One week. It’d been one week since the first time we fell asleep together and without a doubt, it was a mistake. When he’d mentioned potentially repeating our nap I figured it would happen maybe once a month, if I was lucky, but hardly a night later he found me wandering the halls after a nightmare.
Instead of shooing me to bed, he’d taken me to his study where I found my head back in his lap, hand in my hair as he read from whatever book he was plowing through. It’d taken a whopping fifteen minutes before I was out like a light, his voice working like a natural sedative.
Waking up to his dozing face, fingers still curled in my hair, only fed the blasted ache in my chest that seemed to be growing by the day. After that, I’d told myself I couldn’t allow the naps to continue…and then proceeded to seek him out every night since.
Now that I’d tasted the peace he offered, I couldn’t resist. He was too close, too available, and my resistance crumbled with pathetic ease.
The logical part of me that’d survived through the centuries frothed with rage. I had to stop doing this, before it was too late, but no matter how much I tried, I couldn’t pull away from him. Like an asteroid stuck in the Sun’s gravitational pull, I orbited him despite the potentially devastating collision waiting in the future.
Past experience screamed that nothing good would come of this, even if he was open to something more than friendship. Eventually he would get tired of my snark, or my impatience or any of the dozens of other things that’d chased people off in the past. He’d leave, like everyone else had before him, and I’d be left to pick up the pieces.
Through the doubts and fear, a fragile whisper of hope nudged through.
But what if?
Dimitrius proved on every occasion that he was different. Kind, patient, caring, protective…all things that were never angled toward me, at least not for long. And yet, we’d been friends for going on five months now and everything was still fine.
There’d been no explosive fights over some comment I let slip on accident, no sneers over my occasional lack of manners, and no attempts to change me into someone more acceptable by society’s standards.
Dimitrius, for all intents and purposes, seemed to accept me as I was and the thought was equal parts terrifying and enticing. If he could accept me for the hot mess I was, then could he eventually want more?
The jaded part of me immediately moved to discard the thought, before hope pitched in again. He enjoyed my touch, at least for innocent things. He worried relentlessly when I was injured, carded his fingers through my hair because he wanted to, and stayed resolutely at my side even at my most prickly.
No one had ever done those things before and if he could, then maybe there was potential for more.
Hope fanned higher as I considered it, all the ramifications that may or may not come with courting Dimitrius.
Sex was off the table–fucking duh–and honestly? That didn’t bother me. I’d gone decades without anything but my hand and if it meant I could have more with Dimitrius, it was well worth some absTinance.
Even if all we did was cuddle while he read to me–hell I’d read to him too if he wanted, though my voice always came out stilted–it was everything I’d never let myself want. The ache surged, reaching grasping tentacles outward as I bit back a groan.
I shouldn’t have thought about this, now I wanted it even more.
Pushing all of it to the side, I buried my head in my hands. Soon I wouldn’t be able to hide this. As it stood I was almost constantly reminding myself that he was off-limits. If I got anymore obvious with my mooning over him he’d noticed and even the thought of his rejection was enough to shrivel my stomach to a husk.
He wouldn’t be cruel with it–that wasn’t Dimitrius’s way–but I’d suffered enough rejections, thank you very much. If possible I’d avoid adding his to the list.
Eyeing the door to my room warily, I sighed. No use in thinking about this now, there were more important things to worry about.
BOOM.
Jerking upright, I barely had time to register the thunderous crash before the walls shuddered. Adrenaline blasted through me, sending me hurtling off the bed and into the hallway as blood pumped loud in my ears.
Staff members ran for the front of the house where a gaping hole sat that had not been there five minutes ago. One of them shouted over their shoulder, the air crackling with tension. “We’re under attack!”
You don’t say?
And here I thought the big ass hole in the house was the work of a new interior designer.
Forcing back the bitchy thought, I bounded out the hole, hands on my knives as I moved for our attackers. Swiping my hand in a familiar motion, I whispered, “Celare.” Magic slid over me like a cloak, my fingers blurring as I ran to the front. Whoever these people were, they were mages and I couldn’t afford to underestimate them. I’d use the five brain cells I was in possession of and play this smart.
The closer I got, the cleared my enemies became. A handful of them stood in a line, marching toward the house. One raised their hand, magic pulsing hot through the air as a fireball formed in their palm.
