The Beyond (A Devil's Isle Novel) by Chloe Neill

Author:Chloe Neill [Neill, Chloe]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2019-06-03T16:00:00+00:00

* * *

• • •

“Everybody okay?” Liam asked when we’d made it into the Beyond.

“Fine,” Rachel said, holstering her weapon and taking a look around.

Elysium looked . . . a lot like southern Louisiana. The sky was blue, the clouds white and fluffy, a single sun hanging above us. The land was relatively flat and green, with clusters of trees edging wide fields and birds chirping within them.

But it felt like standing inside a power station. The power a steady thrum in my head, a vibration that seemed to reach to the marrow of my bones. Feeling the Veil had been like being washed by a cresting wave of power. This was being set adrift in the ocean with no life preserver, no raft.

The pressure grew until it seemed to fill my head, until the sound of the breeze, the grass, the birds, muted like a light being turned off. My eyes seemed too big for my sockets, my skin too tight to hold my body, my joints uncomfortable as I sank to my knees.

I looked up, saw Liam’s mouth was moving, but there was no sound.

My heartbeat was so loud, so slow, I thought it was the march of a coming army. I looked around, trying to find the source, locate the battalion that was obviously moving closer to us. But there was nothing but sunshine and grass. I put my fist against my chest, felt the beats there, and tried to breathe through the haze.

Liam dropped to his knees and placed a hand on my face, and I saw panic in his eyes.

I fought my own rising panic, tried to think what I should be doing about it. And of all the random things, I thought of the last plane ride I’d taken and what had worked when my ears had begun to ache from the pressurization. Without a better idea, I closed my eyes, pinched my nose, and blew.

Sound returned with a sharp pop as the pressure equalized in my head.

“Claire? Claire!”

“I’m okay,” I said, wincing at the sudden volume increase. I was still shaky, and still felt bloated with power. But at least the fog was gone. “It’s . . . the magic. I’m adjusting.”

“Adjusting well?” Malachi asked, looking me over.

“Adjusting,” I said again. “That’s all I’m willing to commit to.” I looked up at Liam, gave him a quick scan, and found he didn’t look any different. “You’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” he said, but there was an edge to his voice. He looked at Malachi. “It’s fighting me.”

Malachi moved closer. “How?”

“It wants . . . in. Or out. Or . . . I don’t know. Maybe I want it. Want to grab it. Something in my head—the sixth sense, whatever feels the magic. It’s . . . aware how much is out there.”

“The magic is outside you,” Malachi said. “It can’t get to you unless you take it in. Unless you pull it in. And you’re stronger than that.”

His eyes were spinning gold, flashing coins, blinding suns.

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