Page 20 of Touched By Death

“Back. The. Fuck. Off!”

Her tinkling laughter dies, and her hand flies out like a striking cobra. Flames erupt from her fingertips. She grips my throat tightly, and the fire that licks a path across my skin melts away my resistance. I wish I could just shut my emotions off and forget about her.

“You don’t make the rules here, sweetheart. Not when Daemon is in trouble because of you.”

My heart stutters in my chest. “Daemon is in trouble?”

“Do you care?” she bites out, flames crawling up my chin and dancing across my lips. “At the first sign of trouble, you fled.”

“And you didn’t?”

Her grip loosens, and her brows pull low. “What are you talking about?”

Inhaling the flames of her fire, I shut my eyes. “I came back. I found my way back to you, and you didn’t see me…”

“Look at me, little angel.” Her voice caresses the frayed strings that keep me tethered to her. Even now, my fight is futile as I open my eyes to find myself caught in her gaze. “I saw you.”

“No,” I choke out. “I killed to find you again.” My voice crackles with pain, but I press on, whispering, “I relinquished the last of my Light to be with you.”

“Yet you’re running.”

As my throat jumps beneath her burning touch, I drown in her eyes. “You’re marrying him.”

“Sometimes,” she says cruelly, “wingspan doesn’t make a queen.”

“But it does capture a heart. Enjoy your loveless seat next to the devil while he searches the crowd for me.” My hands fly out to my sides, erecting a firewall that forces her to stumble back. I stare at her through the crackling flames as the heat blurs the air. “Stay away from me, Dari.”

When Alaric takes a step forward, I cut my eyes to him. “Try to put these flames out. I’d love to see you try.”

As I finally turn around to feed the hunger inside me, I groan. My meal has escaped.

Fucking typical.

Chapter Seven

DAEMON

“Look at you, son. Pathetic and weak.”

My father’s words sound muted, drowned out by the loud ringing in my ears. I’ve long since lost feeling in my wrists. My eyes are almost swollen shut, and a roadmap of lashings covers my sore back. I’ve been deprived of blood to stop me from healing. But most of all, I’ve been starved of her.

“I’ve never been so disappointed,” he drawls, hands clasped behind his back as he circles me. “You’re weak. So fucking weak!”

The chains rattle overhead when my father stops in front of me and grips my chin. His eyes fly over my face, and he shoves me away as though I disgust him.

“All of this because of a girl.” The poison in his voice pricks like the thorns of a rose bush, its venom burning inside my veins. He walks over to the desk by the wall and peruses the selection of tools. With his back to me, he trails his fingers over a small vial with a bitter liquid that, when ingested, stops the victim from using their fire magic. I’ve been drip-fed it over the last week.

All it takes is a single drop to incapacitate you for days. When he picks it up, I begin to thrash.

“I hear it’s painful when it puts out the flames in your soul.” Walking up to me, he tosses the vial up in the air and catches it. “Have you learned your lesson?”

My head slumps; the fight has gone. I nod.

“Good.” Lucifer pockets the vial. “What is she?”

“She’s no one.” The words burn a path through my vocal cords.

“Why would she want someone as weak and pathetic as you?”

---