Page 15 of To Crave Truly

Torsten sat into one of the arm chairs and I followed suit, sitting opposite him. His mismatched eyes didn't seem to glow like they did when Lori was here and I knew it was something to do with the servitude bond being severed. By killing her, all be it momentarily, he'd destroyed the bond that made her his mistress. She'd been terrified that Mordecai had meant to take her, to use her for something and she hadn't wanted that, so she'd ordered Torsten to end her life so that she wouldn't become a weapon. Once an order is issued to a Shadow Fiend bound in a bond of eternal servitude, it cannot be undone. The command becomes irreversible. But, little did we know, her death was all that was needed to complete the transformation into a vampire.

I hated Mordecai for what he'd done to Lori. I might only be relearning my emotions, but I knew what hatred felt like. It was driving me, demanding vengeance, and by god, I was going to have it.

"My King has released Iver from the Pit to infiltrate Mordecai's hideout," Torsten said.

"What? Is he insane?" Cassian shouted.

"Cassian. Back the fuck down." He turned to face me and if looks could kill, I'd be maimed, sliced up, and dead in seconds. "I get that you're angry, that you want to be doing something. We all do. If Lucifer thinks this is the best option, then we have to trust him."

The dragon shifter strode towards me, fury burning brightly in those blue orbs. I stood up to meet him in the middle of the room, standing toe to toe with him.

"How can we trust the demon? Iver has been in that hole for centuries. He's probably just as insane as the other two."

I was about to answer but Torsten cut me off.

"My King has made a deal with him. In return for his help in rescuing Lori, he will help find a wielder of the scintillam vitae in order to save Iveri."

"And what the fuck is that?" Cassian spat.

I had to agree. It sounded Latin, but I had no clue what it meant.

"It's a life spark," Fenris stated.

"Come again?" I replied.

"A person who has the ability to create life." Fenris ran his hand through his already ruffled hair. The guy looked a mess. Like he hadn't slept in days. Hell, like he hadn't slept in weeks. He clearly loved Lori, but he was engaged to Elissa and refused to do anything about it. He was an idiot. Anyone could see that he and Lori were meant to be together. He was just being a stubborn asshat and hurting both himself and Elissa in the process.

"But didn't Lucifer do that with his original creations?"

Fenris pursed his lips. "I don't think so. Doesn't the story say he infused his creations with parts of his soul? Greed and lust into the vampire, magic and pride into the witch and wrath and the ability to shift into the demon. They came from him. He didn't create them from nothing. Not like—"

"The Divine One," Saskia said with a smile that immediately fell when she realised what that meant. He was never going to help Lucifer, so we needed to find another life spark wielder. And if we'd never heard of one existing, what was the likelihood we were ever going to find one. None. Absolutely fucking zilch.

"You are correct," Torsten commented. "My King would appreciate your help. Perhaps your doctor will be of use."

Levi. Of course. I was an idiot. "Fenris, you seem to know a bit more about this than the rest of us. Go and talk to Levi. Get him looking into this scintilly—"

"Scintillam vitae," the Shadow Fiend added helpfully.

"Yes, that. See if he can come up with somewhere we can start looking for this. We need some answers."

"I'm on it." Fenris then shot out of the room. I just hoped this gave him something else to think about other than whatever was keeping him up at night.

I rubbed my hand on my chest. My hound was getting antsy. He hadn't been out for a run in a long time and I could feel him pacing under my skin. He was just as worked up about the situation with Lori as I was, and now that we'd got our emotions back, there was this ever growing need to find her. To mark her as ours.

Rut.

The word was a loud growl, deep in my mind. He barely ever spoke, we were always on the same wavelength and didn’t need to speak to communicate, but I knew that he thought I was holding us back. It wasn't the case, but in his eyes, I was the one who wasn't running out the door to track her down. It just wasn't that simple.

I turned to Torsten and found him watching me with a curious gleam in his eyes. One bright gold, the other a liquid silver. One for seeing life and the other for seeing death. Shadow Fiends were born with one foot in each world, and they could see into the Shadow Realm where a person's soul resided. He could see my very soul right at this minute, and it felt creepy as fuck.

His mouth curled into a grin as I scrutinised him.

"Your dog seems to want to break his leash today," he said smoothly.

A growl left my lips. My hound did not like being baited. Torsten's smile widened.

"Perhaps you should go back to Lucifer and relay that we will help," I snapped.

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