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“You can regrow limbs? Cool,” Raiden says, breaking the tension. “You can be an all-you-can-eat buffet for Emrys!” He yelps when Kitt kicks him, sending him flying through the air as I wince, but Ferol laughs.

“Kinky. It gives ‘eat me’ a whole new meaning.” She snuggles closer, and I force myself to relax. I won’t move from this spot for as long as she needs me, despite my own feelings. The others quieten down as she falls to sleep. They make the inside warm and cosy before Torrin starts on watch, and the others spread out to rest.

We only have forty miles or so left, Kitt says.

We’ll be there tomorrow, Bram concludes. Are we really going to hand her over to them to kill?

Or we’ll kill her, Raiden adds. It’s the job.

Remember, we need to break the bond first, Kitt responds, but he seems tired, and his response is automatic rather than angry.

You think she will be okay? My voice is quiet, even in their heads, and they all look at me.

She’ll be fine. Ferol is one thing and one thing only—a badass survivor. Raiden chuckles. Besides, she didn’t seem to mind your little feast show. I don’t know if that’s the mate bond or what, but I’d make the most of it.

Idiots, I grumble, but a smile graces my lips.

She groans and flops down, crawling across me and curling into the bed, her feet on my lap. “You all think too loudly,” she grouses.

Kitt shakes his head, but we fall silent, trying our hardest not to think and disturb her. I move slightly to give her more room, and the bone, her bone, pokes me in the side. Carefully extracting it from the bed, I hold it up, debating what to do with it. I can’t discard it. It’s her sacrifice to me. That’s when an idea comes to mind. Sliding a knife from my boot, I carefully begin to carve it.

Hours later, when I’m done, I flip a bone knife effortlessly in my hand.

I’ll never forget her sacrifice or her loyalty.

CHAPTER

THIRTY-THREE

When my body heals, it goes into a deep sleep, especially with a major wound. I forgot to tell them about it. Usually, I can rouse myself enough to check on my surroundings, especially in Gehenna, but the mate bond must be fooling my senses because I don’t wake up for an entire two days.

They don’t try to wake me either. I’m not sure why, since they plan to kill me anyway, but I’m not complaining. I groan and flip over, reaching to rub my eyes. I freeze and wiggle the fingers of my right arm. It’s still a bit sensitive and raw, but it’s there. “Hello, old friend.”

“It was super weird watching that grow back.” Raiden’s voice makes me turn my head to see him leaning near the fire, watching me. “Handy though. Get it?”

“Punny.” I groan as I sit up. “Where is everyone?”

“Torrin is in the bathroom. Bram, Kitt, and Emrys went hunting for meat . . . animal meat,” he corrects with a shy grin. “Figured you’d be hungry.”

“Starving.” I get to my feet and stretch. Every part of me aches from lying down too long, so I run through some basic stretches, trying to wake my body. My right arm protests a little, but I push through it.

“How many times have you done that?”

Getting up from my push-ups, I brush my hair back. It’s getting too long and needs to be cut again. “I’ve regrown a few limbs or holes.” I shrug. “I’ve lost count.”

The others return, and none of them are surprised to see me awake, but I guess they saw me through Raiden’s head.

“We’ll start cooking,” Emrys says, shooting me a relieved smile. Kitt just nods while Bram winks at me. I leave them to cook, the smell making my stomach grumble as I keep pushing my body until I break a sweat.

“Time to eat,” Kitt calls, tugging me up and plunking me down between Emrys and Raiden. Huffing, I accept a plate. I have no idea what kind of meat it is, but I dig in. It takes a lot of energy to regrow limbs, and I end up eating mine, Kitt’s, and Raiden’s food before leaning back, satisfied.

My body still feels slow and sluggish, so once my food has digested, I start to do my workouts again. The space is small, but I’m used to that, so I adapt. They watch me curiously before Raiden stands up, dusting off his hands.

“You want a hand?”

“With what? I ask, releasing the ledge on the ceiling I was using.

“Clearly you want to push your body⁠—”