Dane was a necromancer, and somehow, was able to shield us from reading his abilities. All my years of playing video games, and I never asked myself what happens to all the reanimated bodies once their master dies. Even if I’d known, it wouldn’t have prepared me for the sight. Or the rotting stench.
Makes sense now why his lawyer and staff never spoke around us. They couldn’t.
Arson said the guy he caught cutting the power to my house refused to talk. Shit, Dane really was pulling all of our strings, manipulating everything to get us here all along and we thanked him for his generosity. Son of a fucking bitch.
“What about our collars?”
Bell swipes a frustrated hand down his face. “We’ll figure something out.”
We make it through the front door without any more excitement, watching the mansion collapse in on itself while lost in our heads about what a mindfuck that house of unexpected horrors contained. It just goes to show that it doesn’t matter how luxurious something is, a gilded cage is still a cage. The sparkly ones are just better at tricking you into thinking that you’re lucky to be there.
Sophia rouses, staring down at her palms, and I grimace as I see the right one is seared red and raw from healing my mate. With a wistful smile, she murmurs, “It was nice while it lasted.” She turns to me. “Thank you. Even if it was just for a little while, it was a blissful reprieve.”
Carve my heart out and stomp on it, why don’t you?
“Nope, it doesn’t end like this.”
Determined now more than ever, I snag a jagged piece of rock near my feet and snatch Skylar’s collar in a fierce grip, hacking at the seam until it’s wide enough that I can wedge the rock in and tap in Ledger to wrench it apart with rage-fueled adrenaline. It falls in two pieces to the ground, the skin on Skylar’s neck raw and weeping from years of captivity. He tentatively touches the abused skin, swallowing down his emotions.
“Thank you,” he croaks.
“Might want to hold onto that, because you’ll be cursing my name in a minute.”
Without warning, I punch him in the balls.
Those tears he’s been fighting back finally leak out, and I yank out my hair pin, scooping one off his cheek and popping it into Sophia’s mouth, germs be damned.
Because Seraphina may be annoying with her cryptic gifts, but if you can figure them out, they’re exactly what you need.And phoenixes? It’s like Kiara said the day one ripped out my hair for its nest.
‘People think it's their ashes or feathers that make them valuable, and sure, they’re useful to a degree. But therealpower is in their tears. All my years working here, and the only time I’ve seen one cry is when some idiot stole an egg to try and raise it as a pet. One drop, and he couldn’t use his powers for weeks.’
No wonder the Fates paired Sophia with a phoenix shifter for a mate. He can keep her powers in check, and she’s what he needs to heal.
Chapter 32
Ever
Ledger huffs. “Will you stop being so stubborn?”
But Skylar stands his ground, hefting Sophia higher up on his back as we hike the mountain to Mercy Ridge, cut off from our powers until we cross the next barrier. “Nobody carries my mate but me.”
“I can walk, really,” Sophia says softly, and Skylar glowers, tightening his hold.
“Absolutely not. You almost twisted your ankle at the bottom, and haven’t eaten all day. It’s fine.I’mfine,” the dirty rotten liar says as he struggles up the steep incline. It’s a hell of a workout and evenI’mwinded without carrying any extra weight. Pretty sure it’s spite that’s gotten him this far trying to prove a point.
With an exasperated sigh, I shake my head and keep walking.Men.
Myles isn’t willing to drop it yet. “There’s no shame in letting us help, we aren’t going to say shit. You've been locked in a box abused and malnourished foryears.”
“Oh?” Skylar challenges. “So you'd be fine if I gave Ever a piggyback ride? Had to watch her wrap her arms around my neck, pressed up against me for the next hour?”
Several growls immediately tear out of my guys’ chests, validating his stubbornness.
“Swing her around so you're holding her bridal style,” Ledger says.
Warily, Skylar asks, “Why?”
“Just do it,” he demands.
