Demanding Discord (Fire Witches of Salem #8)

Chapter 1 Cinder

CINDER

Heat engulfed me like an electric blanket. I lay on my side, the warmth taming the excruciating ache in my muscles, and I snuggled into it, squeezing my eyes shut tightly and hoping to Hecate it was all just a wicked bad dream.

If it wasn’t…well, that meant I had just killed two people, and that was so very not like me.

Sure, I battled the beasties that crossed into our realm whenever the occasion occurred, but they were just that…

beasties. Tiny fae with razor teeth, who were as annoying as mosquitoes.

Vampire ghouls with nothing but blood on their minds.

Gnomes, ogres, and the occasional lower-level demon slipped through, but they didn’t possess the brain power to hold a conversation and none of them presented a fully human form.

Killing the rhino motel clerk hadn’t fazed me much. He was more intelligent than anything that had crossed to my side of the veil, but he was still a vile, disgusting beast who’d planned to kill and eat me. I’d acted in self-defense. I didn’t need to feel bad about that.

What I’d done to Bedlam and Seraphine was also self-defense. So…why did I feel so rotten about it?

My shoulder ached from lying on it, so I adjusted my position. Something long and hard pressed into my butt cheek, and I popped my eyes open. I lay in complete darkness, and—aside from the sound of Discord breathing—utter silence.

Wait. If that was my demon wrapping me in warmth, that meant the hard thing pressed against my butt was his…

“Discord!” I shot to sitting and turned toward him. “Seriously?”

He didn’t respond, so I lit a fireball, illuminating his form. He lay on his side, his eyes closed, and that rod I’d felt on my ass…?

It was the hilt of the dagger strapped to his thigh. Whew.

Although, after the kiss we’d shared by the river, I didn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed that his soldier wasn’t saluting my presence.

Relieved, Cin. Definitely relieved. Sheesh.

I let out a breath and rose, taking in my surroundings.

Red crystals in the rocky walls reflected my firelight, and an orange glow from the moon outside peeked around the massive boulder blocking the exit to the…

Were we inside a cave? My backpack lay on the ground—apparently, I’d been using it as a pillow—and as I picked it up, Discord finally stirred.

He sucked in a sharp breath and pushed himself to sitting. “Cinder?”

“I’m here, though I’m not sure where here is.” I sat next to him, still holding on to a flame. “What happened?”

“Your sisters summoned me after our battle. Are you okay?” He gently touched my chin, turning my head from side to side.

So it wasn’t all a dream. Damn.

“I’m fine.” I took two candles from my bag and lit them. “Where are we?”

“We’re in a cave two miles from where we left Seraphine.” He scrubbed his hands down his face. “You passed out the moment you dragged me away from the summoning.”

Surprise lifted my brows. “You carried me two miles?”

He tilted his head, stretching his neck. “I had to. Seraphine had begun to stir.”

“She’s not dead?” A brick dropped from my chest to my stomach, and my mouth hung open.

“Sadly, no. Do you have any food in your bag? My body requires sustenance.”

“Yeah. Let me see.” I rummaged through the contents, finding two bars that resembled granola.

I handed him one and unwrapped the other before shoving half of it into my mouth.

It tasted smoky and slightly bitter, not at all what I was expecting, but not too terrible.

I chewed, some kind of nut crunching between my teeth as I pondered our predicament.

Seraphine was alive. I wasn’t sure how to feel about that. On one hand, it brought my body count down by one, which was a good thing. On the other, that meant she’d be extra pissed and would no doubt come after us as soon as she was able.

I think I preferred the higher body count.

“How close are we to Hecate’s temple?” I took another bite and washed it down with stinky water, wrinkling my nose as I swallowed. I would never complain about the taste of Salem tap water again.

“A few miles out.” Discord’s expression darkened, his eyes tightening. “I have an unsettling feeling about it, though.”

I took another sip of sulfur water and handed him the bottle. “This entire ordeal is unsettling. Could you be more specific?”

“I don’t believe Hecate will be in her temple. You found it too easily.” He handed me the empty bottle and rose. “The seer had been scrying for years to no avail, yet you found the goddess within minutes. That doesn’t make sense.”

I bristled, my ego taking a hit. “After everything we’ve been through, now you’re questioning my abilities?”

“Not at all. If any mortal witch could locate her, it would be you.” He offered his hand. “You are the most amazing woman I have ever met.”

