I stood. “I’m going to pay him a visit. Want to come?”
“Can you carry me?”
“Nope, but I can help you. And I’ll also take my sword back now, thanks.”
The yellow blinked down at his hand. “Forgot it was there. Thankyoufor kicking it to me. Why did you do that? Is it because you’re not all demon?”
I pondered that one. “No, my demon side was entirely to blame for that. There’s something about you that I enjoy. It’s a shame that you need to die.”
We might have been friends.
Typical. I had to execute a potential friend. And Carmine had executed the other potential.Phew,this friendship gig was tricky.
I opened a portal to the top of the Pinnacle, then helped the yellow to stand and stumble through.
I pulsed my magic and located the red in a room on my left.
He’d felt my pulse and sat on a chair within, reading a book. “Mate-Intended, you do not usually remain in the Pinnacle.”
Not until I’d wanted to ravage Carmine in front of thousands of his subjects. Fresh rage simmered in my chest. I wasn’t shocked. I didn’t feel betrayed.
I was pissed off with myself. Mostly for how much I’dblamedmyself for grinding on him. And he was the mastermind behind that.
This was a fresh reminder that there was no limit to his depravity. He showed no mercy in war, and even less in mating.
“I changed my mind,” I said.
“She didn’t know about the craving,” said the yellow. He staggered to the bed and collapsed on it.
The red frowned at him, then returned his gaze to me. “How did you not know? You’re mated.” His brow cleared. “Partially mated. Oh, yes, that would be a lot. I can barely resist the urge to portal to my mate.”
Fresh screams of ecstasy rocketed up to us from below.
“Why hold back?” I asked. “Especially when you need to listen to that?”
“Because my mate has responsibilities tomorrow that she cannot be exhausted for. I cannot keep her up all night pleasuring her. And if I go, then I will not be able to draw away until the craving leaves me.”
I whipped out my magic to drag another chair into the room. “So what’s your deal? Why does a week make so much difference?”
He returned my regard. “Does it matter? You must kill me anyway?”
I nodded. “Yes, I must. But I am curious how much a week can matter in the scheme of a person’s death.”
“Would you not wish for another week with your loved ones?” he asked.
My stomach plunged. “I would. That is valuable beyond measure.”
The red didn’t reveal much, but his breaths were uneven. His fate upset him. “I did not enter Tiers on a whim, Mate-Intended. I entered to win. I bribed the coordinators to tell me who hadentered. I didn’t enter until the last moment, when I was sure that I truly had a good chance to win. I would not have entered otherwise.”
I blew out a breath. “Except someone else entered at the last moment.”
He dipped his head. “And from the moment you revealed yourself before the first round, I knew that my gamble had been for naught. I would die. I have spent the last three weeks wondering what kind of fool I was that I thought entering Tiers was worth losing months more with my family. I have made a grave mistake.”
Any time at all with our loved ones was precious indeed. “Why only months more, demon?”
“Months more with my son,” he answered after a beat.
Our predicament was an unusual one, and neither demon would have been so forthcoming with me if they didn’t know death was racing to meet them in one week. I asked, “He’s sick?”
