“Months?” My eyes widened like saucers. My stomach flipped at the thought. “Angels certainly couldneverdo that.”
“Angels can’t do a lot.”
I turned a burning gaze on him. Obsidian remained unbothered.
“You may be the dominant species. But it doesn’t make you the most powerful.”
He wasn’t wrong.
But I would not tell him that out loud.
“Our power is debatable. Our conquest and sovereignty are not.”
The gargoyle kissed his teeth. I bit my lip, trying not to explode with laughter.
“You are simply strategic opportunists. That is all.”
“I never knew Gargorètti were so spicy.”
“I never knew angels were so puny and petty.”
I opened my mouth. Closed it.
Then I burst out laughing.
Obsidian’s chest rumbled as he joined me, gripping me more securely. I looked out into the distance, yawning as Obsidian continued our flight over the Ouanaviel Sea. Far away, towards the very end of my line of sight, I could just make out the shape of another island. Trepidation leaked into my gut. I bit my lip. Even from here, I knew what it was.
Mortevain Island.
I opted to rest before I arrived. I was tired. Overwhelmed. Had lost everything, been captured, then freed by a creature of myth, all in the same dawn. My brain was exhausted. I yawned, snuggling deeper into Obsidian’s arms. Bones shifted in mine, continuing his sleep. A small smile curled my lips when I noticed his gashes from the Dyabèssa were slowly stitching themselves back together. Thank the almighty lights for the cinderwolf’s self-healing abilities.
I leaned my head on Obsidian’s chest and closed my eyes. It wasn’t until I was nearly unconscious in the throes of sleep, when I heard Obsidian whisper in the quiet dark of the ocean twilight.
“I’m coming home, mi Roi.”
A tightened grip around my body.
“I found the one who will break your curse.Finally.“
A low, rumbling snarl that quaked my shoulders.
“I found the Phantimèssa.”
Chapter 6
Nahomie
“Phantimèssa, wake up.”
My eyes snapped open. A skeletal brush of fingers tap-danced across my shoulders, wrenching me from my sleep. I popped my jaw on a wide yawn, stretching my limbs like a feline. Shaking my head until my braids slipped loose from my bonnet, I blinked until sleep fled my eyes and the dimmed sunlight caressed me awake.
“Rise and shine, our lovely Phantimèssa.”
I gasped, looking from side to side.
The skeletal, sing-song voice made me shiver. I couldn’t see who had spoken. I didn’t know where the voice was coming from. Stars. Was I losing my mind? What was happening?
Again, that gentle touch of unseen fingertips brushed along my shoulders, then down my arms, traipsing across my skin. It was both arousing and unnerving. I swallowed through a parched throat, trying to make out who was in this chamber with me.
