Chapter 10
Von
A heavy mist rolled off the murky bog. It swirled around my ankles, tempting my shadows. I paid it little mind, my attention stuck on the eerily calm waters. Yes, this was the place. Although I hadn’t been to these lands in decades, if not centuries, I was the maker of them and I knew them well.
“I didn’t agree to this!” the man-rabbit screamed—his writhing body shadow-chained to a boulder.
“Technically, he didn’t,” Zahra said under her breath, her arms threaded over her chest. The white flames inked into her skin glowed in the darkness of this place—a sure sign her powers were at the ready, should they be needed.
“Semantics,” I replied, my gaze swinging from Zahra to Dameon. “I suppose it is a good thing you two came after all. Who wants to do the honors?”
“The honors of what?” the creature squeaked .
My attention flicked toward him, conjuring an apple which my shadows swiftly wedged in his mouth.
“Mm-mm, mmmph,” he complained in muffled grunts.
Dameon chuckled while Zahra, the bleeding heart said, “Is that necessary?”
“Probably not.” I shrugged. “But you gave me the idea with the whole spit-roast thing.” The corner of my mouth twisted upwards. “And I couldn’t help myself.”
“Of course not,” she sighed as she took a step toward the creature, a dagger forged from white flame emerging from her palm.
The creature’s eyes went wide. “Mmm-mm!”
“I’m not going to hurt you,” she reassured him.
Dameon stepped to his mate’s side, his hand slipping around hers. “Let me do this,” he said as he gently slid the dagger from her hand. “Your ichor is too precious to spill.”
“Charmer,” she spoke softly.
He smirked, released her hand, then wrapped his around the blade. Fist clenched, he pulled the blade out, forging a deep cut in his skin. Before it could heal, he smeared his ichor over the creature’s chest.
“Mmmm-mmm!” the man-rabbit protested, his small body fighting against my unbreakable chains.
When Dameon was finished, he took a step back and asked me, “Do you think that’ll be enough?”
“Lost Souls can smell a drop of immortal ichor from hundreds of miles away. It will be enough.” I patted Dameon’s shoulder then walked up to the little beast. My fingers snatched the apple from his mouth.
I rolled it over, studying the side where the creature’s mouth had been—the crisp, red flesh had turned brown and mushy.
A small crack formed, and dozens of worms began to tumble out.
“You trickster. You-you fraudster. You swindler!” he snarled the words at me.
“I’ve been called worse,” I said as I discarded the apple and began to walk away, Dameon and Zahra following in tow.
“Come back! Come back!” the man-rabbit screamed at us.
When we were twenty paces away, the land on a slight incline from where we’d laid our trap, my shadows swept around us, making us undetectable.
“Blasted immortals!” the beastly thing snarled. “Never to be trusted!” He slammed his head against the rock before he screamed at the top of his rotten lungs, “Somebody help me!”
“I’m curious,” Dameon whisper-spoke to me, his face fixed ahead. “How were you going to do this on your own?”
I knew what he meant. Ichor was an important part of the equation, and my veins could not produce a single drop without Sage.
But Lost Souls craved one thing more than immortal blood—they were cannibals, hungering for those who were like them, broken and tormented.
Lost. When Sage died, that’s exactly what I’d become.
Eyes fixed ahead, I answered, “I had planned to go into the bog and use myself as bait.”
“Even for you, that would have been dangerous,” Dameon remarked .
“It would have been, yes. So when the wee beast with the third leg showed up, I realized this was a better plan.”
Dameon chuckled at that. “He’s rather . . . gifted , isn’t he?”
“Impressively so,” I agreed.
“Are we seriously discussing his cock?” Zahra interjected.
“Yeah,” Dameon said at the same time I said, “We are.”
She stared at us, shook her head, and looked back at the creature.
A few seconds passed.
Then, Zahra muttered under her breath, “You think he gets ground rash on that thing?”
A low laugh rumbled past Dameon’s lips while I cracked a desolate grin.
Without Sage, I was an empty vessel.
In the distance, the water began to bubble.
A crown of sleek, black hair broke the surface, rising just enough so that a pair of black eyes could look out. Those dark, ominous eyes were filled with a great void—an emptiness beyond compare. They shifted, narrowing in on the creature.
“Oh no. Please. No. No. No! ” the small beast screamed, trying to fight against his restraints.
The head lifted out of the water, revealing a feminine face—once full of beauty, but her pale, opaque skin, which showed the tainted, black veins beneath, had robbed her of her looks.
