I was punishment.
My vision tunneled. My thoughts stopped.
I luscelered around MJ’s firewall toward Alexei, fully intending to shove an icicle through the hand that electrocuted Ronen. But before I could so much as pull on my Infernus or reach Alexei, someone tackled me. My head slammed into the wood two feet from Alexei’s boots. A heavy body pressed into my back, keeping me pinned as something warm slid into my eye.
“Ridigar!” MJ snapped.
“I stopped a threat,” he shot back, digging his boot into my spine.
He was ripped away a second later.
“Get your hands off me!”
I twisted. Aspen shoved away a Dread with stark white hair and dark features. He glared at him, a blue flame burning in his irises. Ridigar matched his fury, white smoke curling around his fingers.
My Hellfire whispered a deadly song, riding the tide of my anger. It overwhelmed me, shoving pressure behind my eyes.
I could kill the Dread in a second.
“Never touch me again, devil spawn,” the Dread seethed.
“Don’t give me a reason to,” Aspen countered.
“Ridigar,” Alexei barked. He slowly turned from Aspen and eyed Alexei, looking bored. “Where should you be right now?”
“Doing the general’s dirty work once again,” he muttered under his breath.
Lighting crackled between Alexei’s fingertips, his eyes illuminated with blue flames and streaks of silver. “Comeagain?”
“Surveying the piss-poor squads,” Ridigar answered.
“Correct. Now get to it.”
Ridigar turned. As he left, I caught him sneering at Ronen’s prone body. Itches scattered across my skin, and I gave in to the Glaciation music. A small spot of ice formed on the stairs right as Ridigar stepped down. He slipped and landed on his ass.
“Careful,” I called, while wishing his neck had snapped in the fall.
He narrowed his eyes, studying me.
Another Dread interrupted our stare-down, holding out a hand to help Ridigar up. Ridigar swatted him away. The bald Dread pulled his hand back, unfazed, and stepped up onto the dais. He had a dark, lush skin tone and kind eyes.
“Xavier?” Alexei lifted a brow.
Xavier nodded toward Ronen. “The general okay?”
Swiping at the blood in my eye, I scooted closer to Ronen’s still form. Our bond fluttered with unease at the sight, fueling my Infernus’s song. “Yes, is he?” I shot at Alexei.
You don’t want to hurt him.
Logically, no, I didn’t. Emotionally, a different persona, one fueled by my Infernus and something deep inside my core, did.
He looked at me with apprehension.
“I was only helping. He was acting strange. He’ll wake up soon, beautiful.” He turned to Xavier and led him a few feet away, speaking softly. “Do you have a report?”
Out of pure need, I rested my hand on Ronen’s chest. The slow rise and fall, his spicy scent, and the rough texture of his uniform pressing into my palm grounded me. The pressure behind my eyes eased, along with the music, giving me back much-needed clarity.
“What did Alexei mean?” I asked MJ, focusing on the steady thump of Ronen’s heartbeat.
