Chapter 22 #2
She leaned into him, soft smiles and fluttering lashes, and to my surprise, he didn’t pull away. He even smiled back; it was small, but he smiled at her. That was enough to knock the air from my lungs.
I shut my eyes for a beat, trying to force the ache down before it could rise any higher. Whatever they were, whoever she was to him… it didn’t matter. Not anymore.
Without a word, I pushed past Kieran and took the stairs, each step pulling me farther from the man who used to look at me like I was the only thing in his world.
The Whispering Woods were just up ahead, the sun had gone down, and the night sky was above us.
More stars danced in the sky, but there was something off.
Like something big was coming. Kieran didn’t say much as he walked next to me, just complaining that we should have ridden his motorbike, but that would have caught people’s attention.
I didn’t miss the way he kept twitching, licking his lips, probably wanting a drink, and I really wish I could help. I just want to help everyone, and trying to help Darian is getting me into a lot of mess.
I was worried for Ronan, and I had no idea if Darian would be with him. He’s more important than I am.
I stopped, grabbing hold of Kieran as I noticed a dark shadow running in the woods. He looked down at me, his brown hair moving in the wind.
“I need you to go back to Ronan,” I told him.
“I will when I drop you off at your place.”
I shook my head. “Go back now, I will be fine. Tell Ronan I will see him soon, and to not come for me.” He eyed me for a second.
“You and I both know I won’t be able to keep him away from you. The fucker loves you.” I blinked at him, eager to get into the woods away from them to keep them safe, but I wanted to hear what Kieran had to say.
“Just please, go, I have been on my own for a long time, it’s nothing new. But Ronan needs to know that I am okay.”
He looked like he wanted to argue with me; his jaw was tight, but he instead let out a frustrated breath through his nose.
“Fine. But you get in that damn cottage, barricade the place like the fucking world is ending, and don’t die.”
I let out a low laugh. “Aw, Kieran, that almost sounded like concern.”
He gave me a flat look. “Don’t flatter yourself. I care about Ronan. And if something happens to you, he’ll make it his life mission to rip my throat out.”
True.
I smirked, “Touching.”
He rolled his eyes at me. “Yeah, yeah. Just go before I change my mind and babysit your stubborn ass myself.”
He didn’t make a move, his gaze fixed on the woods like he could feel something I couldn’t. So, I stepped closer to him, took his face in my hands—his stubble rough against my palms—and made him look at me.
“I’ll be fine, Kieran,” I said softly. “Please… trust me.”
Having him this close to me felt… right. Just like it did with Malrik and Ronan. Even Darian, on the rare occasion, didn’t want to kill me.
Up close, I could really see the harsh slash of the scar cutting across his face.
It didn’t bother me. If anything, it suited him.
The lines etched under his eyes and across his brow hinted that he had survived a lot.
And at his temples, strands of silver threaded through his dark brown hair—subtle, but impossible to miss up this close.
He was older than the rest of us. Rough around the edges in a way that made him dangerous, but for some reason, I didn’t want to step away from him.
He reached out, tucking a strand of my white hair behind my ear. His fingers lingered for just a heartbeat too long against my skin, and I caught the faint tremor before he pulled his hand back like I’d scorched him.
“I’ll be back when all of this is over,” he said quietly, strained.
Then he turned and disappeared into the dark without a glance back.
Maybe that was for the best.
Still, I stood frozen a second longer, something inside me screaming not to let him go. But I shoved it down and started towards the cottage. I needed to get my dagger—and fast. Whatever was in the Whispering Woods tonight, it wasn’t just the mythical creatures.
And I couldn’t use my magic.
A loud crack of thunder shot through the sky as I picked up speed to the cottage, noticing the creatures were hiding, and the air felt cooler, even if we were heading into spring.
Sometimes I hated my mum for dying and leaving me alone. She locked away the full extent of my magic, left me scraping by on the smallest fraction of it—just enough to use, but not without it tearing me apart in the process.
