Thrall of the Vampire King (Blood Fire Saga Book 4) by Bella Klaus (elon musk reading list .txt) 📕

cut through me like a scythe, infusing every nerve ending with an agony so intense it stole my breath. This was just like when Valentine died—another person sacrificing themself to save me, and there was absolutely no chance she would ever return.

Flames spread across her body, lighting her up like a funeral pyre. They unfurled across the ritual room’s wooden floors, curling at my feet, my legs, and through my tortured soul. I balled my fists and rocked back and forth, releasing sobs deep from my gut.

Aurora was gone, and we didn’t even get a chance for a relationship. We didn’t even get to say goodbye.

A large hand landed on my shoulder. I glanced up to meet Racon’s eyes, which glistened with unshed tears. He cradled a still unconscious Petra to his chest and stared down at me, his features grave.

“You’ve got to get up.” His deep voice barely penetrated my wall of grief.

I shook my head. “Someone has to stay with her until the end.”

“Miss Griffin,” Hades hissed. “Listen to the oaf and get out before Kresnik finds a way to destroy your plucky friend and moves on to you.”

The reality of the situation rushed back into harsh focus, as did the panicked screams of the other young people who were trying to find a way out of what was now a burning ritual room.

Kresnik had picked himself off the floor and knelt beside Healer Calla’s corpse. The sparks that had attacked his neck now morphed into thick ropes of fire—the same ropes Coral had used against Lazarus when he’d tried to attack me.

I turned back to Aurora, who was now engulfed in flames and barely anything of her original body remained, save for a few glimpses of her denim outfit.

“Your mother’s soul has already departed,” said Hades. “It’s time to leave.”

His words hit me like a lash of fire, making me reel forward. How could he speak so callously about a woman who just got murdered for saving her daughter’s life?

I rocked forward, squeezing my eyes shut and trying to block out my surroundings, but the echoing screams rang through my ears. Hades was right. Everything around us was falling apart, and if I wanted Kresnik to pay for what he did to Aurora and everyone else he hurt, we needed to escape.

With all the strength I could muster, I stumbled to my feet and bent over double, breathing hard and bracing myself with my hands on my knees. Flames covered every surface of the floor, engulfing the fallen candles, and now started to spread up the walls. I could barely hear the snap and crackle of the fire over the shouts and screams of the people trying to escape.

Kresnik also rose from his knees, busting through the ropes of fire with a furious roar that made my hair stand on end.

Coral stood ten feet away from him, baring her teeth like a domestic cat standing up to a lion.

“How are you doing this?” he snarled.

She raised her fists. “Open the doors right now and let everyone out or I’ll do it again.”

“How is she doing this?” Hades asked.

“I don’t think she is,” I muttered back.

Racon placed a hand on my shoulder. “Are you alright?”

I nodded. “What’s going on with Coral?”

He shook his head. “It’s been brewing since we lost our power. You’ve never seen her in a fiery rage. Coral usually says what she means, and when she doesn’t it all comes out in an explosion.”

“Right,” I said, not quite understanding the connection.

There was more to this standoff than her temperament. Even though she’d once been powerful enough to warrant individual attention from Healer Calla and Father Jude, Kresnik stole all her magic. Coral was now turning Kresnik’s attacks against him.

My gaze drifted to where I had left Aurora. There was nothing left of her and the patch of room was now indistinguishable from the flames which now curled at my knees.

Grief weighed on my shoulders like a dozen reaper’s cloaks. It soaked through my skin, into my muscles, making them ache, and seeped into my bones where it transmuted into regret.

I should have made more of an effort to get to know Aurora, should have tried to understand the woman beneath the stern exterior. Not everyone who offered gentle words and kind smiles was good and not everyone who scowled was bad.

My throat thickened, and I swallowed down a lungful of sorrow. Look at Healer Calla who could murder dozens with a syringe and a smile. Aurora had been unpleasant at first but I should have listened to Racon, who had told me she was harsh on the outside and gooey in the middle. Now I would never get to know my mother.

I ran a hand through my hair, glancing at my teammates, who huddled around Racon. Gail wrapped her arms around his middle, with tears streaming down her pale face. Next to her were Clarence and Leman, who stood with their heads bowed.

“Let’s find a way out,” I said to them.

“Finally,” Hades whispered.

I glanced around the room. The door that man had dragged me through was still a solid wall of paneled wood, and that was where the majority of the people huddled. Fire spread toward the ceiling, making me worry that it would consume all the oxygen and leave us all to suffocate.

“Bastard,” a shrill voice cut through the general sounds of panic.

Martika pushed her way through the crowd and stood at Coral’s side, her legs trembling beneath her denim miniskirt, and her hands curled into fists. “Give me back my manticore.”

Kresnik continued glowering at Coral, not sparing Martika a glance. “Speak, girl. How are you countering my attacks?”

Coral raised her chin. “Give everyone back their power and release us first.”

Kresnik bared his teeth and snarled.

Did Coral really know or was that a bluff? I bit down on my lip, my gaze darting around the ritual room for a hatch or a gap in the wood panels—any way out before we ran out of