so fucking weak, it would break you.Break. You!And once you're gone, the rest of us will have a chance. Things will go back to normal, and those who aren't meant to be here could get back!"

"Who told you to do this?" Ms. Rhodes asked.

"Ms. Hawthorne!" Camila whimpered. "That's what I said. She's been talking to me for months now. Ever since those two started calling themselves royalty. She said we could fix this. Wecould prove ourselves to the Queen. All I had to do was get the Morrigan out of the way!"

"No."

I heard the softly-spoken word, and turned to see Poppy gaping at Camila. She was shaking her head from side to side, but that one word didn't sound like disbelief. It was a much bigger denial than that. The kind that sounded like what she feared most was true.

"Where is your mother, Poppy?" Ms. Rhodes asked her.

"I don't know," Poppy said.

So I swept my hand, releasing the Wild magic inside Camila as I looked up. "Find Pearl Hawthorne!"

And like an army, the mass of crows circling over us broke, scattering in all directions. All but one, and when he aimed downward, I lifted my arm to catch Jack, knowing he was coming for me.

"Help us, Jack?"

"Morrigan," he agreed before looking over at Ms. Rhodes. "Enemy?"

"A very dangerous one," Ms. Rhodes said. "And I need - "

"Enemy!" Jack cawed, launching himself back into the air. "General. Morrigan. Court!"

He flew to the side, away from both the main building and the gym. Ms. Rhodes and I rushed to follow, but a scream broke out. Ahead of us, people were moving, almost scattering. It looked like something was happening inside the crowd.

Then two students broke through the packed bodies, gesturing for people to step aside. Behind them came Pascal, Daivon, and Beverly, with the rest of the sentinels following behind them.

"Ms. Rhodes?" Pascal called out. "We got her!"