And then I realize:Of course it’s a cave.They live in a cave because they’re animals. Because they’re monsters and monsters live in caves.
It’s an accurate and necessary reminder. They might look human in this moment, but they are not.
It’s easy to forget that a dragon exists inside each of them, always there, always ready to inflict pain. I see flashes of it in their eyes, in the way their pupils shudder and elongate, in the way they move and angle their heads and flare their nostrils like they are forever on the scent of prey—because they are forever predators.
“Is our home not good enough for you?” Danhy bites out. “Perhaps you prefer the comfort of a grave? I can arrange that.”
She stares at me with such hate that I reach for the sword at my belt...before recalling that I lost it. My iron dagger and sword are gone.
She does not miss my action. The she-devil laughs and it’s hard not to notice the way the action vibrates her substantial breasts. “Isn’t that precious? The human thinks she is still armed. As though her flimsy sword could have hurt us.” Her laughter fades as she shakes her head, her riotous curls dancing over her shoulders. Would they never put clothes on? “Idiot.”
“It was made of iron,” I counter defensively. If iron could incapacitate witches, I could only hope it worked the same way on dragons.
“So?” Her scorn is palpable.
“Iron weakens witches,” Tage explains flatly. “Not dragons.”
Oh.
“That’s right,” Danhy chimes in, looking supremely satisfied. “It would take a sword of dragon bone, and I don’t imagine you have one of those, hm?”
No. No, I don’t. I don’t have any weapons, but that doesn’t mean I won’tever, and it’s useful to know what it takes to defeat one of them. Even if I have no idea how to get my hands on such a weapon, that doesn’t mean I never will.
“I don’t,” I admit, then boldly, cheekily add, “but suddenly finding one feels like my entire purpose.” To find one and make them pay...to make them suffer as they deserve.
Tage’s eyes gleam with an unholy light at me, and I imagine he’s reconsidering his decision to keep me alive.
I don’t blink. Don’t flinch. I hold his stare like my existence depends on it. Shifting my stance, I notice something give beneath me. Glancing down I see that I’m standing on a large animal pelt. A rug. Several rugs dot the floor of the large space. They’ve made the giant cavern homey with rugs and a trestle table, and a large firepit surrounded by a circle of brilliant gemstones and a few chairs and benches. It’s more of a cavern than a cave, I realize.
“Not the faintest humility to her at all. The little fool doesn’t even appreciate that we’ve let her live,” Arvos leans close to mutter to his alpha. “Shestillwants to kill us. After we spared her life. Wesavedher. It is unwise to keep her—”
Tage swiftly holds up a hand.
Let me live?
His words clang with a horrible echo through me. “My life is not yours to take or give,” I hiss.
“Would you listen to her?” Danhy’s top lip curls into a sneer. “So like a human. All ego and no respect for us.”
Tage keeps his dark eyes on me as he angles his head and growls to the others, “Leave us.”
They don’t move right away, exchanging looks with each other. Danhy doesn’t appear inclined to go anywhere, squaring her stance.
“I said leave us. All of you.”
Finally, they turn and depart, the backs of their well-formed bodies on full view as they file out through one of the several tunnels branching off from the large main space. I’ve seen plenty of naked people in Isstad. Very few possessed bodies so perfectly honed, and I’m reminded again that thesebeingsare not true humans. They’re beasts...their bodies weapons of destruction.
As much as I despise them, I feel the irrational urge to call them back rather than be left alone with their leader. Absurd, I know. One is better than many, but those leaving are merciless—willing to kill me back in Isstad, and still, even now. Ishouldperceive them to be the greater threat, but everything about Tage vibrates with menace and danger.
I back away from him, clearing my throat, our sudden aloneness combined with his nudity an unsettling combination.
Will he never dress in clothes? Will I evernotbe unnerved by the sight of him?
But then why should I feel comfortable or safe around him? Monstrous killers shouldn’t instill me with warmth and a sense of safety.
His voice plays over in my head like a refrain.I did not do this. We are not about destroying life.
I shake off the memory of his insistence that he did not slaughter my village. Why should I believe him?
