Page 143 of To Kill a King

Valek.

Malkov’s face appeared over hers. He was yelling something.

She pursed her lips. Go away until I’ve figured out how to fix my magic. She squinted, focusing on his mouth. The room spun, so she closed her eyes.

Malkov’s voice faded in and out. “... idea what you’ve done? I spent years hunting down all that power. You’ll pay for this, you and all your elf friends!”

If he came a little closer, she would be able to reach some twinkling lights on the other side of his robes.

She smiled and reached out.

Malkov bared his teeth as his eyes bulged. His hand formed a fist and yanked.

Aliya’s chest exploded as he tore her light further away. Someone was screaming again.

Shut up. She hurt bad enough without her ears being assaulted, too.

The pain cut off, and she slumped back down.

Her magic now hovered several paces away, tied to her core by one remaining filament.

“... should leave you like this. Between life and death, with no idea what’s going on around you,” Malkov said, panting hard. “Unfortunately, I need your power to fix this. We’ll just have to make do with fewer Whisperers.”

Whatever he said didn’t matter. She was dying, anyway.

She reached for another fistful of his robes, and the lights sparkling there. But her hand flopped to the side, missing her goal.

So much effort. It was nice to just lay here, now that the pain had stopped. The world still spun, like she was floating among waves in the ocean. She liked this—it was very relaxing.

Something loud banged above her head. She heaved an exaggerated sigh and clenched her jaw. Be quiet!

She closed her eyes and frowned. Why couldn’t people be silent and let her die in peace?

Chapter 30

Elessan

Elessan wrinkled his nose as the human guard led him down the steps into the dungeon. The stench of unwashed bodies, rot and sewage washed over them. They passed one landing with an empty guard room on his right, complete with a table and scattered playing cards.

His guide reached the bottom and froze.

Frowning, Elessan pointed his sword at the man’s back. “Why are we stopping?”

Footsteps sounded from the hall to the right. A heartbeat later, a man with a ruby-red gemstone fused to his forehead stepped into the light.

Brooks.

Elessan squeezed his sword until his knuckles popped. The two of them were due for a rematch, certainly, but of all the times and places…

Not now, when Aliya’s life was on the line.

The Arcane Inquisitor’s eyebrows drew together. “Didn’t I kill you once already, elf?” When Elessan didn’t respond, he shrugged. “It doesn’t matter, you all look the same to me.” He drew a short sword and brandished it.

The human guard lunged out of the way.

Elessan leaped forward, tapping his blade against Brooks’.

The inquisitor flicked the tip of his weapon down, bringing it in a tight circle around Elessan’s sword and up toward his throat.