Chapter 193

OLIVIA’S POV The only sound that remained was the crackling of my flames and the soft groans of the dying earth beneath us. But my heart—my heart was anything but still. The rage within me burned, begging to be unleashed, demanding vengeance for what they’d done. I wanted to hunt those witches down, make them feel every ounce of pain they had caused. But not now. Right now, my friend—my Derek—was the only thing that mattered. I wasn’t the monster they painted me to be. I could see that now, clearly and completely. Maybe I had doubted myself once—questioned if I could ever wield this power without losing myself to it. But everything I’ve endured, everything I’ve fought for… it brought me here. To this moment of clarity. And I realized— The fire inside me didn’t control me. I controlled it. My gaze fell on him, the moment I saw him fall, a spear of light carved with ancient runes lodged deep in his chest, something inside me cracked. A sound tore from me—a shriek that wasn’t just a phoen