Page 20 of The Endless One

The field ahead of her was wide open, but she had a few tricks up her sleeve. Forty steps. Forty massive running steps and she felt the shackles on her magic finally loosen.

Beating away panic, she heaved the words out of her lips. “Grow. Grow tall. Grow strong. Tear it from my blood and grow.”

No trees had grown here for years, so she didn’t have that advantage, but there were seeds of bushes. And those would grow tall enough to hide her, so they stretched with the magic that dripped from her fingers. Every drop of blood that spread around her created massive behemoths of greenery with thorns that were as long and as wide as her thumb.

They created enough of a barrier, just as she heard Ajax’s scream of rage.

“More,” she hissed as she darted into the midst of them. “Thicker.”

She had to hide from him. He would find her, but Elric said she just needed to create space. So she would create space.

The grass sliced deeper into her legs until it felt like she was running through brambles. But they were exacting their price to grow faster, to make everything happen the way it had to happen. More bushes, more hiding spots.

She staggered, falling onto her hands and knees. The greenery there twined around her arms and wrists, slicing through her skin as though they were blades. But that was good. The pain gave her more focus, and she spread her fingers into the dirt and whispered, “Hide me.”

The ground rolled like a wave beneath her hands. It continued toward the God King, rolling underneath his feet until Ajax staggered. She could just barely see him through the bushes. A tall man with confidence radiating through his body as he set everything she had encouraged to grow on fire.

“Run, Jessamine,” she whispered, crawling on her hands and knees through the dirt. “Run, so he can’t find you.”

Because if he did, she knew that would be her end. He didn’t care about her well-being or health or any of the things that he swore he did. This god was going to kill her. She needed to find the one who would save her.

Her palms ached as they scraped against stones while she fled. But she ran. She ran with every ounce of rage and fear that every woman before her had felt. She could feel their hearts pounding in her chest, and the worries they’d had.

Maybe running wasn’t the right thing to do after all. They weren’t strong enough. They’d be caught and then things would be even worse than they were before.

But then her heart thudded again, and she felt their bravery as well. The knowledge that they were done living the way they had lived before.

Because, like her, living that way was worse than death. They had to at least try to escape, and if they failed, then they failed in glory.

“Jessamine Harmsworth! The longer you run, the longer your torture lasts!” Ajax screamed as he beat through the bushes.

Let him scream. Let him rage at the world because a woman had bested him.

Heaving in one massive spasm, she shoved herself up onto her haunches and then stood. Her spine cracked as she did so, her entire body on fire with pain. There was something else growing in her head. Gasping, she shoved it out of her body and left it there with him in the brambles. Because the moment the last piece of her ripped free from the bushes, she knew she had been found.

“Elric,” she whimpered, staggering forward blindly. Because he would come.

He always came for her.

He ran like he’d never run before. Elric had ripped through the very fabric of the world to get to her. The spell he’d cast had cut off three of his fingers, and it had drained all four witches near him entirely. He’d give them magic back soon enough, but he knew where she was. He paid the price, and he tore the magic from them before they could even give him permission.

She was within reach. He could get her.

The tear in the world allowed him to teleport himself close to her. Close enough that he swore he could still hear Ajax’s spell thundering through the clearing. In the distance, he could see there was plenty of magic spewing into the land. Both from Ajax’s spell and from her own magic.

He’d know the feel of her anywhere. Jessamine’s particular flavor of magic was one he’d never forget. It smelled like ash and vengeance, and he knew, without a doubt, that he was going to reach her.

This time, he would beat his brother. He wouldn’t let the one who called himself God King beat him.

Arms and legs pumping, he ran through the clearing like lightning flashing from a cloud. And then he could see her. She staggered toward him, looking like one of the infected from her kingdom. She could barely stand up straight, but she was still fighting to reach him. Just like he’d asked, she had run, and she’d done so with every ounce of bravery she held.

He sprinted toward her and caught her up in his arms. She trembled in his grasp, some of her shaking transferring into his own body as he folded her against his heart. Both of her palms pressed against his chest like she was frantically trying to find his heartbeat. Only when she found the steady thump did he hear her take yet another ragged breath.

“Elric,” she wheezed. “It’s you.”

“My love.” He held her a little tighter, ignoring her wince as he whipped them both around. “This is going to hurt.”

She didn’t reply as he swung her up into his arms and bolted in the other direction. The tight grip he had on her shoulders and legs were likely hurting her with all the wounds she had dotted over her body, but they had to move. If he was going to make this work, then he needed to get her out of here. Now.