21. Ember
A screech sounded from inside the mausoleum. Ignacus paused, his claws an inch inside my flesh, and jerked his head toward the sound. The griffin barreled toward us.
The piercing pain in my abdomen made everything that happened next foggy, but one second, I was laid out on the ground, a feast for the fae prince, and the next, I lay there alone, the gouges in my abs and wrist bleeding profusely.
I pressed my injured arm to the puncture in my stomach and applied pressure with my free hand.
The griffin took to the sky, the fae prince’s head in her beak, his body flailing as it dangled from her grip. She flapped her massive wings, turning herself vertically and clutching Ignacus with all four of her murder mittens.
Then, she jerked his head clean off.
She spit, and the head hit the ground, bouncing once before rolling into the ring of fire. With another ear-piercing screech, she shot to the earth, slamming him down and literally ripping him limb from limb and throwing all the pieces into the fire too.
Only his torso remained, but I wasn’t taking any chances. I grabbed the dagger I’d been trying to reach, marched toward our fractured foe, and slammed it beneath a breastplate, piercing his heart.
“Em, the amulet is in the fire,” Ash shouted. “Call yours back.”
I did as she asked and stroked the griffin’s feathers. “Thank you.”
She nodded you’re welcome and turned toward Mayhem.
“She refused to leave until you were safe.” He dropped a lifeless soldier onto the ground. “My cousin Havoc is keeping the demons at bay across the rift, but he can’t hold them forever.”
“Go now.” I threw my arms around her neck and hugged her tightly. “Lay your eggs in peace.”
I walked with her to the mausoleum and stood outside the doorway, careful not to get too close to the rift, lest I try to pull Mayhem through again. As she lifted a paw to step through, she turned to me, thanking me again.
“Thank you .” I pressed my palms together, my chest squeezing as she disappeared into the Underworld. “She said we can call her if we ever need her again.”
“A noble beast, indeed.” Mayhem waved a hand, sealing the rift he’d created.
I turned toward the cemetery and took in the aftermath. The remaining fae scurried through the rift their prince had created, but without his power, they couldn’t seal it. Or maybe they could have, but they preferred to hightail it home and beg the king for forgiveness. Either way, it left the job to Ash and me.
Adrian’s coven had long since retreated, leaving him alone with us. Ash picked up the amulet, and he lunged, his eyes still wild with affliction.
Chaos caught him by the throat. “Are you sure I can’t kill him?”
Ash blinked, looking at him briefly before returning her attention to the amulet lying in her palm. “Yeah, that’s fine. Do whatever.”
“Chaos, don’t,” I shouted as Adrian summoned his witch wind, creating a funnel around himself. “Let him go.”
Chaos scoffed. “Ash told me I?—”
“Ash isn’t herself.” Mayhem crept toward her. “Perhaps I should hold onto that.”
She clenched her fist around the pendant. “The hell you should.”
Chaos released his hold, and Adrian’s tornado whisked him away. Ten minutes in contact with the amulet, and he could already fly. What would it do to my sister?
“Ash, give it to Mayhem.” I cautiously walked toward her. “Remember what that one small piece did to Chrys? I won’t let that happen to you.”
Her nostrils flared, her jaw clenching. “He’s been trying to get his hands on this since we summoned him. No. No way.”
Her sigil glowed, Chaos sending his calming energy into her. “Allow me to hold it, little witch. I’ll keep you, and it, safe.”
She tilted her head at her demon. “My powers have been bound my entire life. I deserve a little boost.”
“Indeed you do, my love. But not with a fractured piece. It will damage your mind.” He held his hand toward her.
“You need to get it,” I whispered to Mayhem. “You’re the only one I trust.”
He moved so quickly, I nearly missed it. I would have if I’d blinked. He shot out an arm, gripping her wrist and yanking the amulet from her grasp before she realized what was happening.
She gasped and stiffened, her lower lip trembling for a moment before her posture slumped. “That was…”
“ Lord of the Rings intense?” I asked.
“Yeah.” She heaved in another breath. “Thanks for taking it.”
Mayhem held the chain between two fingers, letting the pendant dangle in front of him. “We should take this home before anyone else tries to intercept it.”
“Yeah.” She rubbed her palms on her pants. “What about the mess?”
Leave it to my sister to worry about a mess when we had a world to save. Then again, leaving a fae rift open and bodies of overgrown insects littering the ground wasn’t a good idea either.
“Guys, gather the fae parts and shove them through the rift. Ash and I will cremate the witches and pick up the griffin’s blankets.”
