What would he do if I scorched the door? The place was made of stone. It wasn’t like I could burn it down. But a flaming door might call more attention than I wanted.
I was still debating that option when I remembered the key wedged in my cleavage. Turning my back to C’adon, I fished it out and used it to place a four-inch scratch in the wood. Then I realized I had a way to communicate with my uncle. It wasn’t convenient or very effective, but it could work.
“Return it. I beg you,” C’adon said, desperation lacing his words.
I quickly stuffed the key back into my cleavage, unwilling to surrender it now that I needed it, and C’adon fell to his knees with a moan.
“My treasure. Let blood rain. Look at her skin. She still smells like the sun.”
I calmly turned in the direction I’d previously been headed while mentally berating myself for reacting to his demand. Hopefully, his crazy state would keep him from realizing that. I did not want to learn what he’d do to me if he figured out that I was real.
That bone-deep fear to find a way out before he realized that I was a living human pushed me to move faster. The material of the skirt caressed my legs and brought awareness to my lack of underwear, adding even more reason to fear what he would do when he discovered the truth.
The torch I held spitted and sputtered, my rush weakening its light, and that was the only thing keeping me from running outright. I did not want to return to darkness. Thankfully, the six feet of illumination space was enough to see the doors I passed.
I was so focused on my immediate fear that I didn’t notice the creature just standing there in the hallway until I was nearly upon it. Panic tore through me, halting my forward momentum. The light flared. I dropped my gaze to the floor and spun to face the wall.
However, it wasn’t stone I pressed my forehead to.
It was C’adon’s heaving chest.
“She touches me. This isn’t real. Never willing. Why can’t this be real?”
His tormented words locked me in place. If I jerked away, he would know. But what would happen to me if I didn’t?
Fear clawed at my chest, making it hard to breathe, and I focused on not shaking. It took a moment to realize I wasn’t the one trembling. C’adon was.
He inhaled deeply.
“Sunshine. Life. Beauty. I need her skin.” He moved sharply under me like a twitch. “Go,” he said severely.
Heavy footfalls signaled the creature’s retreat. I counted the steps, waiting for them to fade.
“She touches me,” C’adon whispered.
The vibrations of his words echoed through his chest to my forehead, oddly soothing me. I wanted to tip my face so more of me touched him. But I didn’t. I kept hold of my sanity and understood that I needed to put space between us, not close it. However, I could still hear the thud of the other creature’s feet.
“This isn’t real,” C’adon whispered. “Why can’t this be real?”
I pitied him for the raw pain in his voice. He truly was a tortured soul, and I couldn’t help but wonder what had happened in his life to cause so much torment. Recognizing I was softening toward him, I tried to harden my heart.
Broken creatures were still creatures. And the children of the gods held no love or pity for humanity. I needed to remember that.
My arm strained from holding the torch out, away from my hair. The need to drop it warred with the need to hold on. The moment the thumps faded, I lifted my head and straightened away from C’adon.
“No,” he breathed. “Not yet. Return your brow to me, and I will give you the hell you crave. I swear it on my blood.”
I switched the torch to my other hand and did my best not to show how freaked out his words made me feel before turning away. The only craving I had was for pizza. No, a burger. There were zero hell-cravings going on in this girl.
“Return to me,” he said angrily.
Not happening,I thought, keeping my pace steady.
“Look at her,” he breathed, all anger gone as quickly as it had come.
His rapid mood change worried me. Irrational craziness meant unpredictable. Unpredictable wasn’t safe. Then again, this was Hell. I doubted anything here was safe for me.
Making my way steadily down the hall, I ignored the next stairwell, since the door wasn’t the one I’d marked, and continued pausing at the doors to listen. If I heard something or C’adon’s craziness escalated, I passed by. Each door I did open, though, led to a disappointingly empty room.
