The Queen's Conquer

Chapter 31 : To Hurt is to Heal

Coccineous • [cock-sin-ee-is]
Bright red; scarlet.

🖤

~+~

The world around me explodes—whether that's physical or mental, I can't seem to tell with how bright everything has become. But all I can make sense of is Sterling crying out with me. And a fear unlike any other makes my blood run cold.

STOP IT! I scream into the darkness of my conscience, the order not particularly directed at my wolf, but at whatever entity has a grip on my control.

The last bit of my willpower somehow obliterates the invisible force, sending me and Sterling toppling to the ground.

My eyelids flutter with exhaustion as several voices barely shout through the ringing sensation in my ears, my hearing still muffled. Hands are grabbing me, touching everywhere as I regain my senses. I cough, tasting metallic within my mouth, now realizing trickles of water are running from my nose and ears.

No—not water, but a bright red liquid I slowly recognize as my fingers brush against the streams of blood.

The ringing finally settles as I'm sat up, allowing words to become more coherent while the world continues to spin.

"Anastasia," a male voice repeats over and over again, a palm pressing against the side of my face. I look faintly to my right, seeing my mate crouched beside me, his hands the ones responsible for keeping me upright.

"Shit," someone else says, "Shit, shit, shit. Sterling?!"

"Sterling..." I echo the familiar name as I recall what happened only moments ago. "I—Oh my Goddess, what have I done...?"

I'm back on my feet in a heartbeat, scrambling over to where the red-headed female lays half-conscious against the gravel shore. Lilith is already checking her pulse, Killian now standing in the middle of the catastrophe, unsure of what he just witnessed.

By the looks of it, no physical damage was done to the shore except for the big bright light that has now settled within my palms. But if that had been purely physical...Let's just say I doubt the trees standing eighty feet away would've survived such a force.

Samuel calls out once I escape his hold, "Anastasia, stop. You're—"

"Shut up!" I yell back at him, tears streaming down my cheeks. I'm at Sterling's side in seconds, my voice cracking as I say, "Please...Oh Goddess, please..."

My hands tremble as I catch myself from hurting her further, and for a moment, I stare down at my palms, terrified of what I might do to the next thing I touch. My knees dig into the gravel as I lean over Sterling, waiting for Lilith to confirm something. Anything. If I was the one responsible for her...

"You're bleeding," Lilith says, her eyes now scanning over me.

"What the hell was that?" Killian says in awe from behind us.

"Anastasia, go sit down," Lilith orders.

"No. I-I can't...I—" A groan escapes Sterling's lips a second later and I release a sob of relief. "Sterling..." I instinctively reach for her arm, but my hand is slapped away.

"Do not touch her," Lilith growls.

A different set of hands wrap around my forearm to pull me away, but I resist, yanking away from their hold as my head twists around to find Samuel gazing down at me with some sort of sad guilt. I scowl at him as he says, "Anastasia, please," now realizing that he's removed his shirt to wipe away my blood.