She blinked away tears. “I’ve already fought you and lost. I have no fight left. Not for you,Minyha.”
The term of endearment took the wind out of him. He rested his forehead against her shoulder, trying to compose himself.
“I cannot destroy my heart. I will protect what is mine,” she murmured into his hair.
“You have to,” Teddy rasped. The burning was becoming unbearable, the pain so bright he could barely keep his grip on the blade.
“Do you understand what I’m saying? I am my mother’s daughter. I’ll repeat history because that is what it takes to save the man I love.”Stella winced. “My blood burns. It’s the magic of the contest because I’m not trying to kill you like I’m supposed to. One of us has to do this, and it needs to be you.”
“Why?” It was more a question to the fates and gods than one he expected an answer to.
She smiled weakly. “Because I love you too much to hurt you more than I did yesterday. Because you are kind and smart and you will be an amazing king.”
The dagger pressed against her skin, just enough to draw blood. Teddy looked her in the eyes, his hand trembling and slicked with sweat.
Stella gripped his hand tighter on the hilt, but Teddy couldn’t do it.
She groaned in agony from the burning and bent toward him, the blade sinking into her chest. The burning in Teddy’s blood lessened ever so slightly, but he yanked the dagger back in horror.
A loud explosion split the night and sent them both stumbling.
The dagger fell from Teddy’s hand and clattered to the ground. Stella snatched it up and slipped it awkwardly into an empty slot on her vest.
He turned toward the sound. “What the?—”
“Is it a magic trap in the maze or?—”
Another explosion rent the air—much closer this time. Teddy dragged Stella to the ground, covering her body with his as shards of wood and ash rained down on them.
After a few moments, Teddy rolled off of Stella and looked around, but the explosions hadn’t come from inside the maze.
Smoke snaked up from somewhere behind the bleachers and royal booths. An entire section of the crowd was missing.
The stands where the spectators had been watching were in total chaos.
“Mama!” Stella’s shout was breathless.
Screaming and pained groans broke out in the crowd. Bloodied spectators rose from the remnants of the bleachers and frantically made their way toward the stairs.
A loud grinding sound filled the air as the doors to the center of the maze slid open.
Roaring voices rose in a chorus through the night. “For the old ways!”
Stella’s wide green eyes met Teddy’s. “It’s the Sons of Endros.”
Teddy glanced up at the gamemaker’s booth just in time to see flames rise around Endros. He smirked as he faded into them.
Teddy felt the burning in his blood lift.
“I guess that concludes the Gauntlet Games,” Stella said. “My blood stopped burning.”
Teddy felt suddenly guilty for wishing for a solution to the tiebreaker—this wasn’t at all what he had in mind. The tiebreaker was personally devastating, but a full rebellion would bring massive loss of life for the people of Olney and Argaria. If whatever was happening outside of the arena was bad enough that it broke the covenant of the Gauntlet Games, things were about to get so much worse.
He glanced at the royal booths. The left side of the makeshift wood platform had splintered, and the railing dangled at an odd angle. Terror shot through him. There was no sign of his parents or siblings, or Stella’s family.
Stella took off running toward the carnage, but before she could get to them, Jeneva and Katerina sprinted into the center of the maze.
Jeneva immediately lifted her blade, preparing for a fight. “What’s happening?”