The cottage finally came into view, and I sprinted the last stretch because I knew I wasn’t alone out here. I will be a hell of a lot safer with my dagger in my hand.
I crashed through the front door, heart pounding, and didn’t even bother shutting it behind me. My focus was on one thing. I went straight to the hiding spot beneath the floorboards.
Relief washed through me as my fingers curled around the purple handle. The dagger pulsed in my grip, dark magic running through it—wild, intoxicating, dangerous. The same kind of darkness that lived in Darian, and I needed to figure out how to destroy it to save him.
And I was also useless like this.
I pressed the floorboard back into place just as a sharp whistling sound cut through the air.
Someone was here.
I knew it.
Gripping hold of the dagger, I slowly stood to my full height and peered out of the window to see several vampires, none of whom I recognised this time.
I am so sick of King Draevens' bloody lapdogs. Too much of a coward to come and get me himself.
“I can see you, Ravena. Be a dear and come outside so we can talk.” The dark-haired vampire drawled out, grinning towards the cottage. His eyes were a brighter red and sunken in.
I made my way to the door, ignoring the aches and pains before coming into view. I have no idea how this will go, and there’s a big chance that I could die, no matter how good a fighter I am.
My body is giving up.
“Ah, look at you, all grown up. The King will be very pleased to see you again.” He drawled, eyes sweeping over me with smug satisfaction.
I sneered, stepping down the cottage stairs, ignoring the leering looks from the rest of them, like I was something to devour.
“The king can shove it up his royal ass,” I said coldly. “You’d think he’d have learnt after the last lot of his soldiers he sent after me, including that sick bastard Magnus.”
I really hope he’s being torn apart in hell.
He threw his head back and laughed, the sound sharp and mocking.
“Oh, the King wasn’t thrilled to lose Magnus. But his brother? He is downright feral. Can’t wait to get his hands on you.”
A chill licked down my spine, but I held my ground. I couldn’t let them see any weakness.
I knew exactly what his brother would do—rip me apart slowly, from the inside out, savouring every moment. I know he wouldn’t kill me; He was obsessed with me.
I’m just a toy to him. Monsters like him never wanted their toys to break too soon.
I wouldn’t let him have the chance. I would kill myself before I let him ever touch me.
“We’re not here to play games. You can come quietly and keep your limbs intact… or I can shatter every single bone in your body, one by one, and drag you back while you scream prettily through a mouth missing its tongue.” He shrugged.
Charming.
Another roar of thunder cracked the sky as the lightning slashed through the dark clouds. I raised my dagger, ready to bleed every last one of them if they dared try dragging me back to that monster.
But then—like the shadows themselves teared open—someone appeared.
One blink and a vampire’s head hit the ground with a thud, body slumping beside it. Blood sprayed across the ground as the rain began to fall from the skies. And there he stood.
Malrik.
His crimson eyes burned darker than the blood around us, alive with something feral. Wet black strands of hair clung to his face, and every line of him radiated a brutal mix of rage and wicked, sadistic pleasure.
He looked like wrath incarnate.
“You have got five seconds to drop to your knees, beg my little witch for her forgiveness, and run. Or I’ll rip the skin off your bones and feed you your own heart.”
He didn’t even count.
The vampires shrieked as their eyes burst, blood splattering everywhere.
Dark veins blackened beneath their skin.
One crumpled to the floor, convulsing as blood gushed from his mouth and ears.
The fool who dared threaten me didn’t even get a chance to plead.
Malriks' hand clamped around his face, fingers digging into flesh, as he loomed over him like death incarnate.
“I warned you,” he growled, teeth bared, fingers sinking into the vampire's jaw. With a brutal twist, bone splintered and tore free, the sound sickeningly sweet in the quiet. He tossed the ruined body aside like it was nothing, eyes already hunting the next who dared breathe wrong in my direction.
Malrik was the devil in disguise, and he was out for blood.