Page 217 of Savage Throne
Not in this blood-soaked battlefield.
Not in front of my father.
Not with that tiny gun aimed at him.
But, there she was.
Fierce.
Unstoppable.
Mine.
She’d tried to kill him. She’d come into this madness and faced down the devil himself.
How the hell did she get that gun!
It didn’t matter.
Nothing mattered except her and the fire blazing in her eyes, daring the world to challenge her.
Moni looked deadly. Her jaw was tight, and her lips were twisted into a wicked smile that made pride and fear stir deep in my chest. Her defiance wasn’t just admirable—it was a beacon, cutting through the haze of pain and exhaustion that had consumed me.
I should have been furious.
I’d told her to stay back, to let me handle this.
I’d thought her presence would weaken me, that I’d be too distracted protecting her.
Too caught up in fear for her safety to fight at my full strength.
I thought she’d make mevulnerable.
But God, I was wrong.
Seeing her like this—fearless and proud—made my chest tighten in a way that had nothing to do with the poison still clawing at me.
She didn’t weaken me.
She made me stronger.
Stronger than I had any right to be after everything my father had thrown at me.
Additionally, she made me believe I could finish this, that I could win—not just for her, butwithher.
Let’s finish this, Mountain Mistress.
I spat out more black liquid onto the ground.
The viscous substance glistened under the arena’s harsh light.
The poison still burned in my veins, its fiery grip not yet gone, but her presence had changed it. The storm of it—once all-consuming—was fading. It wasn’t gone, not entirely, but it no longer felt invincible.
Its hold on me was breaking.
With every second Moni stood there—steady as a rock—it ebbed further.
You’re feeling better. Finish this.
