Ashes of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #2) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,103

Several hours later, we reached the top of the plateau, and I could see the castle. My feet ached, and my legs burned from the hike.

Once we reached the castle gates, Knox pushed me to my knees, turning to issue orders to the men surrounding us. My ears perked, and I tilted my head toward the castle, hearing voices behind its walls.

“Knox,” I called, but he ignored me. My heart leaped into my throat, pounding harder as horror entered my mind. “Knox, answer me!” I screamed in a dead panicked tone, echoing as he turned, flashing irritation at me. “Are there people in the castle?” He narrowed his eyes, smiling, before noting the horror on my face, and his gaze slid over my head. “Undo me now!”

“No,” he growled, focusing on the castle where I could hear his men inside.

“Undo me, or your men will die! It’s all going to come down. It was part of the spell we crafted. Dammit, undo me!” I demanded, and he grabbed the cuffs that bound my magic to remove them. I lifted my unbound hands at the same time the castle groaned and started to crumble.

Magic rushed through me, and I watched in horror, realizing it wasn’t going to be enough to stop the castle from falling onto the men inside. I turned toward Knox’s witches, who stood absently talking to one another, staring at the castle.

“Help me!” I cried. Their eyes slid to Knox, asking permission, and he growled, swearing loudly at them.

Their hands grabbed mine, and I began chanting. Magic was the only thing holding the castle up as men flooded out the front gate. Knox’s hands touched my side. I sagged, holding me up while pushing power into my body. He took a step back, watching as more and more of his men escaped from the castle that continued collapsing, even as I fought to hold it up.

Lore exited the gate, looking worried. Seeing the fear on my face and hearing my chant, he turned back toward the castle, screaming for those still inside to exit quickly. Magic was leaking from my pores. Sweat beaded on my brow as men rushed from the stronghold carrying chests and other items. Lore remained by the large, wooden gates, and then exhaled, nodding to me as the last man ran free of the destruction.

I dropped the hold on the witch’s magic, staring at Lore as Asil’s stronghold collapsed completely, crumbling to the ground.

Everything went still around me, and I dropped to the earth, screaming in pain. It had taken every drop of magic I had to prevent Knox’s men from being crushed to death.

Knox kneeled beside me, touching my face as he stared at me. “What the hell is wrong with her?”

I couldn’t even blink, and yet I felt nothing but pure pain ripping through me. I screamed, calling for help, but no one replied. They continued talking as if they couldn’t hear my screams. I sobbed inwardly, stuck inside my head, realizing no one could hear me crying for help.

“My guess?” one woman said as she leaned over, smiling down at me. “She just used up all of her magic and is stuck inside her head because she’s drained herself to the brink of death.”

“Can she live like that without being in pain?” Knox asked, and she nodded, still smiling at me as her eyes turned cruel.

Lying bitch.

I was being ripped apart from the inside out.

My eyes stared sightlessly at the sky as my wails continued to go unheard. I was dying a witch’s worst nightmare, trapped in a shell without the magic to escape.

It was the one thing you didn’t do as a witch, no matter what happened. You never drained your last amount of magic because to do so was a fate worse than death. I’d thought it was a myth, and now here I was stuck inside my mind.

“No. You’re wrong. She is in hell right now,” another witch admitted, causing the other to snort. “She is in the worst pain you can imagine, and without help, she will stay that way until death finally claims her.”

“Goddess be damned, you’re such a stupid bitch, Siobhan. She is our enemy. Aria Hecate is an enemy to our King!”

“No, Bekkah, she isn’t. If you leave her like that, My King, she will die. She is stuck in her mind, slowly being ripped apart because she used every ounce of magic she had to save your men from dying. Allow me to