Networking her torment, they spiderwebbed under her skin.
She glided forward, taking her time as she closed in on her prey.
Reaching the shore, she stood. Wet, faded fabric clung to her body, the tattered ends breaking off into bits of string that clung to her bony legs covered in black scabs.
Her ribs poked through the cotton dress, making it seem as if she hadn’t eaten anything in weeks.
The three of us did not speak a single word, our attention fixed on the unsettling truth now standing before us, of what Harper might become. Granite packed my stomach. A sinking feeling—one I knew weighed on all of us.
The closer she got to the man-rabbit, the more he screamed.
When she was an arm’s reach away from him, her attention fell to his chest. She slid one finger over it, gathering up the ichor.
She brought it to her nose and then to her mouth.
A serpentine tongue slid from her lips, flicking over her gilded finger.
“Mmmm, the ichor of the gods,” she said, her voice haunting. She dipped her head and began to lick the creature’s sternum.
I stepped out from my shadows, revealing myself.
Her head swung my way and her eyes grew wide. Her rusty jaw unhinged, dropping all the way to her chest, and she let out a screech so horrible, it was like shards of glass piercing my eardrums.
“Fuck!” Dameon roared as he and Zahra both covered their ears. I did the same.
I needed to stop her horrendous screaming, but how? Pulling the oxygen from her frozen lungs would do nothing—she didn’t breathe .
In a blur of movement, she stood in front of me, a wicked grin spreading across her maniacally twisted lips. Her hand shot out.
I tried to catch her arm, but my hand passed straight through it.
Like daggers, her fingernails drove into my neck.
A black fog rolled out of her screaming mouth. It clawed at the air, consuming everything around me. It swept into my nostrils, filled my lungs, and stole my eyesight. It pooled into my ears, removing the sound of her screaming and replaced it with—
“Von?” asked an unmistakable voice.
The fog started to clear, my vision returning, revealing her.
Azure eyes met mine.
I nearly fell to my knees.
Sage.
We were standing in our child’s nursery. Rocking chair, crib, dresser, baby blankets, and tiny, tiny clothes . . . it was all there.
Sage had her hand placed on her stomach, a small bump present. The word queen was tattooed on her hand, right below her knuckles. In place of a wedding ring, Von was stitched with black ink into her skin. I looked down at my own hand, finding her name swirled in elegant lettering on my ring finger.
Moonlight cast through the window, caressing the white, silky strands of her hair, making it shimmer. She wore a black robe, the sleeves and hem adorned with lace. Her breasts were fuller than I recalled them being. Pairing that with the subtle curve of her belly made me wonder . . .
Could it be?
I breathed in, inhaling her citrusy, sea-breeze scent . . . No, she wasn’t pregnant .
She came over to me, her hands settling against my chest. She nodded to the crib, then whispered to me, “I just put her down for a nap.”
I looked at the crib, the one I had spent hours carving by hand. I could hear the sound of her tiny heart beating—a small, rhythmic drum. It was strong.
No . This was wrong.
“Hey,” Sage spoke quietly as she reached for me, her fingers soft against my cheek.
Gently, she guided my face to hers. “I know I haven’t been myself lately.
It’s just . . . all of this is so new to me.
I don’t know if I’m doing this right or .
. .” Her white lashes lowered, tears brimming in her eyes. “If I’m failing her.”
Seeing her like that . . . it broke something in me. I couldn’t stand to see her doubt herself—she was an incredible mother to our—
This isn’t real! the beast within me snarled.
Fuck off , I told it as I pulled Sage into my arms. Her body was warm, brimming with life.
Gently, I clasped her chin, directing her gaze to mine as I said, “She is lucky to have you. As am I.”
And then I kissed her.
Her arms wove around my neck, her body pressed up against mine as she handed herself over to me. When she broke the kiss, I nearly snarled, but she placed a finger against my lips, and with a naughty little grin, she whispered, “Let’s take this to our room.”
I nipped at her fingers, and she tried to stifle her giggle, not wanting to wake our little princess. Deciding that I didn’t want to risk waking her either, I plucked Sage from the ground, and in a blink, we were in our private chamber.
I carried her over to our bed and gently laid her down on the black silk. It contrasted against her ivory skin, making her stand out, like a silvery moon nestled among the dark night sky.
Creator above, she was a vision.
Magically, the sash of her robe undid itself, and the silk parted, revealing her beautiful, sexy body to me. She was a precious gift in fervent need of my attention. My devotion.