Her fate?Ha. The irony was almost painful.
Anger curled Luna’s fingers into fists, her fingertips pressing hard into the palm of her hands.
Nina was doing an excellent job of pretending to be her; no wonder she’d deceived all of them. Looking at Nina was like looking into the mirror and having your reflection come to life.
“Damien assured me we would have a future together, remember?” Nina added, the words rushing out of her mouth. They were the same words Luna had said yesterday, only now they were being used against her—mocking her.
“Just do what he says and you won’t be harmed.” Was that advice or more jeering? Luna couldn’t tell.
Luna stomped her hoof, sick of the bullshit spewing out of Nina’s mouth.
Nina stepped backwards, hiding the anguish in her eyes behind her hands. “I can’t watch this.”
Corey emerged from the kitchen, holding a bowl she had been mixing ingredients in, and Nina’s teary eyes met hers. “It’s too hard. Will you come get me once it’s over?”
“Of course, sweet cheeks,” Corey purred.
Without wasting any time, Nina dashed down the hall, heading to Luna’s room, making a show of sobbing the entire way.
Corey and Marion exchanged a look of sympathy, then Corey said, “I’ll stay behind, in case she needs someone.”
“That’s probably a good idea,” Marion said as Gregory steered Luna out of the apartment into the creepy, cobwebbed hallway.
The moment they entered, the candles on the walls flickered on, dimly lighting the space. The fact the temple maintained its interior apartment so exquisitely, yet neglected these halls, was intriguing. Perhaps demons hadn’tabandoned the temple after all, like Damien had thought. Despite their physical forms being locked away, their spirits seemed to be free to roam and cause destruction wherever they saw fit. Luna’s expectation to find her happy ending here now seemed beyond stupid. She should have known she’d find only cruel wickedness inside of a demonic temple, and nothing else.
Speaking of wickedness, more waited outside.
The Darkened One’s men stood in their hybrid unicorn form, but instead of a single horn, three jagged horns protruded from their skulls.
Clad in red and black armour, they formed a ring around a black carriage. Flames licked its sides and curled over its roof. Small figures darted along the sculpted details, screaming as the demonic flames burned without actually burning.
Grotesque, hairless creatures were hitched in front, looking like something out of a nightmare. Their antlers twisted upwards like gnarled branches, and their translucent black hides appeared charred from the bright red fire roaring under their skin. Primal hunger exuded from their gaping maws, revealing rows of razor-sharp fangs.
Luna’s muscles tightened, bracing for the moment these devil horses would pounce and devour her whole.
The second the door slammed behind her, every head swung in her direction, but it was the eyes that met hers that made her stumble backwards.
There—grinning like the fiends they were—was Harlow and Knox.
They didn’t seem to see through whatever Nina had done to her. To them, shewasNina, and she wasn’t a person; she was a prize, a victory, and pride radiated in every sharp line of their smiles.
Damien stood nearby, locked in a tense discussion with one of the Darkened One’s men. The stranger’s skin was deeply tanned, his sandy-brown hair falling in short windswept waves that looked more wild than styled. A crooked nose cut across otherwise strong features, like it had once been broken and never properly set. When he turned towards her,eyes a shade between green and blue caught the light—striking, sharp, and oh, so very unsettling.
“So it’s true,” the man said, his voice low, curling at the edges like smoke. A smile spread slow over his lips as he straightened, the shift in his posture as much of a threat as the weapons sheathed at his belt. “Nina has returned.”
No.Luna shook her head.No.
Fear renewed in her body, jolting through her like lightning. She screamed into the gag, to tell them she wasn’t Nina, but the words came out muffled and incoherent.
“I don’t think she wants to go with you,” Harlow drawled with a chuckle, like this was the very show he’d rushed back from the human lands to see. He lounged against the carriage, unbothered by its flames. “Looks like that charm of yours has expired, Crawford.”
“Maybe I should be the one to take her,” Knox cut in, releasing his fingers from the mane of a devil horse as he stepped forward. His smile was all teeth. “She’ll be all nice and tame by the time I’m done.”
Crawford’s head snapped towards them, his tail swishing slowly side to side. “Keep running your mouths, and I’ll make sure neither of you has one left.”
Both men straightened, edging back just enough to show they understood.
Luna’s gaze stayed on Damien the entire time, barely aware of the men’s exchange. He was her only hope. Her knight in shining armour.
