Chapter 23
AMRI
M alik’s brothers and their mates are right behind me, none of us willing to let Malik do this alone.
Circe stays behind, but I don’t have the time or mental space to be angry at her, because what greets me on the other side of the portal …
It’s too horrible to be real. This kind of evil can’t actually exist.
The white and gold opulence of Leonora’s throne room is too bright. Leo shifters, hundreds of them, kneel before their goddess who stands on the dais, clothed in her customary white, her black hair pulled back in a severe ponytail. And at her side, swaying on his knees, is Askari.
I swallow the bile that threatens to shoot up my throat at the stench of burnt flesh.
Both of Askari’s eyes are swollen shut. One arm looks broken, and blood coats the fur of his half-shifted form, leaking from several deep gashes.
But the worst is his charred flesh. The entire left side of his body is black, skin peeling and blistered, fur singed or completely burned off.
He’s still smoking. The only reason he’s kneeling upright is due to Leonora’s tight grip on the back of his neck.
She smiles at Malik as he strides down the center aisle, flanked by his fellow Leos, but none of them even glance up.
From the way he has his head tilted and his ears and tail flick with quick movements, I don’t think Malik’s vision has returned.
At least he’s stopped glowing. I’m sure he can sense and smell what Leonora has done to Askari, but I’m a little relieved he can’t see it.
Malik’s rage is so complete, he doesn’t make a sound as he approaches the dais. No growls or barks of anger. Just a silent predator stalking his prey. It’s terrifyingly beautiful.
Leonora’s gaze travels over Malik, then flicks to Bodi and Rian before landing back on Malik. Her eyes widen, and her smile waivers slightly before she paints it back on her gorgeous face. “So, the cat is out of the bag.”
Malik doesn’t respond, but this is it. The gloves are off. This is going to get messy.
I feel and hear Malik’s brothers and their mates behind me, and while Rian is a quiet presence of strength, Bodi lets loose a roar that shakes the marble floor. “You lying, murdering, thieving bitch!”
Still, none of the Leos look up from their kneeling, bowed position.
Malik hasn’t broken his stride, and he’s only a few steps away from the dais now.
A flicker of something close to panic flashes through Leonora’s eyes, and I wish Malik could have seen it.
But then she squeezes Askari’s neck, and he glows faintly.
And then the golden glow of his magic slowly leeches from his body and travels up Leonora’s arm and into her chest.
Askari screams, arching his back, limbs taught with agony.
Malik stops dead in his tracks, his lips pulling back in a silent snarl.
Leonora continues to pull the magic out of Askari, and his screams turn to panting grunts as she says, “Think about your next move, Malik, because I’ll do it.
I’ll drain your precious beta. I’ll consume every last drop of his magic.
I’ll feast on his beast until he’s nothing but a broken human. And it will be all your fault.”
Malik remains stock-still, but the energy pulsing off him vibrates with barely leashed rage.
Leonora dips her head at the floor in front of Malik. “Kneel, and I’ll let him live.”
Malik leans to his left. He’s going to do it. He’s going to kneel. Of course he is, self-sacrificing, honorable, loyal, stupid, infuriating male!
My beast shouts in my head, “Fuck this, and fuck her!”
My shift rolls through me, and I drop to all fours already in a dead sprint, leaving my pile of clothes behind.
The clack of my claws on the marble seems overly loud in the giant throne room as I run down the aisle, blurring past Malik, and leap over the three steps of the dais.
I close my jaws around her arm that’s holding Askari, and her wide eyes look down at me.
Leonora certainly wasn’t expecting me. Yeah, surprise, bitch!
I clench harder, and my teeth hit bone. She grunts, and her grip on Askari slips.
The beta sinks to the floor, falls to his side, and doesn’t move.
In a flash, blue witch magic wraps around Askari. From the corner of my eye, I see his body lift within the azure light, and then he’s pulled down the aisle to Kat and Sadie’s waiting arms where they start healing him with Alexandros standing over them, standing guard.
But what Leonora did to Askari is unforgivable, and I can’t get the image of his ruined body out of my mind.
It sends my already boiling rage to another level.
I can’t hear past the rushing of my blood in my ears as I sink my claws into Leonora’s flesh on either side of my bite.
A blast of her power hits me, but I ignore the pain, which is easy to do with all the adrenaline coursing through me right now.
She is a goddess, but I am a wolverine, and we possess one of the strongest bites in the animal kingdom.
I use the Zodiac mind-speak for all the shifters in the room to hear as I shout at Leonora. “You don’t deserve this hand if that’s what you’re going to do with it!”
And with that, I snap my jaws shut with as much force as I can muster.
I drop to the dais with Leonora’s hand, wrist, and part of her forearm in my mouth.
I spit it out and spin to face the angry goddess.
She raises her other hand, and throws a magical blast at me, but I dodge it as she growls, “Who the fuck are you?”
