I look toward the door, but I can’t see anything outside. “How did you know I was in here?”
His eyes are still locked on me. “I’d find you anywhere.”
Somehow, I know that to be true.
Knowing Marik and Willa are safe, I slowly sink down, sitting on the first thing I can find, a leather ottoman.
“Thank you,” I whisper to Asmo, staring up at him. His eyes are currently locked on the open gashes on my thighs, eyes dark as night as they assess my injuries.
“I’m fine,” I say firmly, desperately trying to convince him and myself.
He slowly walks toward me and sinks to his knees in front of me. I put my head in my hands, holding back the tears. Asmo’s arm touches my knee, and I let out a sob. It feels like the adrenaline has left my body and has left a husk of myself. I want to collapse.
Asmo envelops me in his arms. His hands stroke my hair, and he whispers, “Sh, you’re okay. You’re okay.”
He holds me as I finally let the tears come. I sob into his chest as I consider what almost happened, at the pure terror I felt. My sobs subside and I take shaky breaths as I try to put myself back together.
Behind me, a crash resounds through the room.
My body jerks, and I pull back from Asmo, looking for the source of the sound. The back doors have been thrown open and Marik stalks inside, blood smeared on his face, hair wild. He looks fucking terrifying. He sees me in Asmo’s arms, and that look of pure death comes over him again. Asmo shifts me behind him, shielding me in case Marik decides to go all alpha male on him.
“Where were you?” Asmo’s voice is back to that deadly tone.
Marik scoffs and says, “I don’t answer to you.” Asmo doesn’t respond, instead just waits for an answer. “I was clearly occupied,brother,” Marik finally says, motioning to the back porch.
“You left her alone in here,” Asmo says.
“She was fine!” Marik exclaims.
“I heard her screaming from the portal,” Asmo says, his voice rising. If his voice could spew venom, it would. Maybe it can.
“What?” Marik asks, looking at me. “What happened, Mae?”
Asmo interjects, “An osseris was in here torturing your High Queen.”
Marik’s face pales. “What? How? How did it get in?”
“Did you not think that the cambions were a distraction? You have tothink,Marik. She’s the fucking High Queen, not just yourgirlfriend.”
“Mae, I’m so sorry. I thought you would be fine inside…” He trails off and runs to me, taking my head in his hands. “Are you okay?” He searches my eyes.
I nod quickly, trying to comfort him. This isn’t his fault.
Asmo says, “You were concerned with keepingWillasafe? Not theHigh Queen?”
“Fucking enough already, Asmo!” I yell at him. I look at Marik and say, “Is Willa hurt? I want to see her.”
He nods and takes my hand in his, leading me out of the living room. Willa sits on one of the outdoor couches on the back porch. Elle is there, wrapping Willa’s arm in a bandage. The corpses of a dozen cambions lay around the backyard and on the wooden decking of the porch.
Elle looks up when she hears Marik and me. She drops the bandage and runs to me, wrapping me in a hug. “Are you okay?” she asks, pulling back, her eyes searching my own.
I nod and force myself to swallow. “I’m fine. I’m so glad you guys came,” I say.
It looks like there’s so much more that she wants to say, but she swallows the words and steps away from me before returning to Willa and finishing wrapping her arm.
“Areyouokay?” I ask Willa, eyes assessing her body for any signs of harm. The only noticeable injury is the scratch on her arm, which I saw happen.
She nods and says, “I’m fine.” Her eyes catch on something over my shoulder, and my entire body tenses again, ready for more danger. I whip my head around, but it’s just Asmo leaning against the open doorframe.
