Defying Destiny (Afterword Academy #3) - Katie May Page 0,48

appears utterly oblivious, chewing nervously on her nail as she watches her lovers fight.

But the monsters immediately zero in on her like heat-seeking missiles.

She doesn’t seem to notice the spider-like creature crawling towards her, its long legs tapping against the rocky floors. Her eyes are trained on Braxton and a pink-haired monster with razor-blades for hands currently engaged in a fierce standoff.

“No!” I scream just as the spider creature lunges at my beloved, the force of its impact causing her head to careen off the ground. She looks so incredibly weak pinned beneath a monster twice her size, that for a moment, I can’t move. I can’t even breathe. All I can think is…

Not her.

Not again.

“No!” I bellow a second time, pushing myself into the body of the nearest monster. I don’t bother to look and see what form I’m holding, but the shape of it leads me to believe it’s some sort of hybrid-like dog.

My paws thump against the hard ground as I race towards my beloved, my heart juddering like a jack-hammer in my chest. Up ahead, I can see her fighting futilely against the spider, her body too weak to do any serious damage.

The spider monster raises a pincher…

I tackle the monster off of my beloved, chomping down on its neck. The teeth of the monster I’m inhabiting are sharp and serrated, evident when the spider explodes in my mouth, blood and guts decorating the walls and my vessel’s brown, matted fur.

I turn my head to stare down at Hadley, praying to whomever is listening that she’s okay. That she was able to hold on until I could come to her.

But she must’ve exerted more energy than she had. As the fight continues to commence around me, I watch in horror as Hadley’s body lights up a fourth and final time, orange and red flames eating away at her. She releases a pained scream, one that garners every monster’s attention, and I watch helplessly as the remaining essence leaves her body.

And this time, when her screaming ebbs away and her eyes flutter shut, I know they won’t reopen again.

We’ve run out of time.

Chapter 20

Preston

So much blood. Death and blood and monsters. I’m losing it. Fear has taken hold of me, and I’m so terrified. So very scared. But when I tear my gaze away from Braxton, who’s just sliced a rather oozing looking monster in half with his sword, and see what’s left of Hadley, I fucking lose it.

“No!” I cry out, my heart feeling like it’s been ripped right out of my chest. Pure agony fills me, and my vision blurs. I feel woozy, like I might pass out, and I fall to my knees, clutching my chest. “No! We’re so close! Please!”

I don’t know who I’m pleading with… The Fates, the powers that be, every god that every religious group prays to. All of them. Just don’t let her die. She can’t die.

Blinking through the tears streaming down my face, I watch, frozen, as a lumbering monster charges towards me. The borrowed dagger in my hand suddenly feels leaden, and the will to fight is gone. I couldn’t even lift it if I wanted to.

The scream working its way up my lungs lodges in my throat, and I manage to hide my head, waiting for the final blow from the monster, but it never comes.

Peeking through my fingers, I see the creature collapse onto the ground before me. Shrieking, I back away, skittering on my hands and feet as the smoky being I know as Caius exits the monster’s dead body.

Relief fills me, but only for a moment as I remember what scares me more than dying by a monster’s claws—losing Hadley.

“Get it together, Preston,” Caius orders rather calmly. “We can still save her. There’s still time. She’s just burned through all of her borrowed essences, but that doesn’t mean she’s dead.”

“Then why does it feel like she is?” I choke out as Auston rushes over to Hadley and picks up her limp form, eyes intent on the black lines marring her perfect face.

“Let your sadness fuel you, Pres,” Caius pleads. “Her essence lies in my cage, and we’re so close. You can’t give up now.

“We need you, Preston,” Braxton implores.

Auston looks down at me, and for the first time, I don’t see the annoyance in his blue eyes. “Come on, baby bro, pick yourself up and let’s go save our girl.”

“Take a deep breath, Pres,” Karston orders, kneeling next to me. “Deep breath. Breathe