Chapter 13
CHAPTER
THIRTEEN
Pain has been my constant for so long that it doesn’t even surprise me when that’s what wakes me up, pulling me from a warm embrace that was soft and happy. Agony roars through me until I twist and scream, my eyes snapping open.
“Shh.” The dark voice stills me for some reason, and I realise I am lying across Eversor’s lap as he sits in his throne. He leans over me, pressing his hands to my chest where the pain seems to be centred.
“What’s happening?” My voice is choked, and I lift my hands to push him away, only to freeze at the sight of them. My skin has been stripped completely, so my hands are little more than moving bones, and as I stare at them, I have the strangest feeling it should hurt, but it doesn’t.
My eyes meet his again, and he gently presses his hands to my chest, that agonised ball forming once more. It steals my breath as I feel like every part of me is ripped to pieces
My back arches on a silent scream, but I hear an echoing roar outside—Frost or Corbin no doubt. I’m surprised they haven’t found a way in here yet, but I’m betting it’s not for lack of trying.
I struggle to survive it, my heart slamming then stopping. Everything in me dies as I flail around for something to hold onto . . . then those cruel, evil eyes lock me in place and I drown in their abyss, tethering myself to them like a lifeline until the pain finally stops.
My body drops across his, broken and exhausted, but when I move my fingers to make sure I’m still here, I feel skin covering them once more.
Lifting my sweaty head, I notice my hands are intact.
I glance up at Eversor, confusion muddling my mind, and he must read it because he answers my unasked question.
“My healing, unlike others, is always fuelled by pain. It’s not gentle or soft, just like me.” There is more to his words, but my jumbled brain can’t dissect it. “You will be fine shortly, but if I had not healed you, you would have died, foolish mortal.”
“Then why heal me?” I ask, unable to move from his lap. It’s a weakness I hate, but he doesn’t seem to care as he leans back in his throne, catching me when I would have slipped.
“You freed me. I need you alive for now in case it tries to trap me again.” His words are cruel, but when he looks at me, something in his eyes makes me shudder. “Make no mistake, as soon as you are of no use to me, I will discard you. You are nothing, mortal, just a tool I am using.”
“One who managed to free you,” I mutter, and his eyes narrow a moment before I am dumped to the floor. I hit the stone hard, wincing as I rub my side.
He towers above, staring down at me. “Luck,” he murmurs. “Now let’s test it, shall we?”
He walks past me, his coat flaring out, and I scramble to my feet, staggering for a moment. He turns his gaze back to me, his lips curling up. “Weak, so weak.”
“Your heart,” I rasp. “How did they get it?”
His entire face closes down, and from one second to the next, he appears before me.
I’m slammed back into the throne, his hand on my throat as his snarling face fills my vision.
“Do not think you can ask such things of me, mortal. You are like a fly buzzing around my head, easy to squash. Remember that the next time you feel brave enough to question me.”
Tilting my chin back, I relax my hold, letting him decide if he wishes to kill me or not. I will not beg. “Then squash me,” I order, my voice as strong as I can make it. “Go on, what are you waiting for?”
His eyes flash, and I reach up and cover his hand on my skin. “Didn’t think so. If you don’t plan to kill me right now, then release me.”
His eyes hood for a moment before his hand slowly unfurls from my neck, and he steps back. “Do not grow too bold, mortal.”
“Why not? There’s nothing else for me to be.
Right now, you need me, and that means I’m staying alive.
” Standing, I brush past him before turning.
“Now release whatever you have done to my men and let’s get out of here.
We have things to do.” I head down the tunnel we came from.
Just as I reach the entrance and the sunlight blinds me, Frost, Corbin, Bellami, and Luan lunge towards me.
I hold up my hands when they reach me, all speaking at once.
“I’m fine.” I repeat it until they lapse into silence, then I turn to see Eversor behind me, lingering in the dark. “After you.” I step back, allowing him to pass.
Without even sparing me a look, he saunters outside.
The only sign he’s nervous his freedom isn’t true is the slight hesitation as he steps over the border, and then he’s gone.