It was always the Exitium mages…
Even from hear I caught the staff’s scrambling, desperately trying to subdue the oncoming mages with powers that didn’t work. Damn it, that meant they were all at least my level.
Shaking off the building unease, I made for their line. There was no time to waste. I couldn’t let them get another shot like that off. Yanking my knives clear of their sheaths, I lunged onto the Exitium mage, not giving him a chance to do more than suck in a surprised breath.
With a twist of my hand, his eyes lost focus, blood bubbling from his lips as he fell with a dull thud. I spun to face the next, only for a familiar blur of gold to slam into it. Standing in dumbstruck wonder, I watched Dimitrius cut through the mages in a bloody ballet of grace and knives.
I’d always assumed when stripped of his manners, Dimitrius would be a terrifying opponent. To a certain extent I’d seen it for myself, but this was something else entirely.
Even without his powers, he was formidable. The knives in his hands flashed around him, dealing the killing blow to two more mages before they could finish their incantations. The remaining two turned all their focus on him, but before I could jump on their exposed backs, one backed away as magic sparked heavier in the air.
I only needed to see the hand gestures he was making for icy dread to drop my stomach to my shoes. I knew that spell and if he succeeded in casting it, Dimitrius was finished. Even an incubus needed blood in their veins to fight and that spell would rip it clean out.
The other mage kept toe to toe with Dimitrius, the blond visibly struggling against the magically enhanced opponent as I forced my attention to the first mage. Dimitrius could handle himself, I needed to focus on keeping his blood in his body.
Lunging on the mage, his eyes wide with shock as my knives bit into his back, I sighed in relief when the magic around us dissipated. Good, we wouldn’t have to deal with a half formed spell either.
“Gah!” Dimitrius’s hoarse cry slammed me around, all thoughts of the mage now dead at my feet fleeing when I laid eyes on him. He was losing ground, fast. Blood trickled from a cut on his forehead, leaking down into his eye, and I didn’t have a chance to jump in before the last mage standing reeled his arm back.
Pulsing green acid coiled around his fingers, a lance of it forming and in my next blink, he shoved it straight through Dimitrius’s chest.
Everything stopped. The chirping of birds, the dying gurgle of the mages nearby, even my blood rushing in my ears. Nothing existed as I watched Dimitrius fall, body slumping to the ground as the final mage smirked in victory.
Black hair hung to his shoulders, framing an angular and scarred face that would have been handsome, if not for the ugly smile twisting his lips.
Ebony eyes to match his hair lifted to me, and then everything snapped back into motion.
Unholy rage screamed through my veins, magic boiling over until it erupted out from me like a geyser as the mage raised his hand to fling a spell my way, unwitting of the hell he’d just signed on for.
Sounds came rushing back, his taunts adding to the cotton stuffing my mind. “Pathetic prosaic should have stayed at home with his staff. You look like more of a challenge.”
Clenching my hands hard enough for sharp pinpricks of pain to slide along my palms, I snuck a glance at Dimitrius’s prone form as horror added to the mix of swirling emotions.
Dirt and blood covered his front, the green magic lingering as the acid ate outward, ripping the hole wider as quiet moans came from him. I needed to get to him now, and if this flea infested ingrate thought he was enough to stop me then he was in for a rude awakening.
Before he could react, I clamped my gloved have over his and cast, “Tollo!” The fabric glowed, magic surging forward to coat him. The arrogant smirk fell as he tried to jerk away, but my grip held fast.
The glove only worked for short amounts of time, but I had something else in plan for him. Digging my free hand through my infinity bag, I ripped out one of the gems I kept just for this purpose. Tracing fingers across the sharp edges, I formed the spell and channeled power in the emerald. “Corrumpebant!”
Energy burst into the gem, my fury making it tremble against my palm as its surface swirled with the spell cast into it. Not giving him a chance to dodge or run, I shoved the gem into his chest.
Fingernails clawed at my hand as he scrabbled uselessly, trying to stop the spell before it could attach, but I held tight until I felt the spell snap into place. Pulling my hand back, I watched as the emerald glowed, bathing me in green light as it sucked his power out, feeding the spell and neutralizing him all at once.
