FIRE NATION

CHAPTER 24

"If that's your choice."

The dagger of flame at Roseanne's neck receded an inch, and Larce stepped forward, forcing her to stumble in front of him as his shield. She tried to wriggle free and rush toward Lalisa, but the Fire Lord's arm was like a bar of iron across her chest, and with death inches away from her throat, she had very few options. Her eyes locked onto her mate's kneeling form, and her chest constricted with fear. Lalisa, no... I can't lose you. Not now. Not after...

"But first, we have to finish our duel." Larce shifted his grip, seizing Roseanne's arm instead and dragging her alongside him. "Look at me, Lalisa," he snarled as he came to a stop before her hunched figure. The white-hot jet of flame in his hand burned even brighter. "Before you die, you must learn respect. Pain and suffering will be your teacher."

Lalisa looked up, her expression steadfast and determined. "I have respect." Their gazes met, and Roseanne gasped when she saw tears shining in Lalisa's eyes. "Just not for you."

Larce's expression twisted, and his teeth flashed. "You will."

He brought his hand down. Lalisa screamed. The smell of charred skin and the hiss of burning flesh cut through the air, but although Roseanne's heart cracked, she didn't look. At last, she had her chance, and she couldn't afford to waste it. With fluidity earned through almost a decade of training, she slipped free of Larce's grasp and twisted around him, jabbing her knuckles into the middle of his back in a swift double-strike.

The Fire Lord's entire body went rigid. He dropped to his knees, letting out a hoarse gasp of what sounded like surprise. His throat throbbed and bulged, and the veins at his temples stood out starkly. Then, at last, he fell to the side, hitting the dirt with a low thud. He remained perfectly still, eyes open, blood leaking from one corner of his mouth.

Roseanne stared at his corpse, but there wasn't time to be shocked by what she had done. Lalisa was still on all fours, naked back heaving with heavy, uneven breaths that ended on a whimper. Her entire body trembled, and her hair hung in a tangled waterfall around her face.

"Lalisa!" Roseanne snapped free of her trance and rushed toward her mate, dropping to her knees and brushing Lalisa's hair back from her sweat-soaked forehead. "Are you al—"

But Lalisa wasn't all right. The left half of her face had been burned raw, a sticky, angry, weeping red. Her left eye was twisted into a permanent snarl, and the right one streamed with tears. When she spoke, her voice was tight and choked. "You're... all right? Our pups?"

Roseanne nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

"Larce..." Lalisa looked beyond her to where the Fire Lord had fallen. "He's... dead?"

Roseanne nodded, but she didn't spare Larce's body even a glance. She cupped Lalisa's unblemished cheek in her hand, running her thumb along its curve. "But you're not. You're not. Spirits, I'm so glad you're alive. I thought I'd lost you..."

Lalisa blinked—or tried to. Another shudder coursed through her, and Roseanne held her until it passed. "I'm sorry," Lalisa said, with a weak, almost bitter laugh. "I suppose... I'm not... the peak of physical perfection... anymore..."

"I don't care ," Roseanne insisted, tears streaming down her own cheeks. "You did it, Lalisa. You survived. You saved me—"

"You did it," Lalisa insisted. "You killed Larce." Her voice had evened out, but from the way she swayed, Roseanne could tell that she was fading quickly. "I suppose the crown is yours now..."

"Stop joking," Roseanne said, her voice breaking on a sob. Although she knew Lalisa was trying to distract her from the horror they had just endured, the implications made her chest clench. She didn't want to think about any possible future without Lalisa in it. "That crown belongs to you. You're the new Fire Lord, and I'm going to be your consort."