I don’t bother to answer as I crouch, ready to spring, prepared to tear her apart faster than she can heal—and I’ll have to be pretty fucking fast because her severed hand is already growing back.
“She’s my mate.” Malik’s possessive voice halts my attack, and I turn my head to look at him.
He’s still standing at the foot of the dais, but the predatory stillness is gone.
His tail flicks behind him, and his panther ears angle towards me.
His sightless eyes aim in my direction, and he holds out a hand as if Leonora isn’t a huge looming threat.
But a sense of calm sweeps through me, and I go to my alpha.
As I hop down the steps, I shift to human so I can take Malik’s hand once I reach him.
I feel Leonora’s power gathering, and then the gold light of her magic lights up the room behind me.
But Malik keeps his blind eyes on me, arm still reaching, so I put my trust in my mate and continue forward.
Sadie gasps from the back of the room where she and Kat are still working on Askari, and a second later, Leonora’s magic explodes behind me, but I remain untouched as Malik’s stunning power wraps around me.
He growls at Leonora, and as I take his hand, he doesn’t shove me behind him or demand that I run and leave him; instead, he pulls me to his side.
I stand tall next to my mate, tilting my chin up to glare at Leonora.
Her gaze catches on my tattoo, and she barks a laugh.
“An enforcer? Oh, Malik, what have you done? By bringing this little creature here, you have opened the door for war. The Council can’t intervene in clan matters, you know this.
But after what she just did to me, I have grounds to bring the Council to heel, and your little pet will be executed. ”
I scoff at the goddess, nodding at her reformed hand. “You look fine to me. I don’t know what you’re talking about?”
Leonora raises a brow. “All my Leos saw what you did, Enforcer.”
I meet her smirk for smirk as I glance around the room. “All your Leos are staring at the floor, Leonora. What exactly did they see besides the polished marble beneath their knees?”
Her haughty expression slips into one of anger.
Leonora raises both arms, and an electric bolt of magic spears right towards my face, but once again, Malik’s power keeps her from touching me.
I spare a glance at Malik as he starts to glow again, his brown skin radiating power … the power of the sun.
Leonora’s voice rises with a hint of uncertainty. “You think a little boost of magic is enough to stop me? Helios may have been your sire, but you are only half-god, pet. And I am still your goddess!”
That statement draws more than a few gasps from the kneeling Leos around the room, and few heads dare to lift to look at Malik and his brothers.
Leonora takes a single step down the dais, and throws a blast of magic at Malik, but before it even gets close, a flash of gold fires from behind us and slams into Leonora’s power. Bodi comes up to Malik’s other side and places a hand to the center of his back and says, “I’m with you, brother.”
Leonora takes another step down, throwing spell after spell at us. “I gave you everything!”
Rian comes up, and while letting go of Malik is the absolute last thing I want to do, I slip my hand from his because the brothers need each other.
They need to do this together. Malik angles his head towards me, his sightless eyes asking me to stay, but I pat his arm and whisper, “I’m never far away, mate. ”
Rian nods at me as he takes my place at Malik’s side and grabs his hand. Seeing the three of them standing tall, brave, and united stirs all sorts of emotions inside me, most of all pride. But then I remember … Askari.
As I glance over my shoulder, my eyes widen with disbelief because two Leos now kneel around Askari, pushing as much healing magic into the beta as he can take. Sadie, Kat, and Alexandros are now at my side, flanking the brothers, our family standing tall, together.
Unfortunately, Leonora sees all this too. An ugly sneer pulls at her lips. One second she’s in front of us, throwing magic, and the next second … I blink, and she’s gone. The Leos behind us gasp, and I spin to see Leonora hovering over Askari.
Without his sight, Malik is slow to catch on to what happened. Bodi, Rian, Sadie, Alexandros, and Kat all shout and weave quick signs, but I don’t bother. I run. My bare feet grip the honed marble as I sprint towards Askari.
Too slow. I need to move faster!
With a flick of her fingers, Leonora sends the two Leos who were helping Askari flying across the room.
One slams into the wall, and plaster cracks as they fall to the floor, unconscious.
The other is snatched out of the air by their fellow Leos and lowered gently to their feet.
Surprisingly, several shifters form up ranks around the downed Leos, shielding them from Leonora’s anger.
But now Askari is alone and exposed, his breaths still labored even with all the healing he just received. Leonora holds out her hand, and a curved dagger appears in her palm.
I force myself to move faster.
Leonora doesn’t say anything, there’s no quip on her tongue, there’s no villainous monologue. She raises the blade, and with a move so lightning-fast the steel blurs, Leonora plunges the dagger at Askari’s heart.
I shout, “No!”
I feel Malik’s magic a second before he appears in the space between Leonora and Askari, and my soul screams as the blade sinks into Malik’s chest.