He staggered back, still trying to claw at the gem as pained screamed echoed in the clearing. I paid him no mind, ignoring the wave of satisfaction at his pain to all but throat him toward one of the staff members.
“Take him and do not remove that gem!”
The spell would hold him until the gem was removed, which meant I could focus on Dimitrius.
Dropping at his side, I stroked his cheek, my other hand hovering over his chest nervously. The acid ate through muscle, the putrid scent making bile churn in my gut as I called my magic to the surface again. I couldn’t heal him, but I could at least neutralize the acid.
Lingering over the worst of the damage, I choked. “Restituere.” Like water over a rock, my magic slid out, the bubbles of acid slowly disappearing until only the grotesque wound stayed in sight. It stretched nearly across his chest, the red of muscle and white of bone pulling a gag from me even as I called.
“Someone prepare a medical bed!”
The staff jumped to obey, two of them coming to help me carry him inside. Every second it took us to settle him on the bed was one too many. Hands pulled me away, giving the house doctor room to work as I struggled to breathe through the maelstrom ripping through my soul.
I couldn’t do anything!
I couldn’t see threats like this coming like Seraphina, I couldn’t incinerate the enemy like Vladimir, hell I couldn’t even heal like him despite my magic being labeled support. The only thing I could do was sit and watch as the staff desperately tried to save Dimitrius.
Sliding down the wall nearby, the truth hit. I’d been called useless since the day my magic performed its grand debut, but never had I truly felt it. Until today.
Self hate battled with despair, spiraling ever higher as the staff backed away a minute later. Tears misted their eyes, mourning already taking up residence as I shuddered.
“No.”
The broken word cracked through the silence, revealing every ounce of the agony tearing through my chest. Logic said the damage was too great even for Dimitrius to heal, but bitter denial blazed forward, refusing to believe it.
This couldn’t be the end. Now when we were only just starting to figure out who was behind this mess.
Not when I’d only just started coming around to my feelings for him.
Pity colored the staffs’ eyes as one of them–Scott–stepped forward with a shake of his head. “I’m sorry, but we can’t heal this.” His normally tanned skin was paper white, eyes hollow with all the agony tearing through me.
I couldn’t accept it though.
Remembering back to Dimitrius’s explanation of how incubi worked, I latched onto one part in particular. “What about his natural healing? He said you all have enhanced features and that was one of them.”
Scott shook his head, the rest of the staff leaving to give us privacy. “We have to feed to heal and even if he was conscious, he wouldn’t.”
Fear of losing Dimitrius sharpened my tone. “Why wouldn’t he?!”
He sighed, eyeing the blond slowly dying on the bed before looking away, the sight of his friend in such a state too much for him. “Because in all the centuries I’ve known him, he hasn’t fed from touch once. He refuses to and for a wound this serve nothing else will do.”
The truth hit like a truck. He’d made another way to feed because he hated touch, mine excluded. Defeat ripped the strength from me, my legs turning to jelly as I leaned on the bed. Scott patted my shoulder, eyes heavy with tears.
“We’ll leave you to say goodbye, but there’s nothing any of us can do.”
With that, he left. Tears blurred my vision, turning Dimitrius into a blob of gold and red, as I stared down at the most important man in my life. Uselessness festered in my chest, twisting a blade as I snarled. “All this magic and nothing useful to you. I can’t even dull the pain of your passing. I truly am worthless.”
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Shutting my eyes against the sight now burned into the backs of my eyes, I fought the devastation threatening to shake me part.
Only for everything to freeze when a hand cupped my cheek, tenderly wiping some of the tears away. Snapping my eyes open again, I caught the pained honey orbs I’d never thought to see again. Relief slammed through me, ripping apart everything in its wake as I gripped his hand, pressing it closer with a shudder.
“Dimitrius!”
He was awake and with that, a desperate hope clawed through the shards of pain. I could save him. All he’d have to do was feed and he’d heal. Hope wasn’t lost.
His lips pulled into a pained twist, fingers continuing their stroking as he soothed. “Julian, you should not say such things-.” A wracking cough rattled his frame, eyes shutting in agony as he braced through it. Blood dripped from the corner of his lips, the sight sending jitters of soul wrenching terror through me as I cut him off.
