Malakai’s red eyes flared, victory gleaming in them, along with something else… amazement?
I realised, horrified, that he had won.
I was exposed.
The flames licked higher around my knuckles, wild and betraying. I couldn’t hide it, couldn’t stop it. Now they were out in the open, untamed and defying. But there was something else too… I felt alive, healthier than ever.
Malakai’s eyes glowed, red as blood, drinking in every flicker. He didn’t flinch, didn’t recoil like any normal man should. He leaned into it, hungry.
Because he was no normal man, I had to remind myself.
Slowly, he pushed himself upright, forcing me back until I sat frozen on his lap in the dirt. His bloodied mouth curved, too sharp to be human.
I should’ve moved, I should’ve driven the dagger down. But my hands shook violently, fighting to even keep the blade at his throat, the fire sputtering with each ragged breath. Fear gnawed at me, fear of him, fear of myself, fear of anyone seeing.
The fire dissipated.
“No,” he whispered, low and coaxing. “Don’t choke it out. Let it consume you. You’ll see, it feels better when you stop fighting.”
His words slid through me like smoke, dangerous and soft, curling where they didn’t belong. A shiver tore down my spine, because for one desperate, fleeting second, I wanted to believe him.
My breath hitched. The fire flickered again, then vanished into nothing, leaving only smoke curling from my palms. The red thin thread still lingered around the dagger and my hands, keeping me in place. I tried lettinggo of the hilt, but it was useless. My eyes darted from the steel to his eyes.
“Ethalyn!” Lionel’s voice cut through the trees, frantic, calling for me at a distance. My head snapped up.
The others, they were close. They couldn’t see me like this. Not likethis.
Panic surged, stronger than fire. I turned back to Malakai, shaking. “They can’t know—”
“Shhh.” He pressed a finger to his lips, crimson still smeared across them. “It’ll be our little secret, kitten.”
Suddenly, before my eyes, the blood that drenched him began to fade. It steamed, turning into red ash, vanishing into the mountain air. His markings dulled, faint black once more and his eyes dimmed, regular red where a moment ago they’d glowed like embers.
To anyone else, he’d look exactly the same as before. Human, untouched.
Only I would know the truth.
For a long, breathless moment, it was only him and me. Our gazes locked like blades drawn in silence.
I wanted to scream, to point and tell the others what he was.
A demon. A monster.
But the words stuck like ash in my throat, because if I did, he’d spit mine out too.
Fire mage. A traitor.
The knowledge hung between us like a blade balanced on its edge. Neither of us blinked.
“Ethalyn!” Lionel was closer now.
Malakai moved, the magic between us ended and he snagged the blade out from my hands, making me jolt in reaction. His hand clutched around the back of my head ashe pulled me towards him. The other arm raised, a firm grip around his gun.
“You’re not going to—” I began, fear taking over.
“No.”
Branches snapped as. Lionel burst through the tree line, Eve following close behind. His rifle was raised, eyes wide with fear. When they landed on me, lying against Malakai’s shoulder relief crashed across his face. He dropped to my side in an instant, hands sweeping over me, searching for wounds.
