Page 30 of Deadly Little Games

I tried to go to Mistral, but Gabriel held me back.

“You have to let me help him.”

He gripped my arm, trying to shove me behind him. “It’s too dangerous.”

“It’s too dangerous not to.” I tried to tug away from him. I didn’t have enough magical knowledge to know exactly what was happening, but I sensed Mistral at our feet. He was fading. And that was all I needed to know.

“Someone has to help him.” I tried tugging away again. “If you won’t let me, then you need to do it.”

He turned his gaze down to me, and it was filled with pain. He understood what was happening, probably better than I did, and I understood in that moment that he couldn’t help. He didn’t have whatever Sebastian had given to Mistral in their bargain.

I met that pain-filled gaze solidly. “Let me go, Gabriel.”

His hand released me reflexively.

I met his eyes for a moment longer, feeling sympathy for the indecision I saw there. But there was no time to offer him any comfort. I dropped to my knees beside Mistral, hovering one hand over him, afraid to actually touch him.

When he didn’t even seem to notice my presence, I laid my hand on his shoulder. Still, nothing happened. I could feel his tenuous control as he tried to hold the vines back.

I wanted to help, but now that I was here, I had no idea what to do.

I lifted my hand to move his hair out of the way, placing my bare palm against his neck. His skin was cold. I could barely feel his pulse.

Sebastian claimed I had given Mistral new magic, but I felt no hint of it now. The vines didn’t move. Nothing moved. Even the onlookers had fallen silent.

“Tell me how to help you,” I muttered, keeping my hand pressed against his neck, willing some of that warm magic to flare between us.

He inhaled sharply, startling me, then he lifted one hand to push my palm more firmly against his neck. A tiny spark of my magic came to life within me.

I sank to the ground beside him and he finally met my eyes. He didn’t speak, but the look was enough. Whatever he was trying to do, it was too much. He couldn’t control the land. He couldn’t keep the goblin realm as it was on his own.

A faint glow began to emanate from my skin where it touched him. A prickle of magic. “What do you need me to do?”

“Just, trust me.” His words were so weak I barely heard them.

Panic spiked through me.Trust me. They weren’t words I usually responded well to. The only person I could really trust was Braxton.

He slumped a little further to the ground.

Waves of panic crashed through my body, but I took a deep breath to quiet them. He had never offered me actual harm, and he had comforted me when I needed it. I hadn’t known him long, but he had already proven that he could be there for me in ways that few others could.

“I trust you,” I breathed, even though it felt like a strange sort of sacrifice to do so.

He gripped my palm tightly against him for a moment, then used my hand to pull me toward him, surprisingly fiercely. I ended up on the ground beneath him as he laid himself over me.

I looked up at him wide-eyed, my breath catching in my throat, then he kissed me, and the magic spiked between us.

As soon as our lips met, I understood what he was doing. We had raised a lot of magic between us before. Maybe enough magic to control the land.

I relaxed into the kiss, my body reacting to the feel of him on top of me, then I remembered the goblin onlookers and stiffened.

I broke the kiss, turning my head toward the onlookers, but all I could see was Gabriel standing with his back to us a few paces away.

“No one will come near,” Mistral said into my ear. He lifted himself to look down at me, though his arms were trembling.

“I know.” I spoke past the lump in my throat.

“If you are not able to do this, then speak the truth.”