“Stop. Save your energy. You can berate my self-hatred later, but now you need to heal!”
It took a tense minute for his breathing to even out, before he opened his eyes again. Pity colored them, the sight adding fuel to the fire of determination blazing in my chest.
“No, there will be no later so I must say this now.”
Denial screeched like a whistle in my ears as I refused to accept it. “No, you told me before that you can heal. All you have to do is feed, right?”
His mouth hardened into a line even as he nodded. “Yes, but I cannot.”
Damn it all, the solution was right there, I couldn’t let him die now knowing that! Bring our joined hands to my chest, I pushed while squeezing his fingers as if the pressure would somehow convince him to see it my way.
“You can because I’m here and I can’t just let you die knowing there was something I could do to save you.” He grimaced, mouth twitching as if to argue and I cut him off with a glare. “No, don’t you dare die on me when the solution to saving you is right here. I don’t have enough precious people to be throwing them away. If you’re worried about my consent, you have it. Take what you need from a kiss, you can do that right?”
Heavy silence passed, only the sound of his rattling breaths filling it before he nodded, though the grimness never left his face. “Yes, but you will be thrown into a lust craze and in my current state I cannot stop you. Even your immunity may not hold against it.”
Like a bucket of ice water, understanding hit. He was afraid I’d molest him and–looking at it from his point of view–I couldn’t blame him for that. This was potentially the first time he’d been truly defenseless since his rape as a child, and I was asking him to feed.
But just because I understood his fear didn’t mean I could let this go. I was immune and even if direct contact removed that immunity, I’d find the willpower to stop. I couldn’t hurt him, not like that, and I really couldn’t do nothing while he died.
Trying one last time, I brushed the newest tears away and pleaded. “Please Dimitrius, you know me. I would never push past where you’re comfortable and I will stop things from going further. Just please don’t leave me.”
Raw emotions pulsed with every syllable, all but gushing with my fear, but I didn’t care. If his knowing about my feelings helped save his life, convinced him to do this, then I’d spill every last pathetic ounce of them. Anything to make sure he saw the light of another morning.
The next minute passed in agonizing slowness, Dimitrius’s eyes boring into me as if looking for something. He must have found it because he nodded, finally giving me the permission I needed to save him. Squeezing the hand clamped in mine, I reveled in the relief battering me from all sides.
He wasn’t going to die today, I wouldn’t allow it.
Inching closer to lean over him on the bed, our mouths hovered an inch apart as I waited, meeting his eyes one last time. Unease swam in honey orbs, but he didn’t struggle or take his permission back. Taking that as his final agreement, I closed the distance.
At first, nothing changed. His lips were dry against mine, the salt of my tears flavoring the kiss, but the charge of his power didn’t come. If the circumstances were different, I’d even enjoy it, but I wasn’t doing this to sate my crush.
Before I could pull back to ask if this was normal, the air changed.
It started as dull warmth, an ember growing in my stomach and with each beat of my heart it stretched outward, encasing everything in my chest in hot molasses. Slowly it inched outward through my veins, reaching up until the haze wrapped my mind.
Every beat of my heart sounded like thunder, the sound magnified until nothing else penetrated. Another pulse of power came, nudging the heat the rest of the way through me until it settled at my groin.
Every inch of skin pulsed with warmth, my thoughts slowing until everything narrowed to just him and me. Through the fog, something tugged at my magic. It was familiar, but not, and when it stroked along my skin, I let it do as it pleased.
Power that was solely Dimitrius wound deep until it brushed against my core, sliding along my soul as if it’d been there from the start. Every shield I’d ever built came crashing down as he eased past them, the steady clench between my thighs picking up rhythm as he sank.
This was night and day compared to our first meeting in the clearing. Instead of trying to fight off his power, my magic welcomed it in, soaking in the bliss he brought as all thoughts of worry and fear faded away.
Sinking into him until where I started and he began blurred, I reveled waves of fascination I could faintly feel from him. Good God, I could feel him as if we shared a mind, body and soul. His essence brushed against me, curious and undeniably him, and with it I let myself slide just a bit more into the moment.
Snaking my tongue out to trace his lips, I bit back a moan when he opened, pulling me inside to suck deeply on my lower lip. The double heartbeat between my thighs clenched, hips rocking into the bed for more friction as the power now intertwined with my magic eased into him.
