Chapter 13 Scarlett
SCARLETT
Green flames are everywhere.
They lick along the walls of the dungeon and spread along the stone floor. The bars of the cells melt into silver puddles. The temperature reaches an inferno. Sweat beads along my brow. The pumpkin atop Krane’s shoulder is no more.
In its place is a skull made entirely of green flames. In an instant, he is across the room, wrenching the knife from my hand and tossing it aside. His flames brush up against me but do not singe my skin. Strong arms wrap around me, and I’m crushed against his powerful chest.
The faint scent of cinnamon nearly sends me to my knees.
His face is solid. Each flame flickers with bewilderment. His eyes are burning with intensity—a madness lurking in their depths. A tremble goes through Krane’s body and into mine. I hold tight to him. His warmth soothes the remaining rigidity in my muscles.
“Why would you do that, Scarlett? Why?”
Krane’s words are hushed, barely more than a low growl.
Tears spill down my cheeks as he pulls me even tighter against him.
I feel the hard contours of his body. While he may no longer look like the man I loved, there is no mistaking him.
His heart beat pounds in time with my own.
The familiar graze of his soul against mine is all I need.
His hands continue their journey over my body. Each harsh touch sends a fire through me. I lean into his body—his hands—willing him to keep touching me and to never stop. Despair flickers in his eyes as he takes a deep breath.
“Have you hurt yourself before?” he whispers.
Tears tumble down my cheeks as I nod.
“After I found you like that…” I swallow soundly, trying to erase the awful memory. “Many times after that day, I tried. I didn’t eat—I couldn’t.”
A shuddering breath rattles his chest. His eyes are still guarded despite the gentle roaming of his hands.
Their exploration continues even as I see conflicting emotions war on his face.
The flames dance back and forth, twining together to create a look of apprehension and longing.
A beautiful maelstrom of loss and longing.
“I don’t know what to think,” he admits. My breath catches in my throat. “I was so certain of your betrayal. Cursed because of it. After reading that letter, my soul could not find peace. It demanded revenge, and thus my anger forged into this infernal form.”
He huffs a humorless laugh. Flames slip from between his lips and ghost over my cheeks.
“I thought that if you confessed and paid for your treachery with your life, I would be returned to my normal body.” Krane shakes his head. “At the very least, be allowed to die.”
His confession causes my blood to run cold.
“You were going to kill me?”
I shouldn’t be surprised, but I can’t help it. The idea of my Krane doing such a thing shatters my already fragile heart. The organ has been broken and repaired so many times that I wouldn’t be surprised if it gave out.
“When I came to, cursed to be this monster, I was alone. Your betrayal consumed my thoughts. The magic had blighted who I used to be. The anger I died with molded me into this. It tainted every memory—casted every moment into a new light that made your rejection of me make sense.” He swallows thickly.
“I wanted you to suffer as I had. My need for revenge warped the years we spent together and made me see you as my enemy.”
His hands pause on my back, and I take that as a sign. My breath turns sharp in my legs.
“I see,” I say, taking a small step back.
Krane’s eyes widen as I hold my hands out to my side. Lifting my chin, I meet his gaze.
“If my death will bring you peace, then by all means. I won’t stop you. Death would be better than living with your hatred.”
Krane growls as green flames lick up the walls. They burn brighter until they are hard to look at. Krane shifts a gloved hand through his flames as if they were hair. An old habit that makes my heart squeeze.
“Nothing makes sense to me now. I want to believe you, but I—”
“You can’t,” I answer for him.
He is silent for a moment. The sharp line of his mouth turns down. We stare at each other, the room thick with smoke and indecision. My chest rises and falls under his stormy gaze. He seems so far away, yet he stands barely an arm’s length away. A sea of distrust crashes between us.
There is only one thing left to do. It is my last-ditch effort—my final card to play in the hopes of changing his mind. I lick my lips, taking a small step closer.
“If you won’t believe my words. Maybe you’ll believe this.”
He eyes me warily as I curl my fingers into his coat.
Tugging him forward, I press up onto my toes and seal our mouths together.
It feels like coming home. Everything clicks into place inside of me.
