I’d thought it only obeyed Barbie.
Of course, sidekick mistress,Deathsong giggled.You’re in luck—Barbie hasn’t summoned me yet. If she does, I’ll have to abandon you and go. But don’t get your panties in a twist. Bloodbaths are my thing. I love fae blood! So nice to have variety.
“What abomination is that sword?” another guard demanded.
“The evil kind,” I said honestly, and threw Deathsong.
It flew straight into the space between his eyes. He burst into flames, and I was already dashing toward the guards surrounding Rowan, my claws sinking into the spine of the nearest one.
“Behind you, Sy!” Rowan shouted, his silver eyes blazing as he fought his way desperately toward me.
I grinned without turning, flicking my wrist. Deathsong shot from its former victim and buried itself in the chest of the guard trying to sneak up on me. If I’d let him, his longsword would’ve split my skull. He wasn’t nice, so he deserved Deathsong’s brutal assault.
But more guards rushed us. There seemed to be an endless supply of bad apples.
I threw up my palms. Light exploded from every claw, merging into a single stream—pure creation magic, unseen for an eon.
The guards threw up their hands, cursing and screaming as their retinas fried. Every guard on this side of the corridor groped blindly, stumbling out of my way.
My light reached Rowan, wrapping us both in an unbreakable shield.
He blurred toward me, pulling me against him. Then shouts echoed from another corridor. More reinforcements were coming. I would’ve loved to keep fighting, but my sugar wasn’t in good shape, drenched in blood—his and our enemies’.
And then we were surrounded again, this time in the grand hall near the palace entrance. We pressed our backs together, retreating step by step. His body heat seared through my armor—too hot, his system working overtime from blood loss.
We’d never practiced combat together, but we’d had plenty of practice in bed—where I left claw marks down his muscled back and he left bite marks on my neck, claiming me as his. Our bodies knew each other’s rhythms, that intimate familiarity translating into perfectly coordinated violence.
He struck high; I went low, our movements flowing like one. He defended left with decades of training; I covered right with raw savagery.
We fought our way out, my light shielding us while Rowan’s thorny vines tangled our pursuers. He didn’t want to kill more guards than absolutely necessary. After all, they were still his people, even if he was no longer the legitimate heir.
Rowan’s free hand found mine, fingers interlacing with my bloodied claws. That simple touch sent a shiver of need through me.
“Sugar,” I breathed, pouring every ounce of sex appeal I had into that one word.
“I’d have torn through every realm to reach you.” His voice broke. “But you came to me instead, little monster.”
“You can show appreciation later,” I said, swallowing hard as I saw fresh blood seeping through his shoulder. The sight made something feral rise in my chest. “I should have killed them all. I still can.”
I raised my hand.
“Unless they’re a direct threat,” he said. “There’s enough bloodshed. Let’s go and figure this out later. The fairy ring to the academy is through the garden. We’ll have to fight our way there.”
The garden was vast. The fight would be long and hard.
“Hold on to me,” I said, wrapping an arm around his waist, taking part of his weight. “Don’t go anywhere.”
“Where would I go?” he murmured. “You’re my home.”
Warmth flooded my chest. “You and Barbie are my home too.”
I raised my palm, calling on my light to open a portal. After all, it was my and Barbie’s combined magic that had brought me here. I should be able to do it again. I willed a gateway to form, one that would drop us straight into Shades Academy.
A shimmer flickered in the air before us, then shattered into nothing.
Shit.
I needed Barbie for this. My power was still new, raw after our separation—untethered from a goddess’s might. Given time, my magic would grow strong enough to open portals on its own. But right now, I was like a newborn, one who’d literally been reborn in lava.
