Lots of feline beasts, like Cat-man. Cat-man, who was nowhere in sight, having disappeared after Shadow singed its fur. I’d feel sorry for it, only… nah.
There were other cats with its blue fur in the guard, also a few with greyish gold, and a very dark magenta one, with piercing emerald eyes. Next to the cats were half a dozen birds, similar to the ones I’d seen on the way here, with sharp, pointed faces and beak-like mouths. The beak itself looked quite lethal, with an intense point on the end.
The rest weren’t really like any Earth animals, but if I had to liken them, it would be to something prehistoric. Dark green and browns in color, with boney shield plates around their heads and along their arms.
They were kind of scarily hardcore, and I wondered how long it would be before I found myself tangling with one of these creatures. And who would come out on top when it inevitably happened.
30
The next room in this never-ending labyrinth of chambers appeared to be a gathering area. There was a colossal table, spanning from one end to the other, and it was made of—you guessed it—crystal that shimmered in the twinkling lights from above. The ceilings themselves were up so high that I had no idea what was being used for illumination, but from what I could tell, it appeared to be gaps in the design of the building that allowed light from outside to filter through specifically designated spots.
And, yes, I was examining every single other aspect of this room so I didn’t have to look at the pair already seated. The true mates. Bleh.
The guard pushed up on me in a bid to hurry me along, so I went slower than ever.
“Wow, really love what you’ve done with the place,” I said, chatting to a bird-girl like we were old friends. “I mean, the color scheme alone must have takenweeksto perfect.”
Everything was white. Stark, stuck-in-a-snowstorm white.
A few of the guards started to mutter, pressing even closer as my steps slowed dramatically. I wanted to look at Shadow. I wanted to look at him so badly my eyeballs hurt from the effort to stop them moving, but I was on a mission, and would be stronger than the need he created in me.I had to be.
When one of the dinosaur people got fed up with my game ofwalk as slow as possible without going backwards, he did what no other had until this point.
He grabbed me.
The move took me by surprise. They’d been so careful up until this point to not even graze my skin with theirs, and that made me slower than usual to react. By the time I swung my elbow back to jab Dino-boy, who still held me, a rumbling roar filled the room.
Everyone in the damn place froze. I meaneveryone. Shadow’s power swept ahead of him as he got to his feet. I couldn’t look away any longer, my eyes on the raging beast as he stalked across the room to where we stood. Around me, the animal-people cowered and a part of me almost felt sorry for them.
His flames slapped out first, followed by smoky darkness seeping from his skin. “Better put me down, triceratops,” I said cheerily. “Shadow doesn’t like people touching his possessions.” I lowered my voice. “And that’s all I am, so don’t stress on the behalf of your poor little queen.”
I was dropped, and Shadow went at us. Well, at me because everyone else bailed. His power wrapped around my body and I was lifted to my feet. When I was eye level with his furious, flame-filled gaze, I forced a smile on my face. One of those fake,we’re strangers and I’m gonna pretend shit is finesorts of smile.
“Oh, hey, fancy meeting you here. Can I help you with something?”
Shadow’s eyes traced across my face and down to my arm where Dino-boy had grabbed me. I blinked at the visible bruising, already fading out as my healing kicked in. Not fast enough for Shadow, though.
His flames snapped out and there was a bellow as Dino-boy was dragged back to sprawl on the ground between us. Shadow, who hadn’t touched me yet—I was dangling in the air from his power alone—stepped closer to me.
“He hurt you?”
I shrugged. “You know, it’s kind of a theme with me today. Dudes getting a little rough,shovingme around. I wouldn’t worry your pretty head about it.”
His expression was fucking furious, and I felt nothing but a sense of satisfaction. Part of me knew I was acting like a child. Shadow had a true mate; that was not new information. I should have been accepting and happy for him; this was what he’d wanted for the last few thousand years.
In the great scheme of his life, I’d been around for fuck-all time, and it was stupid to expect anything from him outside of what we’d already shared. It was just… when his power had zapped me, it had zapped my ability to take this graciously.
Now, Shadow got to deal with the same angry-ass bitch he’d thrown over his shoulder that first day back in Torma.
Dino-boy was begging on the ground now, whimpering and crying—in a dinosaur way, which didn’t seem to include literal tears, but there was a lot of slobber. It was sad and gross, and I honestly didn’t need him to suffer any longer.
Drawing on my anger, I slammed my energy back into Shadow. I’d learned this move when I’d figured out how to trace the pathway into the realm. I couldn’t do the flame thing on command yet, but I could definitely use my energy aggressively.
My power slapped against Shadow’s, and I felt a sense of surprise from him, but he didn’t drop me. If anything, his hold tightened and it wasn’t until hismatecalled out across the room that he stopped dragging me forward.
“Darkor, please. Leave the guard alone. They know they’re not supposed to touch you oryour wolf.”
She said that the same way someone would sayyour pet.This woman, for all her light and bright smiles, was a secret cunt in disguise. Call it women’s intuition; I already knew she was a complete and total psycho. All the damn white had been the first giveaway.
