On the other side of the open gates is an entourage of vehicles. Dark SUV’s, all of them. IfeelDagon’s presence long before I see him step out of the car. The air is saturated with the oppressive darkness he always emanates.
For once, my heart doesn’t speed. My plans are in place. I have no qualms; I know what needs to be done. My skin throbs with pain, as if in acknowledgement of what I’m going to do.
Cain exits the car swiftly. Greyson meets my eyes in the rearview mirror, then looks away. “I’m sorry,” he mutters.
“Please,” I scoff. “Don’t insult me.”
My car door opens, and a gun is shoved in my face. “Out,” Cain growls. “Don’t make a scene. Be a good girl. Iwillshoot you if I have to.”
I get the vague sense that he might notwant to, though. Otherwise, he would’ve shot me when I was ready to break all of Tobias’s fingers and bash his head until it exploded.
I get out of the car. At the same time, one of the doors to the SUV from across the bridge opens, and my skin chills as Dagon steps out. It’s cold outside, but that’s not the reason a shiver wracks through me.
It’s because I’m seeing him again, but that’s not the only cause. It’s because I know I’m dead, no matter what happens. If he doesn’t manage to kill me in time, I’ll do it myself.
After being free from him, even if it was only for a short period, I can never again go back to enduring him. Not when the one person who convinced me I could trust him betrayed me and couldn’t even look me in the face as he did it.
A boyish grin spreads on Dagon’s face as he sees me. We’re at least fifty feet apart, yet I notice everything about him in detail, as if he were directly in front of me. His blue eyes have blue circles beneath them, signaling his lack of sleep. His hair is imperfect. His tie is a bit off.
He’s unraveling at the seams.Good.
Cain grabs my arm and presses a gun into my side, just as Greyson exits the car and comes to stand beside him.
“Where’s Azalea?” Cain calls out.
“You’ll see her after I have Ember back,” Dagon replies. “The sooner the better. She’s got a lot of wounds that need tending to. If you delay, it’s quite possible she’ll bleed out.”
“Cain,” Greyson murmurs. “Something’s not right—”
“I want to see hernow,” Cain roars.
Dagon smiles. “Let me do you one better.” He knocks on the back of a SUV. One of the windows rolls down, and then, a chilling, ear-splitting scream is released. A woman’s in there, alright, and she’s being torturedbadly. I’m very familiar with the sound of pain. I know when it’s manufactured. I know when it comes from a broken bone versus torn flesh, andthis… this sounds like Azalea’s being torn apart.
Dagon’s smile drops as the window rolls up. Cain’s jaw tightens, and his eyes flash with menace.
“Send her over,” Dagon says. “Now.”
Cain gives me a rough push forward. “Release Azalea when she’s halfway. If you don’t, I’ll shoot her.”
“Thanks,” I hiss.
Dagon lifts a shoulder. “Very well.”
“Walk,” Cain snaps at me.
And so, I do. I force myself to put one foot in front of the other. I force myself to step closer and closer to my death. This feels like digging my own grave, or walking the plank, or throwing a parade for my own death, complete with a march.
Reality fades and sharpens repeatedly, as if my brain can’t choose whether to dissociate or focus. I urge it to focus—just for a little bit longer. There’s still one task that needs to be accomplished.
Dagon’s features light up with malice with each step I take. His lips pull back into a snarl.
He knows I’ve disobeyed every tenet I’ve given him, and his look promises me a world of pain. Something much worse than what Azalea’s going through.
I won’t live to experience it.
“Ember,” he purrs. “I’ve missed you, my love.”
I’m nearly at the halfway point now. My hands twitch by my sides, mimicking Dagon’s. He looks like he wants to make a grab for me.
