Page 45 of Savage Throne
My confidence soared with each successful shot.
I was getting closer to the hundred points.
Closer to Lei.
Leo chuckled again. “We’re at three and a half minutes. At this rate, you’ll win with no problem.”
Song spoke. “She’s faster than I expected.”
“This is why she’s the Mountain Mistress.”
Let’s go. Let’s go.
But just as I shifted my aim toward the sixth target something caught my eye—a dark liquid dripping from the first target.
Wait. What’s that?
My heart skipped a beat.
I blinked, trying to get back to the game, but. . .something was very, very wrong.
“Focus, Monique.”
But. . .what the hell is that on the first target?
The golden point I’d hit wasn’t just splintered—it was slick with something red. The drip was slow at first, but then it began to pool at the base of the target.
No. That can’t be happening. It doesn’t make since.
I squeezed my eyes shut for a brief second and opened them again hoping I was imagining things.
But the liquid was still there, dark and glistening under the floodlights.
Is that. . .what I think it is?
Leo thought of himself as some dark illusionist. That much had become clear over the time I’d spent in his twisted presence.
He wasn’t just the Grand Mountain Master—he fancied himself a master of manipulation, of bending reality to his will.
Surely, this had to be another one of his magic tricks.
Therefore, the red liquid had to be a trick.
Another test.
It’s all fake. Leo’s playing mind games again.
Panic began to creep in.
My hands trembled slightly as I aimed for the sixth target.
“Hurry!” Leo’s voice cut through the night. “Time is ticking!”
Shit.
I forced myself to focus trying to shake the unease gnawing at my gut.
I had to keep going.
