Between Tides Thunder(85)

—I attack.





CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR




IDRINK IN THE SHOCK on Zev’s face like zinfadelan.

It had been a risky move—purposefully slitting my own wrist, then pretending I couldn’t heal myself. My reserves were low, but even the weakest healer could’ve still sealed a flesh wound, deep as it were. It was a foolish, reckless gamble, betting that he wouldn’t let me bleed out in his arms.

But one that paid off.

His borrowed power surges through my veins. I’ve never felt such strength, such awareness. My body senses every drop of water in the vicinity—every tiny molecule. In the ground, coating the leaves, in the air.

The wave that hits him isn’t planned—it’s instinct.

With a twist of my hand, I send another one crashing into his chest. He flies backward, head knocking against the ground. I don’t stop. My arms glide through the air. The water responds. Zev struggles to his feet, but another massive wave waits for him. They crash into him again and again.

The sky tears open, and it begins to rain.

I freeze.

Waiting. Listening.

Except there’s no thunder. No lightning.

He must be too weak—how much of his power did he give me? I study him, chest rising and falling in ragged bursts, sweat beading on his brow. He looks half-drained, like he poured everything into me without hesitation.

My heart lurches. Why would he do that? I betrayed him. I revealed myself as his enemy. Why would— I don’t have time to dwell on it. A slow, molten heat is already unfurling in my belly, hot and insistent. My skin tingles. My breath saws through my lungs. Tides damn me—I don’t have much time before the aphrodisiac effects overwhelm me.

I hadn’t thought my plan through. Not all the way. Not to this part.

I need to move. Now. Before this burning want drowns out everything else.

I close my fist. Raindrops merge into a sloshing ball. It floats over to where Zev has risen again, submerging his head. With my other hand, I guide thick streams of water over his legs, then freeze them up to his hips. Another wave. Another layer of ice, frozen solid.

Bubbles escape from his mouth, rising to the surface of the watery orb.

I’d expected him to claw at his face, to try to escape. But even through the fog of the water, his gaze is fixed on me.

But his eyes aren’t blazing with hatred.

His fingers slow. He doesn’t move.

A shrill ringing blares in my ears.

Tides, why do his eyes look so damned soft? He looks resigned. Almost … peaceful.

Bile rises in my throat.

Something sharp clamps my heart in a vise.

His eyes begin to bulge.

By the Tides, he’s not even trying to fight for his life.

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

The water drops with a splash.

Zev sputters, coughing violently, water spilling from his lips as he sucks in deep lungfuls of air.

I should kill him. End this.

But I can’t.

My hands fall uselessly to my sides.

I just stand there, staring at him, each shallow breath punishing my lungs.

He blinks in confusion, as if he can’t believe the water is gone. And then his steel-gray eyes finally blaze with the cold, unyielding fury I’d been waiting for.

“Run, Mayah,” he snarls, voice ragged. “Run.”





CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE




BRANCHES CUT INTO THE soft flesh of my arms as I bolt through the forest, the ground slick and slippery beneath my feet. My heart beats in my ears. I chance a look backwards, certain I’ll find Zev thundering behind me, face contorted with wrath.

I should have killed him.

Now he’s going to kill me. He’s going to— Focus. Focus, Mayah. I only have limited time before the aphrodisiac takes effect. Before I turn and run toward Zev, instead of away from him. I need to put as much distance between us as possible, then figure out some way to restrain myself before he catches— Thunder rumbles so violently, the ground quakes beneath my boots. The air prickles, heavy with his storm.

Shit.

My husband is free. And he’s coming after me.

I force my feet to move faster, darting through the trees. Rain drizzles steadily, icy droplets chilling my skin where my tunic is torn in half. A sharp ache splinters my lungs, a searing pain in one calf. I veer right, breath stuttering as lightning rips through the sky.

Desire lights a fire in my core.

Shit, shit, shit. My blood thrums in my veins. Desperate. Eager.

I need to run faster.

In the silence between rumbling thunderclaps, angry footsteps slam behind me, growing louder with each second.

He’s going to catch me.

My footsteps slow, just by a fraction. The warmth in my chest simmers in a low, burning heat. My body wants to stop, wants to turn back, but my mind screams at me to keep going.

The footsteps pound louder, in time with the beat of my frantic heart. I crane my neck again, expecting to see Zev bearing down on me, a mask of fury etched on his face.

He’s not there.

But he’s close.

I turn back and—

—promptly collide with an armored chest. Large hands grip my upper arms, bracing me from the impact. I recoil, head spinning, heat curling through my veins. My thoughts fray at the edges, pulled tight by panic and heat.