It drained like sand from an hourglass, but before I could get lost in the feeding haze, a shard of ice tore through the tentative bond between us. Where his curiosity brushed before, fear brushed icy fingers along my spine.
Not my fear, his.
Forcing the haze away enough to take stock of why he was afraid, I nearly spat a curse against his lips. At some point during the kiss my hand wandered to rest on Dimitrius’s chest, thumb stroking without my–and more importantly his–consent. It hadn’t started moving downward yet, but if the blade of fear hadn’t snapped me back to the present I very well might have.
Ruthlessly shaking the daze away, I focused. We weren’t doing this because he liked me or even for stress relief, I was healing him. Nothing more and nothing less. That traitorous infatuation threatened to branch out again, a flash of his surprise coming as he felt it.
Fuck, I hadn’t considered this when I’d offered to heal him. To be fair I didn’t know he’d be able to feel me like this. I doubted it would change my decision, but knowing he could feel my pathetic crush would have been nice ahead of time.
Forcing aside the frustration, I steeled myself. It didn’t matter, as long as he was alive I’d face his rejection like the grown woman I was. Forcing my hand off his chest, I shoved it into the sheets below him and braced.
His fear faded back, curiosity taking its place as he reached carefully through the bond, tracing along all my broken edges. It should have made me happy, feeling him like this, but it only confirmed what I already knew.
He didn’t desire me, just like I’d assumed, and that confirmation burned. The lance of pain blitzed through the bond before I could stop it, his emotions freezing mid brush as it hit him. I didn’t have time to try to hide–though where exactly I could hide from him when we were like this, was a mystery–before he brushed the hurt.
Concern and confusion bloomed as he stroked over my hurt, trying to trace it back to the cause. After a second of exploration, he managed it, his essence winding around my fear of rejection and pulling. Air ripped from my lungs as it snapped to the surface, covering both of us as it writhed to life.
And underneath that was my infatuation, the stupid thing trying to reach out for him through the fear choking us both. He ignored the fear, focusing entirely on the ache now flowing freely between us as it seeped out through the weak restraints I’d kept it behind.
When he stroked along that too, shame sank through me. He knew everything now. My fear, my crush, and the pathetic hope I’d cared that we could be more. The urge to pull back, to lick my wounds in solitude, was immediately doused.
He needed my energy to heal and I wasn’t about to take it from him for wounded pride. With that firmly in mind, I braced for his rejection and waited. Only, it didn’t come.
After the initial surprise of having my feelings all but shoved against his own, he eased through me again, twining around the burning hope as one would curl hair around their fingers. The affection burned hotter at his attention, expanding outward as I fought the humiliation washing over me in waves.
If you could reject me and get it over with, that would be great. The thought slid through and I only realized he heard it when he stiffened under me. Shit, apparently it wasn’t just emotions we were sharing right now.
Before I could pull back emotionally, his hands trailed up to tangle in my hair, dragging me closer as his tongue wound around mine and sucked. Another pulse of lust curled in my groin, but I didn’t focus on that.
Instead of the rejection I braced for, something new slid against the bond, something warm and pulsing and everything I’d ever wanted. It seeped into every crack in my heart, filling it in a way I’d only dreamed of as Dimitrius’s affection rose to match mine.
Disbelief and awe sparked as his comfort, his care, swept over me, soothing the fear still faintly lingering on the edges. He stroked along old and new pains alike, wiping them away until the last of my defenses fell.
His lips pulled away, but the bond stayed intact, our emotions melding until there was no me or him, just us. Every flash and tug of warmth was met with another until my head swam from it all. Feeling him like this–with the knowledge I wouldn’t have that with anyone else–was my new drug of choice.
I’d barely known him a handful of months and he already had me wrapped tightly around his finger. What kind of damage could he do if set his mind to it? Would it get worse the longer we were together?
Doubts chilled the bond, sickly snakes choking my previous happiness as an old memory floated to the surface against my will.
Never give anyone your heart. They will drop it, every time.
My mother hadn’t been wrong yet. My past attempts for a connection like this had all ended in miserable, painful failure. Who’s to say Dimitrius would be any different? Knowing him he wouldn’t even do it on purpose, but it would hurt all the same.