Ash applied a salve and bandages to my wounds before we worked together, cleaning up the evidence. My sister and I sealed the rift, and we carried everything to the van. Chaos drove, giving me a chance to recharge in the back seat with Mayhem.
“How are your injuries?” he asked, stroking my hair as I lay in his lap.
“I’ll survive. I got a little boost through Adrian and then Ignacus when they had the amulet. Looks like it speeds up healing too.”
“It is capable of a great many things.” He ran his fingers over my injured wrist. “No pain?”
“Not anymore.” I sat upright and rested my chin on his shoulder. “Why haven’t you used it?”
He blew a breath through his nose and laughed softly. “Why would I? I have everything I’ve ever wanted, all I’ll ever need, right here with you.”
“Me too. Almost.” I snuggled against him and closed my eyes. I had everything I never knew I wanted in him too.
My stomach sank as we pulled into the drive behind our building. This was it. Everything we’d been working toward was about to come to fruition, with a few hours to spare. We remained silent as we entered through the back door, a heaviness settling over us as we trudged upstairs to get the rest of the amulet.
Mayhem set the newest piece on the counter, and I lay a massive blue vibrator next to it.
He chuckled. “I see I’ve changed your opinion on what’s needed for a good time.”
“You have no idea.” I waved my hand over it, disintegrating the shroud and revealing the rest of the stone.
Using Ash’s biggest tweezers, I picked it up and touched it to the shard we’d just obtained. It glowed brightly, blindingly. I shielded my eyes against the flashes and sparks, and when it was through, the most powerful magical artifact I had ever encountered…maybe that even existed…lay on our kitchen counter.
I glanced at the clock. “Next steps. We have to start the All Hallow’s Eve ritual. Ash, take Chaos and gather the coven in the clearing. Start the fire, and then meet us in your studio. I’ll prepare the circle and have everything ready for the summoning when you get back.”
She eyed the amulet and rested her hand next to it. “It really should be you who starts it. I can stay and set everything up.”
“Not a chance.” I grabbed the chain and handed it to Mayhem.
She blinked three times rapidly. “Yeah. You’re right. They should already be gathering, so give me half an hour.”
“Perfect,” I said.
We all headed downstairs, Chaos and Ash hanging a left to go outside, Mayhem and I going right to set up what would be our final summoning circle.
He watched as I poured the salt and used chalk to sketch his eldest brother’s sigil in the center of the ring. “You drew it perfectly, yet I felt ill watching it happen.”
I stood and dusted off my knees. “That’s because you’re my demon. It felt gross to draw it, honestly. I hope I never have to do it again.”
I opened the grimoire we’d used to summon Mayhem. We’d bookmarked both the summoning and the containment spells, but I already had them memorized. “Miles and Shade are good to stay at the ritual, right? Since we have the amulet, Discord should be easy to summon.”
“Relatively.” He grasped my waist and tugged me toward him. “When our siblings return, things will happen quickly.”
“I know.” I swallowed the thickness from my throat. “But it has to be done.”
He searched my eyes, a sheen forming over his as he held my gaze. “I love you, Ember Holland.”
I clasped my hands behind his neck. “And I love you, Mayhem, Prince of Hell.”
He kissed my forehead before resting his against it. “I promise to love you every second of every day, with every fiber of my being, for all of eternity.”
A sob threatened to roll up from my chest, but I cleared my throat, chasing it away. “Me too.”
The insistent sob tried again, and this time, I let it pass my lips. He cupped my face in his hands, the intensity of his gaze rooting me to the spot. I half-expected him to make promises he could never keep. To lie and say he would find a way to return. That everything would be okay.
Part of me wanted him to tell me lies.
But he didn’t say a word.
My phone buzzed in my pocket with a call trying to interrupt our moment. I ignored it and leaned against my demon, holding him tightly and resting my head on his shoulder. Three seconds after the call silenced, it started again.
I sighed heavily and looked at the screen. “It’s Ash. I better answer.”
He held me tighter as I pressed the device to my ear and said, “Hello.”
“You must perform the summoning without us.” It was Chaos, not Ash, and I did not like his alarming tone.
My heart slammed against my chest as I straightened. “Why? What happened?”
He missed a beat…two…three, making my stomach sink. “It’s Ash,” he finally said. “She set Shade on fire.”
* * *
The saga continues in Discord and Cinder …
* * *
A psychic detective. An alpha wolf. A forbidden love that could tear the pack apart.
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