Dark trousers hugged his legs, and leather boots stopped at his knees. There was no sign of damage. Not even his hands had any scars, unlike previous visits.
I tore my eyes from his body to meet his stare. “I miss you,” I whispered.
The sweetest smile pierced his lips. Ry stepped towards me, bridging the gap between us. He didn’t pull me flush against him, but I felt the warmth of his presence. “I’m right here,” he replied, just as quietly. “I haven’t left you.”
A lump formed in my throat.But you have, I thought. I wouldn’t say it aloud, not as tears burned the corners of my eyes. Instead, I used my free hand to cup his jaw. “I know.”
Orion’s eyes softened as he leaned into my touch. But the world around me shuddered, darkening. I pulled away from him sharply.No. No one could disrupt this. No one was allowed to darken our dreamscape.
Ry’s hand fell from mine as he, too, glanced around the space. “Ivy…” he warned.
But it was too late.
I was pulledout of the dream with a gasp. I didn’t get a chance to protect myself as a fist slammed into my injured shoulder. Pain crept through me from the blow. I tried biting down on a whimper, but as the world came into focus and the dream fully fled my consciousness, I was dragged back into my waking hell.
Back to my cell and the male who held me prisoner.
Tears burned my eyes, partly from the pain, and partly because I’d wanted a little more time with Ry. But they dried up quickly at the sight of Dante kneeling beside me.
He cocked his head. Not a single strand of dark hair moved out of place. I couldn’t help but stare at the top of his head, at the amount of gel he must be using to keep his hair so…perfect. Goddess above, it made me sick. Staring at him, so unbothered, so…cruel.
Dante’s lips twisted darkly as he stood. “There you are,” he murmured, fixing his coat with a roll of his eyes. His arms went behind his back as he stepped away from me, letting his blue eyes roam my body. “Get up.”
I glared up at him, hoping I didn’t look as pathetic as I felt. Which was ridiculous. I most definitely looked pathetic, sitting on the cold stone ground with my gear basically ruined.
“You’re going to have to drag me kicking and screaming,” I replied, voice hoarse, “because I am not doing what you say.”
Dante pressed his lips into a firm line. But instead of responding, he took another step back. “Get her,” he said, barely glancing at the soldiers behind him.
I hadn’t noticed them before, but two Fae males stepped out from behind Dante, filling my vision. I didn’t recognise either of them, which brought me some relief. It would have been easy for Dante to make Hawk do his bidding. That would have made me move.
But the two males appeared rather out of it. There was a dead look in their eyes; not the kind of dead look that came with evil men in general. No, this dead look came from intense mind fuckery.
I was grabbed by the arms and hauled to my feet. They weren’t gentle about it, but they weren’t as rough as others would have been. They set me on my feet, but didn’t release me, especially not as Dante waited by the door.
“You’re going to be good,” he said, eyes narrowed. “Or your friends get hurt.”
“You don’t have any of myfriends,” I sneered. “Because if you did, you would have paraded them in front of me days ago.”
Dante chuckled, the sound cold. But he didn’t respond right away. Instead, his hands went to the collar around my throat. For a moment, I thought he might take it off. But instead, it remained. The chain attached to it fell away, hitting the ground with a loudclank. I held my breath as I waited for him to take the chains off from my hands and feet. When they fell away, I felt like I could finally breathe again.
I still had no magic. No inkling of it, no rise of power within me. Nothing to indicate that without the chains, it would come back.
I just felt…human.
“Let’s go,” Dante commanded, moving to the door.
I thought a part of me would miss feeling human. But now that my power—and everything that came with it—was gone, I hated feeling so…weak. Useless. I could barely fight back against the two males pulling me along. My limbs were weak, muscles aching from being trapped in chains for so long. I wasn’t even sure how much time had truly passed.
The door opened, revealing nothing but stone. It reminded me vaguely of the Elysian palace, only less…pretty. I didn’t expect to feel a pang of sadness at the thought of the demon king, and yet my heart gave an unexpected twist. As soon as the shackles and collar were put on, I stopped being able to see his soul. It wasn’t a dark blob in the centre of my palm anymore.
I hoped that meant he had it back. That Dante hadn’t somehow found a way to take it from me.
I couldn’t imagine the damage that could be done to Damon if Dante got a hold of it.
Witch light flickered ominously as they dragged me from the cell. I wanted to look back, but didn’t remove my gaze from Dante, who walked ahead. Other than the two Fae holding me, there were four other soldiers. Each one carried a large gun, and each one sneered as we passed.
No Hawk, though. And no Zephyr.