Dimitrius himself hovered on the edges of my thoughts, undoubtedly picking up on all of them, before he started to pull back. I wanted to chase after him, keep us in this suspended moment of peace where I belonged somewhere, but I forced that down. I’d face what came next like the grown woman I was, not the cowering child I felt like.
The last of the bond disappeared and I opened my eyes, disoriented from the near out of body experience that’d been. Dimitrius’s eyes all but glowed–not from feeding, but with the emotions lingering just under the surface. Risking a glance down at his chest, I shuddered at the healed skin.
Good, I didn’t have to worry about him dying on me today.
As quickly as the thought came, another hit, dousing my relief and replacing it with sick fear. He knew everything now. Nothing had been hidden from him and as I dragged my eyes up to his, I swallowed around the knot in my throat.
Moment of truth time.
Squaring my shoulders, I waited for his reaction. When we’d been twined it hadn’t felt like he was repulsed by my infatuation, but who knows. Maybe that was my own hope twisting things. However he reacted now was the truth and I was ready for it. Or as ready as I could be.
Dimitrius set me back, inching up to sit until we were eye level. One of his hands brushed my arm, trailing up to cup my cheek as I leaned in on instinct. He caught that, his lips twitching up as he hummed quietly, afraid to speak louder and break the moment.
“You care for me.”
His tone rang with disbelief, as if he couldn’t quite believe it himself. I’d find it amusing if I weren’t pants shittingly terrified of what came next. Because yes, yes I did and there was nothing I could say to dispute that. We’d been on person and nothing had been hidden from him. So instead of lying in an attempt to save my pride, I nodded.
“Yeah…what you gonna do about it?” I put on the false bravery I’d worn dozens of times, but this time it fell flat, twinges of my fear coming through as he tipped his head. Searching eyes took me in, something soft in them stroking along my nerves, before he smiled.
Calloused hands tightened on my cheeks, stroking softly as he leaned in. When hardly an inch of space remained, his breath touching my lips, he spoke. “This.”
Then he closed the distance and this time, no energy shift followed. Without the cloud covering my mind, I felt every brush of lips, every puff of breath, and when one of his hands trailed down to stroke my back, I melted.
His tongue traced the seam of my lips, snaking inside as the hand in my hair tightened, shifting us just enough for your mouths to slide together. Nerves bled into surprise, then elation as he pulled me closer, sucking on my tongue as if he’d die if he stopped.
When the pulsing between my thighs picked up to a fever pitch and my lungs burned from lack of oxygen, I pulled back. He chased me, teeth nipping my lower lip, but before he could start another round, I gasped out.
“I take it I’m not getting rejected today?”
As much as I’d love to continue this–and I really would–the doubts would nag at me until we got this hashed out. I wanted to enjoy kissing him without that poisonous little voice hissing at the back of my mind.
Thankfully, Dimitrius didn’t seem to mind. Leaning back to give me space, he shook his head, a smile edging along his lips as whiskey eyes softened. “No, not today and not any other. It would appear we have much to discuss, but this is as good a place as any to start.”
Gentle pressure from the hand still loosely wrapped in my hair nudged me forward, his lips brushing my head tenderly before he froze there, words brushing my hair. “You have no need to fear my rejection, because I care for in the same way. These feelings will not fade with time and should you be willing, I am open to seeing where this leads us.”
The hope that’d steadily grew with every word finally broke free of its chains to drown my doubts. This was happening, despite all the reasons I could think of that said why it wouldn’t work, this was happening.
Excitement blitzed like lighting through me, dancing along my nerve endings as I swallowed. This was happening, which meant we had a lot of things to discuss. Boundaries, expectations, my history-.
The last thought swept a wave of ice over my happiness. Dear Lord, I had to tell him about my history. Dimitrius hadn’t seemed like the sort to hold an accident against me, but I hadn’t expected my mother to turn on me either.
Before the fear could sink barbed nails into my chest, I shook it to the side. There was no getting around telling him this. If I did, he’d learn later down the road and it would hurt more if he did break things off. Better to get all the nasTinass out of the way now and figure it out from there.
Taking a deep breath, I gathered my nerves and spoke. “You have no idea how much I want this, but there are things you need to know before we get serious. Things that tie into why my community hates me.”
