Page 67 of The Purrfect Rival (Enchanted Falls #1)
SIXTY-SEVEN
R ust summoned his remaining strength, drawing on reserves he hadn’t known existed. His lion responded with fierce determination, golden magic surging through his limbs as he launched himself between Boz and Kalyna.
They collided in midair, the impact sending shockwaves across the ritual ground. Rust locked his jaws around Boz’s throat, claws digging into twisted flesh as they crashed to the earth. He felt something tear beneath his fangs, and he tasted blood that burned like acid against his tongue.
Boz thrashed in his grip, dark magic lashing out in desperate defense. Pain seared through Rust’s body as the tainted energy attacked his very essence, trying to twist his lion nature.
Don’t stop! he commanded, maintaining his hold despite the dark energy spreading through his system. Finish it!
Kalyna’s voice rose in the final verses of the purification spell, the fox charm blazing with renewed crimson light. She reached toward their bond, drawing on their connected magic. Rust felt her presence in his mind strengthen, fox energy flowing through their link to combat the dark magic invading his body.
In that moment, with his teeth at Boz’s throat and victory within grasp, Rust’s lion nature surged with primal fury. One clean bite would end the threat forever—revenge for the attack on Kalyna, for the desecration of sacred ground, for every Leonid tradition Boz had twisted. His jaws tightened, the metallic taste of blood fueling his rage.
Rust, wait!
Kalyna’s voice cut through his bloodlust, her presence in his mind a counterpoint to the lion’s fury. He hesitated, teeth still at Boz’s throat.
Look at his eyes!
Beneath the monstrosity Boz had become, traces of his cousin remained. More importantly, Kalyna had sensed the nature of the dark magic itself—not just enhancing Boz’s worst traits, but feeding on them, twisting them, amplifying greed and ambition into madness.
He’s as much victim as villain, her thoughts insisted. The heirloom’s dark magic has been influencing him since he first touched it.
Rust growled, his lion resistant to mercy. He tried to kill you.
And we’re better than that, she replied. End the magic, not the man.
The fox charm pulsed once, twice—then shattered in her hands. Instead of dissipating, its energy coalesced into pure crimson light that shot skyward, connecting with the moon at its zenith. Simultaneously, golden energy erupted from Rust’s body, joining the crimson beam in a spiral of power that illuminated the entire clearing.
Rust released his hold on Boz, stepping back as the combined magic washed over his cousin. Boz screamed—not in rage but in agony as layers of dark influence were stripped away. His monstrous form began to recede, the unnatural bulk diminishing, twisted features reshaping toward their original configuration.
Rust staggered backward as the purifying wave intensified. Red and gold energy swirled through the clearing, neutralizing dark magic wherever it touched. The standing stones returned to their natural state, runes etched in the ground ceased their sickly glow, and the night air cleared of malevolent presence.
In the center of the circle, Boz collapsed to his knees and returned to his natural form—all dark magic burned away by the purifying light. His expression held bewildered horror as he stared at his trembling hands, now free of monstrous claws.
“What have you done to me?” he whispered, voice cracking.
“Freed you,” Kalyna replied, moving to stand beside Rust. “The magic in the heirloom was influencing you from the first moment you touched it.”
Rust studied his cousin’s face, seeing genuine confusion rather than the calculated malice he’d expected.
“It whispered promises...” Boz admitted, his voice hollow, “showed me visions of Leonid glory restored.” He looked up at them, seeing their united front, the claiming marks visible on their throats, the way their magics had merged into something greater. “I thought I was in control.”
“Dark magic always makes you believe that,” Elder Willow said, approaching with slow, measured steps. “It feeds on ambition and amplifies it to destruction.”
“The prophecy,” Boz murmured, gaze moving between Rust and Kalyna. “Red and gold united.”
“It wasn’t meant to be feared,” Kalyna said quietly. “It was meant to heal.”
Around them, the battle had ceased. Boz’s followers surrendered or fled, their leader defeated, their power source neutralized. Hezron approached with Echo and the other allies, all staring in wonder at the transformed ritual site, now bathed in pure moonlight.
Elder Willow knelt beside the shattered remains of the fox charm, gathering fragments with reverent care. “The artifact fulfilled its true purpose,” she announced, her ancient voice carrying surprising strength. “After centuries of division, balance has been restored.”
Rust felt Kalyna sway slightly against him, exhaustion finally claiming its due. He slipped an arm around her waist, supporting her without comment.
“What happens now?” Echo asked, looking between his sister and the lion mayor, centuries of clan separation visibly crumbling in their joint presence.
Rust’s gaze met Kalyna’s, the answer passing between them without words. “We rebuild,” he said simply. “Together.”
He turned to where Hezron waited for instructions regarding Boz. His cousin sat slumped on the ground, the weight of his actions—both those driven by dark magic and those born from his own ambition—visibly heavy on his shoulders.
“Take him to the council chambers,” Rust ordered, his voice firm but without the rage that had driven him earlier. “He’ll stand trial for his actions, but with the understanding that dark magic played its part.”