I follow him out, the others following me, and I find him standing on the rocky beach close by.
His head is tipped back, his eyes are closed, and his arms are spread as he revels in his freedom.
“I’ll kill him,” Frost hisses, and when I turn, his hand is hovering over my throat. “He hurt you.”
“I’m fine.” There’s a roar, and I turn just in time to see Corbin charging Eversor. Without even opening his eyes, he backhands Corbin away like he’s nothing. He flies into the side of the rocky mountain, and then others are on him, ready to kill him for harming me.
Sighing, I look to the gods for help, but let’s be honest, it’s not their style. “Enough!” I shout, and everyone freezes.
Frost is skewered like a kebab on Eversor’s back spikes. Luan is on the ground with a hole in his side, and Bellami has his hands on Eversor’s back, ready to rip off his other limbs.
“Enough,” I repeat as I step closer. “We do not have time for you to fight amongst yourselves. I do not need you to defend me either. I’m a grown woman. I am a queen! I make my own choices, and I knew the risk.” I sigh and soften my voice. “So just stop.”
Eversor drops them, surprising me, but he turns away and stares out at the storm again. “When I leave this island, the magic holding it will collapse. We should not be here when that happens.”
I mean, if he’s warning us, then it must be bad. Nodding, I turn to see Corbin limping over to me. “Are you okay?”
“I’ll heal,” he mutters, glaring at Eversor, and I have a feeling it’s going to be a long few days. The others get on well, but Eversor? He isn’t the type to make friends.
Frost retreats to my side, and I find myself sliding my hand into his and squeezing at the fear I see in his gaze. “I really am okay.”
He scans me once more, however, before leaning in and sniffing me. “I will change, and we can leave. He’s right. I can feel the magic collapsing.”
I watch him go, and once he’s a dragon, we waste no time taking our positions on his back. I turn to Eversor to see him watching us and hold out my hand.
“You think I would rely on others?” His smile is pure malice as he steps away, and I watch in awe as black wings tipped in gold burst from his back where his pincers are. Their feathers look soft, and as he stands there with a giant wingspan, I understand why they think he is a god.
He looks like it.
“Then keep up,” I say as I grip Frost’s spikes, and then we are in the air and plunging back into the storm.
I keep my head down as he flies hard, and yet when we burst out of the other side, Eversor glides around us effortlessly, seeming untroubled.
Lifting my head, I glance back to see the storm collapsing in on itself, and as we fly away, it seems to swallow the island and fade into the ocean, claiming Eversor’s prison and home.
I freed him. Now what?
I watch him carefully. I trust the others will not do anything bad, but him?
He was locked up for a reason. He has no loyalty, and he simply craves anarchy, yet he’s here, lounging across the fire from us.
We flew hard all day before we had to rest, and I’ll admit it’s taken more out of me than I thought it would.
I don’t tell any of them I’m feeling weak though. It would not do well. We aren’t exactly all friends here. My eyes lock on him once more, and I wonder if he’s an enemy or someone I could rely on.
Leaning back, I allow my body to rest, but I know that’s not what it needs. All the trauma, exertion, and blood loss has taken its toll. I am more than human, after all, and like any being, I need to feed to survive.
“You look pale, mortal,” Eversor drawls, and I feel every gaze snap to me. I refuse to wince under their scrutiny.
“I’m fine,” I say.
“You need to feed,” Bellami murmurs. “I can sense it. I didn’t want to say anything—”
“I will not feed.” I make my voice hard and very clear. Feeding would entail lust, and the idea of feeling anything like that again makes me sick.
“Your kind can feed on more than just desire, mortal, can they not?” Eversor asks, and I eye him, wondering why he is being helpful.
It’s not in his nature. It’s very clear he hates me and wishes he had nothing to do with me.
I’m simply something he needs for the moment, but as soon as I outlive my usefulness, I have no doubt he will betray me.
“I’m fine,” I repeat.
He stands and heads my way, but rather than going around the fire, he simply steps into it. The flames lick at his skin, burning it as he watches me before stepping out, instantly healed.
