Despite everything that had happened, I had fallen in love with Caiman. His thoughtfulness. His quiet strength. His brazen teasing. His smiles. His taste. His touch.
“I forgive you,” I said, driving my magic toward the barrier with every ounce of strength I possessed. “Please, come back. Please.I forgive you.”
Let me save him.
I felt the barrier bend.
I‘ll never ask for anything else.
Then crack.
Please. Please . . .
The barrier between us shattered, pulling me into an endless void, taking and taking until I had nothing left, and still I forced the energy from my body to his. I gave until my breaths sawed in and out and the world around me grew dark.
I would’ve chosen you,I shouted into the void, praying he could hear me.If I’d known the truth, I would’ve chosen you.
In the distance, a man’s voice called my name. My eyes flashed open, my heart fit to burst when I felt a warm hand clasp mine and I found . . .
My hand in Broderick’s.
Caiman remained still at my side.
“It didn’t work . . .” It should’ve worked. I’d given him everything I had—everything I was—and it hadn’t been enough.
“Take it,” Broderick insisted, squeezing my hand tighter.
I felt it then, the buzz of magic in his palm.
“Quickly,” he urged.
I quieted the questions swirling in my mind, screwed my eyes closed, and syphoned Broderick’s magic. There were footsteps in the distance. Another rush of power coursed through my body. And another. And another. I directed every last drop toward the man I loved.
When I opened my eyes again, I found two more soldiers and two counsellors kneeling behind Broderick, grasping one another’s hands. I recognized their faces, but their features appeared sharper. And their ears were all pointed.
Broderick let go, falling forward with a gasp.
A pair of onyx eyes blinked up at me.
It worked! I crushed my body to Caiman’s, beginning to tremble. “You’re alive.” Caiman was alive and the color had returned to his cheeks and . . . “I thought you were dead.”
“I soon will be if you don’t loosen your grip,” he wheezed.
I reluctantly let him go to check the pulse at his throat, thrumming steady and strong.
It worked.
Then I searched for the heat of magic that had always lived within me only to find myself utterly depleted. Not so much as a spark remained and I knew in my heart it would never return. My magic—my immortality—in exchange for his life.
A small price to pay for another chance.
Caiman’s gaze darted to Broderick. “What’s wrong with your . . . ?” His eyes widened. “Good heavens, man. Your ears.”
A smile played on Broderick’s lips. “A glamour, your highness.”
“You’refae?” Caiman scanned the rest of the men kneeling at his side. “Allof you?”
Broderick nodded. “I hope you can forgive the deception. We wanted to be sure of the alliance before we revealed ourselves.”