Page 181 of Taken By Touch and Torment

Millie huffed, her black nostrils flaring. She slowly moved her head toward me, nudging Scarlett gently before staring into my eyes. I swallowed, the onyx of Millie’s irises seeing too much of me.

My beast lowered, her webbed wings tucking in as she helped me mount her.

“I don’t know why you love this damn city, baby,” I whispered to Scarlett as Millie began her ascent. “I’ve had enough. Take one last look. We’re escaping to the countryside for a century or two.”

The looks on Mason, Sadie, and Uriah’s faces were not ones I wished to dwell on. They stared at Scarlett and me then at each other before going utterly silent. I wanted to tell them they could go back to the victory calls, the laughter and the widest grins.

Instead, I blocked their shock and alarm out completely. I focused on the rushing of wind, the sensation of soaring. I imagined this ride through Scarlett’s eyes. What song would be playing in her mind? Which dreams would she be envisioning?

Perhaps she’d be thinking of the ocean she’d yet to see. The one in the painting her mother had hung in the upstairs bathroom of the family cottage. She’d once asked me if the waters could really be that mesmerizing, electric shade of blue.

She’d asked if it was magick, or if it was the beauty of nature.

“It’s all magick, baby,” I said, kissing her hair.

I cradled Scarlett in the room of music. I heard voices outside, soft and hushed and growing steadily louder. I was studying the colors of the galaxies, thinking about how tiny we were in comparison.

I’d put on Frida and Friends for Scarlett.

“Blondie, please, just give him a minute,” Uriah said.

The witch entered anyway, her green eyes going straight to the blood-soaked girl in my arms.

She was silent for several seconds. Underneath her blonde bangs, her brows creased.

“She needs blood replenishing potion,” Snow said. She wiped at her tears, her features shifting from grief to calm resoluteness.

I nodded, gesturing for her to approach with a bottle.

“Gods above,” Uriah muttered, coming in after her. Sadie joined him, but Mason stayed outside.

Sadie was staring at Snow, her head cocked, her lips in a deep frown.

“Snow—she’s gone,” Uriah said in horror.

Uncorking the top, Snow knelt in front of me and handed over the bottle. The greenish liquid sloshed, smelling of crisp apples.

“No, she’s not,” Snow said angrily over a sob.

Uriah’s irritation melted into heartbreak, joining Snow on the ground.

“Blondie,” he rasped. “Please.”

I lifted Scarlett’s head.

“This needs to stop—” Sadie started, her eyes wide and her power flaring. Smoky shadows circled her feet.

Snow reached for Scarlett’s hand. “No,” she said, her voice fierce and level now. “You don’t understand.”

She locked eyes with me.

“Scarlett isn’t dead.”

71

SCARLETT

Iam not dead!

---