“Tell me, what will make you scream the loudest?” It wraps its arm tighter around me, my arms strapped to my sides within the hold. Its free arm moves upward, revealing a thin and pale humanoid arm. Although it resembles something human, it’s abnormally long, gangly, and ends in fucking claws.
The arm stops, and I feel its claws scraping along my antlers. Tears of anger and fear prick at my eyes. It digs a sharp claw into my antler and waves of pain cascade through me. A scream rips from my throat. I writhe against it, desperate to escape him.
No, fuck this. I’d rather face the cambions outside than deal with this demented fucker. I need to get away from this thing and access my magic. But it digs its claw into my antlers again, and all I can do is scream at the feeling, pure white pain being sent in lightning bolts through my body. Its hand covers my mouth to quiet my screams. Finally, it removes its claw from my antler, and my agony subsides. I’m panting in its arms, ready for another wave of pain to take over.
“What do you think would happen if I took a dagger to your antlers?” Its voice is a whisper, but it’s the loudest thing I’ve ever heard.
My eyes dart around the room, desperate for anything to get me away from this thing. Its hand is still covering my mouth, and I want to kick myself for just now realizing it.
Quickly, I open my mouth and chomp down on the hand. It jerks away, it yanks its hand away from my mouth. I throw myself from its grasp, ready for my magic to flare up, and then blast its ass away, but I don’t manage to get fully away before I’m yanked backward.
“This is for your insolence,” it growls into my ear. My leg jerks as its claws drag up my thighs, shredding my skin with one fluid movement.
I scream, fully and utterly terrified now. I scream for help, I scream Marik’s name, but nobody comes. I can’t even see them anymore. I’m alone, and I have no idea how to save myself. Sobs erupt from my chest.
“He can’t save you,” the thing whispers in my ear.
I can’t think, I can’t breathe.
“Are you going to behave now?” it asks me, pressing its claws into the open wound on my thigh. I’ve never felt pain like this. Tears stream down my face.
I shut down, letting my body go limp, distancing myself from whatever is about to happen to me when I hear a crash inside the room.
Pure darkness overtakes the room, and I lose all sense of vision. This darkness is made of magic. This darkness is oblivion. Behind me, the creature grips me tighter.
Across the room, I hear a commanding but familiar voice order, “Get the fuck away from her. Right. Now.”
The creature behind me shifts.
“I saidnow,” the voice says, his voice low.
Asmo.
My knees threaten to give from the sheer relief I feel at hearing his voice.
Suddenly, I hear awhoosh,and I’m standing by myself. Just like that, he’s gone. That’s all it took. I want to collapse, but I stand on shaky legs.
I quickly pull my dress down and look around the room, but I still can’t see anything. Suddenly, arms are around me again, but I can feel my magic this time. I kick and fight the arms holding me, ready to fucking explode myself or set myself on fire with my magic if I have to, but then the arms release me, and the darkness recedes.
Asmo stands in front of me, holding his hands up like I’m a scared animal, and he’s just trying to keep me from taking off.
“Marik. Willa. They’re still out there,” I say franticly, looking around the room, my eyes wide. I need to get to them. “We have to help them.”
He nods and says in a soft voice, “Elle and Ivan are with them.”
Elle and Ivan?
“What? What are they doing here? What are you doing here?” I fire each question at him.
His tone is calm as he stares at me and says, “The guard saw a group of cambions and was able to notify Ivan before they attacked him. We left the moment we got the alert.”
“Why areyouhere?” I repeat.
“I was with Elle when Ivan let her know. She was in the training room downstairs while I was working out in the training center. When she ran up the stairs and out the training center doors, I ran out to her, and she filled me in. I insisted on coming.” He’s still talking in that calming voice, and it’s freaking me out.
“Marik and Willa,” I say again, my voice urgent.
“They’re okay. When we got here, we went to them first. They’re okay.”
