Chapter Forty Trey
Time Stopped
The Lord of Grimnight’s Throne Room
Trying to Save an Evil Mage
Magic thickened the air to a syrupy consistency that stuck to my skin and in my lungs. The sharp tip of Maximus’ spear—where did he even get that?—hovered a few inches away from me. I snatched the weapon out of his hand and tossed it across the room.
“Treasure,” Wilde’s voice was so weak it couldn’t even be called a whisper.
I crouched in front of him, checking him for injuries. The wound on his shoulder was deep and jagged, but I didn’t think it was the reason behind his bloodless skin.
Tears swam in his black eyes, and he panted, “I … I can’t.”
“It’s alright,” I whispered, wrapping my arms around him. “Let it go.”
When time restarted, it was like coming up for air after drowning. I sucked in great, greedy breaths as I held Wilde. I couldn’t tell which of us was trembling harder.
“Trey!” Maximus cried, hand reaching for me. “Get away from him! You don’t know who he is.”
“I know better than you do,” I snapped.
The minions had finally broken away from the crowd. Three tackled Maximus, pinning him to the ground. He struggled against them, bucking and throwing punches, but their numbers overpowered him.
“Someone free Delilah,” I ordered. No one moved, so I said, “The cat.” Still, they didn’t move until Wilde nodded permission.
She started meowing before they’d even let her out of the cage. The moment she could speak again, her words came clear and angry, “Wilde, this wasn’t the plan!”
“New … plan,” he panted. His eyes drifted shut.
I shook him slightly, needing him to be awake and aware for this conversation. “What was your plan, Wilde?”
He blinked his eyes open and silently stared up at me.
“I need to know your plan if I’m going to thwart it, right? Explain it to me.”
“Bring you all here,” he murmured. “Reveal who I am, that I’d betrayed you.”
I thought of the orcs specifically using his name, right before someone delivered me a secret message.
“Fight in the throne room.”
I held him tighter. “That was a fucked-up plan, but it wasn’t evil. Tell me why you restarted time, the first time. What was your plan?”