Page 124 of Stone Temptation

“Get out of my house!”

He swung the machete at me. I evaded being halved in time, going for another punch while avoiding a stab.

I heard the other human hit the floor, then Asher had my attacker’s hands pinned behind his back. The weapon dropped free.

The man behind the mask grunted, struggling uselessly.

“Who are you?” Asher barked. “Right. You’re tongueless.”

“What can I do?”

“Call Seth.”

“Oh. Seriously?”

“Yeah. Unfortunately.”

It made sense.

The masked human grunted again.

I made the call.

“I’m on my way,” Seth said, then hung up.

Hesitantly, I moved forward to remove the man’s mask. The eyes of the mask were creepy as hell, hiding too much, dragging my nerves across barbed wire.

“Don’t,” Asher warned. “Stay back.”

I obeyed, putting further distance between us.

The other man remained unconscious.

The masked human grunted again, twitching, squirming.

“Something’s wrong,” Asher said. “I can smell?—”

The human’s body went limp, head slumping forward.

“Bitter almonds,” Asher finished. “Cyanide compound.”

“Oh, God.”

Asher lowered him onto the floor, pulling off the mask to reveal another bald man with flame tattoos. His mouth hung open, foamy saliva leaking from the left corner, and blue fissures spread across his face.

“He must have bitten down on it,” Asher added.

The other masked man thrashed, kicking his legs, then went still.

Pain pulsed inside my skull, my vision watery, slightly milky again. “Crap…”

“Luke?”

“Give me… Just give me…” I grabbed the banister with one hand, collapsing hard onto the stairs. Their edges played havoc on my lower back.

Cold. Ice. The place of glass and dying snakes manifested around me, trapping me in the hellish prison once again.

“It hurts,” I whimpered, trying my best to stay upright.

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