Free Seducing Destiny (Brothers of Fate Book 2) by Allyson Lindt Page A

door in time to see her drop to her knees, red splattered around her.
    Morrigan spun with a smirk. “You took yo—” Her taunt ended in a gurgle when Blake pinned her to wall by the throat. He summoned his power from within and forced it out. His gift was unique among gods. No one else but Marley had the ability to stop another immortal from accessing their power, and unlike in the past, he had enough warning and experience to keep Morrigan incapacitated. As long as he held her in place, she couldn’t do anything.
    The problem was, neither could he. She wasn’t mortal like this, just powerless.
    “You’re here.” Morrigan’s voice held too much glee.
    Blake wanted to check on Luci. To see if she was all right and to figure out how to stop the bleeding. But if he let his attention shift for even a moment, he and Luci were both fucked.
    “Stalemate,” Morrigan said, her tone taunting. “What are you going to do now?”

Chapter Thirteen
    Blake lifted Morrigan off the ground by the throat, hoping to find enough leverage to cut off her air and stop her babbling. She didn’t need oxygen to survive, but she did need it to talk. He couldn’t squeeze her windpipe tighter, though. Her energy pushed against his. Mentally, he shoved back. He was vaguely aware of Luci climbing to her feet, but he didn’t dare give her more than the barest recognition.
    He summoned more from within, pushing harder against Morrigan. This wouldn’t happen again. He wouldn’t let it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Luci stumble toward the bed.
    A surge slammed into him and threw him back from Morrigan. The goddess dropped softly to her toes, grin sliding back onto her face. The expression vanished when Luci brought a framed print down on her head. Glass shattered, dropping in shards around Morrigan. She snarled, whirled toward Luci, and flung her into a far wall. Luci landed with a loud slap. A crack rent the air, and she screamed as her arm snapped to an unnatural angle. The cuts on Morrigan’s scalp were already healing.
    Blake reached inside and grabbed everything he had. He pushed it all toward Morrigan in a single burst, building a bubble of helplessness around her. He dragged up the last bits of what he had and then scraped further for more. He poured every bit of power he’d ever known into keeping Morrigan from accessing her own.
    Her smugness vanished, and she dropped to her knees. The cuts in her head re-opened, and blood flowed freely. Still he pushed harder. He wouldn’t let Luci die. He refused to. Pain seared his veins, burning through his muscles, ravaging his joints, and he forced out more energy.
    The edges of his vision blurred and then grew black. Spots danced in front of his eyes. He was vaguely aware of someone screaming. His name maybe. He wasn’t sure. Morrigan collapsed on the floor, and the persistent glow of her aura vanished.
    Blake’s world went dark.
     
    *
     
    Luci cradled her arm to her side and bit the inside of her cheek to keep from screaming. Blake and Morrigan both lay on the floor, unmoving. The cuts on Morrigan’s scalp had reopened, and blood matted her hair. They needed to leave before the goddess woke up, but Luci had trouble standing. There was no way she could drag Blake out of there. She pulled herself onto the bed, doing her best to avoid broken glass and wood, grabbed her phone, and dialed Marley’s number.
    “Hello?” a tentative voice answered.
    “We need help.” At least talking didn’t hurt. She gave a brief rundown of what had happened.
    “Shit. We’ll be right there,” Marley said.
    Luci slumped back against the wall, exhaustion flowing through her. Every movement hurt, and she didn’t dare take her eyes off the bodies on the floor. It felt like an eternity before her doorknob rattled, but was only a few minutes according to her phone. Seconds later, a jolt bounced off her eardrums and the door swung open. When Marley and Eli rushed into the room, Luci let out a breath