If whatever this was between us was going to last then he needed to know everything, and that included that parts I least wanted to talk about.
Dimitrius nodded, but before I could drop into the worst of my history, he shifted off the bed, offering a hand. “Make no mistake, I wish to hear this, but not where others can eavesdrop. Let us more this discussion to my chambers, there we can be comfortable. Once you finish telling me what you must, then I will do the same. You are not the only one with things that need to be heard.”
I had a hunch what he’d be saying, but I didn’t say anything. Instead, I took his hand and followed him out of the room. The second we stepped foot in the hallway, the eyes of the staff swung to us, wide and disbelieving.
Scott snapped out of his stupor first, bounding forward with a beaming grin. “You did it!” Then, he gripped me in a hug that made my bones crack. Distantly I heard a low rumble of warning, before he let me go, shooting an apologetic glance to Dimitrius as he did.
“Sorry, but we thought you were dead.” His eyes drifted to the now healed skin on Dimitrius’s chest before continuing shakily. “Good God, we thought you were dead. The only reason you aren’t is because of her.”
Dimitrius’s face softened, a hand coming up to clasp Scott’s shoulder with a small smile. “Yes, she is exceptional, but there are matters to attend to. Does the final mage still live?”
For now. The dark thought came and left, my previous rage inching back as I waited to hear where he was going with this.
Scott nodded, eyes darkening as they drifted to where the man in question was struggling against another staff member’s hold. “We’ve held him. After what he did to you, we weren’t about to let him get away.” His tone perfectly mirrored the bloodlust boiling in me, a flash of approval sliding down my spine before I focused again.
Dimitrius nodded, pride clear in his eyes. “Good, I remember little, but I assume the gem bound to his chest is suppressing his power?”
And that was my cue. “Yeah, it’s one of the highest level spells I have and it requires gemstones to use, so I generally don’t bother with it. Basically, it turns the gem into a magic eating parasite. The only way to break it is to remove the gem from his person. If it stays on, it’ll continue draining his magic until there’s nothing left. Our magic is twined with our life force, so that’d kill him.”
And a vicious part of me wanted that for what he’d nearly taken from me.
The man blanched, his sudden paleness not going over my head as I leveled a poisonous glare his way. He should count himself lucky I hadn’t had time to use some of the more painful enchanted items on him. Now though, I might just need to spend a few hours mixing poisons to feed him…for information questioning purposes, of course.
“Yeah, you prick, you’re never getting your magic back. Be happy you’ve gotten to keep your life, so far.”
His face twisted, the mask of fear disappearing into anger. “I was only completely a job, that shouldn’t come at the cost of my magic or my life!”
I barked a cold, dry laugh. “You nearly took one of the most important people to me thanks to your job. You can die mad about losing you magic. But if you really want it back then here’s what’s going to happen.”
Turning partially to face the staff, I gestured to them. “These nice people are going to take you downstairs and ask you questions. You’ll answer all of them and if you lie–and I will know–I’ll let that gem eat you from the inside out until nothing but a withered husk remains.”
He swallowed, fear leaking back into his face as he cleared his throat. “And, if I answer honestly?”
I sighed, wanting more than anything to just kill him. But we wouldn’t get information that way and children’s lives were more important than my blood lust. “Then I’ll take that gem off before it kills you. That is your deal, take it or leave it.”
His mouth twisted into a grimace and the smallest flicker of hope lit that he’d just tell me to kill him. I’d have his head on a pike out front Vlad the Impaler style for what he did. Unfortunately–or fortunately, depending on who you asked–he shook his head. “I’ll answer any question they give me truthfully.”
Grumbling at the lost opportunity to have a new lawn ornament, I nodded. “Of course you will, be a good boy and I won’t decide to kill you for the fun of it.” Facing Dimitrius again, lest my willpower falter and I decide to kill the wretch anyway, I prodded.
“Now then, we have something else to discuss, right?”
He nodded, an amused smile curling his lips as he gestured for Scott to bring the mage downstairs. Once they were out of sight, he offered his arm. “That we do. It is best if we get started post haste as well so we can commence dealing with him.”
Despite the dark tone dripping from the words, a flutter started in my stomach as he led us both toward the one room I hadn’t seen yet.
His.