Reluctant Prince Read Free

broken.
    Recklessly, she made her way across the floor until something solid stopped her short. She sat up and tried to look around, ran her hand over the obstacle, and realized she’d run into the wall on the opposite side of the lobby. But where was the seat she’d left Mia in? She should have already passed it.
    The shaking started again, and she braced herself against the wall.
    The tremors were not another earthquake, but her own body trembling. A fit of coughs wracked her. She had to get out of there. Maybe Mia had already gotten out. Surely, someone would have helped her escape.
    She rubbed her eyes, but they burned too badly to keep them open, anyway. Keeping her left hand against the wall as a guide, she crept forward. If she just followed the wall around, she should come to the front door. It was getting harder to breathe, and when she tried to take a deep breath, she choked. The chaotic noise receded into static. Was she the only person left in the lobby? In the building?
    Another obstruction impeded her escape. She felt around the edge of it. Was it a chair? If it was, it was upside down. Soft cries reached her, and her heart soared. “Mia?”
    “Ry—” Mia sobbed. “—leigh?”
    “Oh, Mia!” Ryleigh crawled under the chair and dragged her sister into her arms. “Why didn’t you get out?” She held Mia at arm’s length and struggled to assess any damage. No use, she couldn’t see anything. “Are you hurt?”
    “I was afraid you wouldn’t be able to find me.” Mia held Ryleigh tight.
    As she clutched her little sister, relief flooded through her. A new round of coughing interrupted the reunion, though, and Ryleigh set Mia back from her. “Come on, we have to get out of here.”
    “Kay.” Mia had her own coughing fit.
    Ryleigh held Mia’s hand as they crawled forward. “Stay right with me, and don’t let go.”
    The smoke opened a clear pathway, but a dark form blocked it. No more than a silhouette, insubstantial, yet it wasn’t an apparition.
    She struggled desperately to suppress a cough and pulled Mia back beneath the chair.
    “Wh—”
    Ryleigh covered Mia’s mouth. “Shh.” The tiniest hint of sound escaped her. She didn’t dare speak, not even a whisper. She barely even breathed as she sank back into the shadows, dragging her sister with her.
    The figure grew as it solidified. Backlit by light spilling from the front of the building, it appeared to be all black. Smoke swirled around it. Him.
    She gripped Mia tighter and tried to beat back the fear, tried to suppress the shudders rushing through her. It didn’t make any sense. He was probably there to help. Yet, when she tried to move forward, her instincts wouldn’t allow it.
    Her gaze met his, just for an instant. His eyes were bottomless black pits that stopped her heart.
    He vanished.
    The inexplicable paralysis finally released her, and she dragged Mia with her as she bolted for the door.
    * * * *
    Jackson clutched the stone wall of his chamber and gasped for air. What had just happened? He had returned to Cymmera, of that he was certain, but how? He hadn’t accessed the gateway. At least he didn’t remember opening it. A vision of her assailed him, beat at him, reminded him that he’d failed.
    Oh, man. He was in trouble. He pushed away from the wall.
    Images of his target taunted him.
    He shoved a chair aside and tore through the pictures scattered across the table in a desperate search for salvation. There. He pulled the shot from the mess but found only condemnation. The long blond hair flowing behind her in the snapshot had not been visible to him, but there was no mistaking the deep blue of her eyes.
    The pounding of a fist against the heavy wood door released him from whatever spell she’d cast.
    “Jackson.” Another loud thud punctuated his name.
    He struggled to get his bearings, tried to slow the racing of his heart. “Yeah, one minute.”
    “Now. Your father wants to see you, immediately.”
    Kai, his