Amma gasped at the nonchalance of his words. “Again? You’ve…you’ve killed him before?”
“Well, there was an accident—he fell off the parapet at the keep, and it’s quite a long way down.”
“But he has wings.”
“He does now, I suppose because his new body thought it needed protection from being kicked off something high this time around.” The blood mage had forgotten all his ire, a wistful grin sliding up his face.
“That’s awful,” she hissed.
He chuckled. “It certainly wasn’t my proudest moment, but I was only eighteen or so. And he comes back, obviously, not that it’s a great loss when he’s gone. You certainly won’t miss him, will you?”
“I…” Amma searched the ground, heart beginning to race. No, she wouldn’t miss the imp who had done nothing but call her terrible things and cause her misery, but she didn’t want him put to death because of her. “You’re not really going to kill him, are you?” And then another familiar feeling began to crawl over the back of her throat and burn in her eyes.
He shrugged. “Why not?”
“It’s just…” Amma took in a staggered breath. If it was so easy for him to kill off an infernal being, it was going to be even easier for him to do the same to her when the time came. She took a step back and sat on the bed with a whimper.
Any amusement Damien had at the thought of ending Kaz was wiped off his face. “What are you doing?”
“What do you think?” Amma coughed out, wetness spilling onto her cheeks.
“Oh, no, no, none of that again. Donotstart crying.”
“What do you care?” she muttered, wiping at her face, dirt coming away with the tears.
“I don’t,” he growled, turning from her. “I just can’t possibly understand what would possess you to shed tears for that horrid, little imp.”
“It’s just that,”—she sniffled—“that…” Amma blinked through the blurriness, unable to find the words that it was justeverything, and it was all really quitea lot.
Damien waited impatiently for her to compose herself, and then snarled, “Oh, for fuck’s sake,sanguinisui, stop crying right this instant.”
Amma inhaled sharply, breath hitching. The sting in her eyes was gone as was the stuffiness in her nose, yet the desire was still there, burning even deeper in her chest, as if on the verge of a sneeze yet incapable of letting it out. Her throat swelled with a sound that wouldn’t come, and she looked around for help, anything to relieve the powerful ache buried inside, clawing to be free. When there was nothing, she stomped a foot and squealed. “Now I’m not even allowed to cry?”
He looked absolutely incredulous. “Do youwantto?”
“No!” she spat back, her face so hot she knew tears would follow if they could, but instead there were only angry prickles running under her skin like talons clawing to get out.
“Well, then you are very welcome, though shouting at me is hardly appropriate gratitude.”
“Gratitude?” Amma squeezed the edge of the bed until her knuckles went white. “By all the gods of light, you’re just the absolute worst, you know that?”
Damien scoffed, but looked like she had struck him. “Me? I’m offering to put down the cause of your suffering.”
“You think this is all because of Kaz?” She gestured to herself and the wreck she knew she looked.
“Thatiswhat you said, though I am unsurprised to misunderstand,” he grumbled.
“Me too,” she grumbled back.
“And what, pray tell, doesthatmean?” Damien took a few steps toward her, arms still crossed tightly over his chest.
She mimicked him by crossing her own arms and glared up from her spot on the bed, her anger only intensifying. “I don’t know, what doyouthink it means?”
He narrowed his eyes even more, stepping a bit closer, but this time she did not relent and shrink away. This time she was mad, and if she was going to die, she may as well stay that way. “You know,” he finally said, a mocking bite to his voice, “you were much more pleasant when we first met.”
And that was all she needed. Amma saw red, jumping to her feet and pushing up onto her toes to get right into the blood mage’s face. “Oh, you mean before you promised to kill me? When I wasn’t your prisoner? When you couldn’t control everything I do? When I could at least cry if I wanted to?”
Damien snarled at her then threw up his hands. “Fine, be miserable and sob yourself to sleep.Sanguinisui, cry your heart out for all I care.”
