Let Them Kneel (kaelani and Julian) novel Chapter 142

142

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Julian flinched like she’d struck him. His breath hitched as he loosened more buttons from his shirt, revealing the sharp lines of his collarbone, the gleam of sweat now soaking through the fabric.

“You’re right, baby,” he managed hoarsely, licking his lips. “You’re so fucking right. You deserve-”

He paused, swaying slightly.

“You deserve somewhere new. Something special. A place that’s… just for you. Just for us.”

His voice was breaking apart–raw and gruff, like every word scraped his throat on the way out. He swallowed hard, eyes darting–panicked.

“Gods, my throat’s so dry.”

He spotted two tall glasses of ice water on a nearby table, untouched.

Julian shot to his feet and stumbled toward them, knocking his chair back with a screech. He grabbed one glass and downed it in three long gulps. The second followed, faster, the sound of ice clinking against his teeth.

He tossed the empty glass aside, chest heaving as water dripped from his lips, trailing down his jaw, soaking his now half–open shirt.

Kaelani blinked, bewildered.

What in the actual hell?

“Julian?” she asked slowly, her voice careful now.

Julian didn’t answer.

He didn’t even look at her.

Instead, his eyes flicked to another nearby table–two more glasses of water waiting like salvation.

He crossed the space in seconds, grabbed both, and drained them just as fast–water sloshing, glass hitting wood. Kaelani rose from her seat, her voice sharp now. “What is happening right now?”

He didn’t seem to hear her.

His gaze locked onto a nearby waiter’s side table stacked with silver pitchers. He lunged for them, unhinged, tearing the lid from the nearest and drinking straight from the spout.

Water spilled down his chin, his neck, soaking the already translucent fabric of his shirt.

Then he grabbed another pitcher.

And dumped it over his head.

The crystal cascade splashed across the marble floor, soaking his hair, his shoulders, his chest–like he was trying to drown the heat clawing from within.

Kaelani stepped back, stunned.

“Julian-?”

But before the last word left her lips-

Her breath hitched.

The shimmer fractured.

And when she blinked-

She was standing in the Dark Forest again.

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Back in the Mortal Realm, Julian’s eyes shot open, a ragged gasp caught in his throat.

Heat pressed against his skin like a brand. He blinked, disoriented–vision seared by sunlight that had no business being so blinding. Coarse sand clung to his arms, his back, and the sweat–soaked shirt he had wrapped around his head.

one of four brutal stretches in their journey. They’d He was lying flat on the desert floor of Vulture’s Run- conquered the frozen terrain. Survived the hexed Ravenspine Bridge–barely. Now, they faced the relentless, scorching sun and dead winds of the blistering wasteland.

He lifted his head slowly, every muscle in his body aching.

A few yards behind him, Jace lay sprawled on the ground, unconscious—one arm slung over his face in some instinctive attempt to block the sun. Julian’s heart kicked in his chest.

They’d both passed out.

From the heat. From exhaustion.

Maybe from something else entirely.

Julian forced himself upright, limbs trembling from the effort.

The heat was suffocating relentless. His boots dragged through the sand as he staggered to Jace’s side.

“Jace,” he rasped, dropping to his knees. “Come on, man.”

He pressed two fingers to his friend’s neck.

The pulse was there–faint, sluggish… but still beating.

Julian exhaled, shaky with relief. He unhooked the water canister from his belt and unscrewed the cap with clumsy fingers. With one arm, he lifted Jace into a sitting position, supporting his back against his chest. “Wake up,” he muttered, bringing the canister to Jace’s mouth.

“Come on, Jace–open your eyes.”

He tilted the canister gently, letting cool water spill between cracked lips.

“Wake up,” Julian urged again, pouring more as the water dribbled down Jace’s chin.

Suddenly, Jace coughed violently–water spraying from his mouth as he jolted upright, eyes wide and wild.

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