He shoves his hand back into the flames, and he doesn’t make a noise even as his skin blisters and crisps, but his eyes stay on me. I feel it then, in the air.
Agony.
Pain.
Suffering.
It coats my tongue like a sweet, addictive candy, slipping down my throat and soothing my exhaustion. Just as quickly as it comes, he tugs his hand free and it’s gone.
“You can feed on suffering.” He smirks. “Which one of your men heals the fastest?”
My eyes squint in confusion as I look them over. “What do you mean—” I snap my mouth shut as I gape at him in disbelief. “You cannot mean that.”
“Their suffering or yours, it’s your choice. I need you alive in case I am trapped again, so you must feed. Choose lust or anguish,” he orders.
I stare at Eversor, refusing to make a choice, until Frost kneels in front of me as he covers my shaking hands. “Let me do this for you, little mate.”
“What? No,” I snap. “I will be fine.”
“He’s right. You need to feed. If not for us or yourself, then do it for your people. You need to be at full strength for them.” He knows where to hit me and I flinch. “I will be okay. I heal very fast.”
Frost stands and turns to see the others. “Who will do it?”
“I have no qualms about torturing someone for her,” Eversor replies.
Standing, I shake my head. “No, we are not doing this. I will find another way.”
“There is no other way,” Eversor drawls as Frost kneels, smiling despite what they are planning.
“I would endure anything for you, little mate,” Frost says as he bows. “I will heal, do not fret. I will let him flay me alive every day if it keeps you fed and safe from your nightmares.”
Eversor wastes no time, and I go silent, horrified as he steps behind Frost and impales him on two of his pincers.
They slam through Frost’s chest and out the other side.
Frost’s body jerks as I cover my mouth, watching as he groans before biting it back.
Eversor pulls them out slowly before he holds out his hand, and a glowing dagger appears in his grip.
Holding it tightly, he drags Frost’s head back and slices across his neck. Blood squirts from the wound as Frost falls forward, gasping and choking. Any other being would die, but his neck heals and he slowly gets back to his knees.
Despite the agony running through him, he smiles at me, his eyes soft and filled with something I can’t identify. “Feed,” he orders, his voice hoarse.
I should stop this, but as the sweet, cloying impression of his suffering wraps around me, I pull that power into me, feeding on it like he demanded.
Falling to my knees, I keep my eyes on Frost and not what Eversor is doing. His body jerks and blood pools in the grass below him. The agony in the air is so strong, it makes me dizzy. Power floods me, washing away every ache and sense of tiredness.
Feeding on anguish makes me stronger than feeding on lust, which is something I will never admit.
The moment I meet Eversor’s eyes, I know he knows as he continues to flay Frost’s back, slicing off his skin and tossing it into the fire.
He will heal. He will heal, I repeat.
I hate myself in this moment as my strength grows, my body swaying in ecstasy, and the worst bit?
Desire courses through me, awakened by the feed. It rolls through my veins, heating me more than any fire ever could, until my thighs clench with lust and want.
“Your queen needs more,” Eversor drawls. “Let us see how much a dragon can truly survive.”
“Anything,” Frost snarls. “Do your worst, destroyer.”
Eversor takes his words seriously, and blood splatters him. Frost’s agony grows until it fills every inch of air. It’s all I can breathe and taste. My eyelids slide shut in ecstasy as I try to fight its effects, but then his roar of agony fills the air.
I fall to my back, arching as power slams into me with so much force, it bows me off the ground, and with the explosion of power, another topples through me.
My release takes me by surprise. I scream and writhe until it ebbs away, and I am lying on my back, panting and glowing with power.
Frost crawls closer and collapses at my side. His back is destroyed. The skin is gone and muscle is torn away so his spine is showing, yet he smiles and slides his hand over, covering my shaking one. “I am honoured to serve you.”
We lie together, panting as we recover, and when I glance over, I expect to see disgust or judgement, but the others are simply keeping watch. Nothing has changed in their faces. My eyes find Eversor’s last, and he grins at me as he backs through the flames and sits.
Turning my gaze to Frost, I wonder if this is how I will always have to feed.
If so, can I survive it? Can they?