This is Krane—my Krane. If I had not felt his soul before this kiss would surely solidify who he is to me.
Lips of flames are still against mine. Behind my closed eyes, I can see the flickering of his fire.
His face does not burn me. It licks against my skin, warm and inviting as ever.
I half expect him to shove me away. To accuse me of using this as another distraction to divert my guilt.
His hands remain at his side, and I’m not sure he’s breathing.
In an instant, everything changes.
Krane comes alive against my mouth. Snarling into our kiss, his hands grip my back. His fingers tease and trail along the curve of my spine. They sink into my ass, and I gasp against his mouth.
The wet slide of a tongue startles me. Its warm glide along mine causes me to moan. His hands squeeze my flesh. Breaking our kiss, his head falls to my neck, biting and tasting along my sensitive skin. My head falls back, urging him to explore more. How I’ve missed this—us.
Each touch is familiar; he knows my body better than I do. A thought that is reaffirmed when he nips at my pulse point. My eyes grow heavy, and my mouth opens on a keening moan—moisture slides from me, dampening my inner thighs.
“I’ll prove myself to you,” I vow.
He groans against me, licking a path up my jaw.
His mouth returns to mine as if he can’t stop.
We’re both overcome. My hands sink beneath his coat, gripping his undershirt.
I pull at it, desperate to feel his flesh against my hands.
His lips leave mine again to pay attention to my cheek.
I rub my legs together, desperate for friction.
“I’ll earn your trust again,” I sigh as he nips my ear. “Together, we’ll kill them. They’ll confess to their treachery, and you’ll see I had no part in any of this.”
“Yes,” he groans.
Our mouths meet again, biting and devouring each other whole.
My body is pressed flat against him, and a seeking hardness strains against my stomach.
I moan into our kiss and rub myself against him.
I’d gladly let him take me on this stone floor, the rats as our witnesses.
I’m overcome. I need him more than anything—without him, I have nothing.
“We’ll start with Bram,” I say when we break apart again. His fiery eyes flicker. “Then we will kill my father.”
“Would you be able to do that? Truly?”
I fuse our mouths, tasting the smokiness in our kiss. His cinnamon scent is spicier than before—wilder. It fills my lungs and my heart. Pulling back, I let him see the truth in my eyes.
“Yes.” My edict is final. “For what he did to you. For what he stole from me, his life is forfeit.”
With one final searing kiss, Krane pulls back from me.
He nods at my words as he rubs a hand through his flames.
My lips feel tender. Gently, I lick the bottom one, and I watch his gaze go there.
I can see the apprehension back in his eyes.
A wall is erected between us, but only this time it has a dozen fractures cracking along it.
I can only hope given more time, I can shatter it fully.
We were never meant to be kept apart. I am more certain of that than ever.
Krane has lost so much because of me—his life, his humanity.
Revenge will be my gift to him. I will do whatever I can to see Bram and my father pay for their crimes against my love.
It will be our duel revenge. They stole my future the moment they cut him down. I could’ve had everything had their greed not taken it from me. Rage burns inside of me, melting the ice in my veins.
“Tomorrow.” Krane’s voice cuts through my thoughts, causing me to look up. “Tomorrow, we go after Bram. If what you say is true, I will get him to admit it. Scarlett, I want to believe you I—”
He shakes himself, allowing his hands to fall back to my sides. Giving me a light squeeze, I nearly sag in relief. Krane can’t seem to stop touching me, and I never want him to.
“One thing is certain. You need to eat.”
At his words, my stomach grumbles loudly. My cheeks burn as I watch his lips twitch in the ghost of a smile. I allow him to pull me up the stairs and hopefully out of the dungeon forever.
Much was revealed tonight, and my mind is a mess of emotions.
Confusion, anger, hope—all of them swirl inside me as we walk up into the dark castle.
I can’t make sense of it all yet. Right now, I know two things.
One being that Krane is alive and I still have a chance to build a future with him, albeit one that I never even thought possible.
The wife of the Headless Horseman; there are no tales about her spread throughout Broken Cliff.
Secondly, and most importantly, for the first time in a month, I’m hungry.