Ignoring his last comment, I shoved the bottle into my backpack and accepted the gesture, letting him tug me to my feet. “Maybe she’s ready to be found. And anyway, you helped me. Maybe the seer just needed to channel a Prince of Hell.”

I tried to pull from his grasp, but he tightened his grip as we stood there, face to face, the intensity in his eyes making my stomach flutter. He was silent for a beat…two…three, and the fluttering rose to my chest.

“You saved my life.” He sandwiched my hand between both of his, the warmth of his grip and the sincerity in his eyes making my breath catch.

“I didn’t have much of a choice.” My body drifted toward him of its own volition, the magnetism between us getting stronger with every battle we survived. “If you die, I die.”

“You’d have saved me even if we weren’t bound.” His gaze slid to my lips, and my heart raced. “As I would save you.”

My mouth suddenly felt drier than the Mohave. “I’m a light witch. It’s what we do.” I licked my chapped lips, tugging my hand again. This time, he let me go.

I stepped away and grabbed my backpack, willing my hormones to calm the eff down. The urge to throw myself into his arms and let him ravish me right there on the cave floor overwhelmed me…but getting it on with a demon was the last thing I needed to worry about… Right now, anyway.

Honestly, if he hadn’t kissed me by the river, I wouldn’t be thinking about it at all. That kiss though… Damn.

He let out a little grunt, narrowing his eyes as I strapped on my backpack.

“We should get moving before someone figures out where we are.” I leaned a shoulder against the giant rock blocking the cave entrance and pushed.

It didn’t budge. Of course it didn’t. The damn thing was taller than me and probably weighed a ton, but I needed to get out of this confined, private space before I said eff it all and let my hormones take control.

“Or we could finish what we started on the riverbank.” He rested a hand on the rock above my shoulder and leaned toward me, his smoldering gaze making my traitorous stomach flutter again.

“Not a chance.” I pressed both palms against the boulder, shoving with all my bodyweight and ignoring the desire unfurling in my chest.

A strange look contorted his features for half a second, as if I’d physically slapped him, but he recovered and smirked. “This might be the only chance you get.”

“I’m good with those odds.” I flashed a tight-lipped smile and crossed my arms.

He inhaled deeply. “Your scent betrays you. I can smell your desire.”

You have no idea… No doubt, my pheromones flared again at that animalistic statement, but I deflected and forced out a dry laugh. “We are not doing the deed on the cave floor.” A girl had to have standards, right?

He arched a brow, mischief dancing in his eyes. “I could brace you against the wall.”

Hecate on a highwire. Wouldn’t that be something? If I kept my shirt on, maybe the rocks wouldn’t chafe too badly. My backpack could act as a buffer too. He was definitely strong enough to hold me up, and we could… Whoa. Slow your roll, Cin.

Seriously, get a grip.

The sly grin on his lips told me I’d just turned the dial on whatever my desire smelled like to full blast. He took another deep breath, the knowing look in his eyes making me feel naked, even though I was fully clothed.

And Hecate knew I wouldn’t mind getting naked with the man. He was packing quite the package, but… Standards, Cin. You have standards. “We’re not doing it in a cave. End of story. Now, will you please move this rock so we can be on our way?”

“You don’t deny the attraction.”

I pressed my lips into a hard line. No. No, I did not. “That’s not the point.”

He gave me one more smirk and waved his hand in front of the boulder.

When nothing happened, he cut his gaze toward me for half a second.

I tried not to react, but damn. If he’d done his dematerializing trick to get us inside, and now we were trapped, I would become the unhappiest little camper he’d ever seen.

Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath.

His muscles tensed, his nostrils flaring as he tried again.

He waved his hand back and forth, his fingers curling into a claw, his exertion evident by the tendons protruding from his neck.

He huffed, waving his arm three more times, and finally, it disappeared.

The memory of passing through the partially formed wall back at the palace had my feet moving before my brain had the chance to send the command.

I darted through the opening and pressed my back against the outer wall, jerking my head side to side, searching for signs of an impending ambush. The coast seemed clear. For now.

Discord joined me outside the cave, and the boulder blocking the entrance rematerialized. He winced and rubbed his chest. “Using magic has never affected me like this. Do you feel it too?”

I could tell it took a toll on him. Whether it was through our bond or just from his body language, I couldn’t say. I didn’t want to know. “Unless witches are using an inborn power like fire, magic always depletes our vim.”

“It’s unpleasant.”