Page 56 of Their Pretty Little Monster

A sudden movement next to him catches my eye. Emerging from inside is Nyko, the blades he’s tucking into his belt catching the light. Killian is busy fiddling with something in his hand. He presses his palm to the side of his neck, sticking something white to his flesh, which vanishes into his skin almost immediately. He turns to Nyko and does the same. Nyko tilts his head aside, accepting the gesture, then unleashes a howl and suddenly leaps over the railing, disappearing into the dark waters below.

I gasp, gripping the balcony railing. Moments later, Killian follows suit, diving into the sea with the same fluid movement. They vanish from sight, leaving only ripples in the water.

I stand there, feeling the cool breeze tug at my hair, trying to process what I’ve just witnessed, what I’ve heard. The boat appears still, not traveling, the night eerily calm.

What are they doing?

A sick feeling stirs in my gut as I turn to go back inside. I catch sight of my reflection in the glass doors. Violet eyes glow back at me.

My violet eyes.

I pause and stare at myself, freezing in place.

“I’m changing too quickly.”

It’s the same hue that’s deepened the color of my hair. I run my fingers through the strands, unable to ignore how much darker they are now.

How long before I turn into a full monster? It shouldn’t scare me, but losing control does. There’s no way I can ever return to Nightingale Village with how different I’ve become, and that hurts.

Fear grips me as I stand there, staring at my reflection, while the weight of what’s coming for me presses down on my shoulders.

Exhaling loudly, I turn away from the door and head inside, yet my reflection stays with me. That same reminder of how out of control my life really is. I slip back into bed, curling up under the blankets, feeling more lost than ever. I don’t think I can sleep, not when I’m worried about what truths are coming my way.

Whether I want them to or not…

Nyko

The great sea of Nerya swallows me whole, its chilling embrace snapping around my body like a thousand tiny needles. Named after the first Queen of Blight, these waters are ancient, powerful, and treacherous. And why we’re going hunting.

Most of our land is now submerged, but the course Howler’s on keeps us over the original ocean, a vast abyss beneath us.

Muscles taut, my senses heighten, the magic gills on my neck start to pulse. The first breath of water I suck into my lungs always feels like drowning. My body rebels against the intrusion, lungs seizing up. A few moments later, the sensation regulates, and I breathe easily underwater.

An explosion of water surges past me as Killian zips by, a blur of blue against the dark ocean. His powerful arms slice through the sea, legs kicking with incredible speed, propelling him forward effortlessly.

He’d wanted to hunt tonight, and I haven’t seen him starve for a kill in years. When he came to my room, he’d been bouncing on his toes, pent-up energy radiating off him in waves.

“I’m ready to fucking destroy something,” he’d said. “I feel like I could carry the damn ocean on my back.”

Never one to turn down the chance for a fight, I leapt at the chance to join him. Now, I pump my legs and arms, catching up to him.

Killian’s different, moving faster underwater than usual. I typically leave him behind, eating my dust. Tonight, I’m fighting to keep up with him. What the fuck, Killian?

With the light strapped to my head, the beam carves through the darkness, as does Killian’s, making following him easy.

He fucked Sage last night; that thought is massive in my thoughts. I smelled her on him the moment I opened the door to him. Jealousy still burns inside me that he got to that sweet girl first, and here I am, craving her like a damn fool. After inhaling her scent on him, I knew without a doubt what I had to do—make her mine as well. She just doesn’t know it yet, and that was part of the reason I agreed to go hunting in the middle of the damn night.

Fish glide around us, translucent bodies, making it easier for them to hide from predators. But they’re not what I’m searching for tonight. I dive deeper, Killian right ahead of me. The adrenaline coursing through me is intoxicating, yet that nagging jealousy beneath it all drives me to move faster. Chest pumping, I scan the ocean for my prey. Tonight, we’re the apex predators in this ocean.

The water around us is alive with movement, the pressure deepening around me. Long serpentine fish swish below us, along with small and fast flickering underwater fireflies.

A dark shape emerges from the depths, and before I can make it out, Killian’s already diving toward it. I stare down, my light revealing a mossy green fish as thick as our bodies, its mouth gaping open, filled with arm-long incisors. It’s coming right for Killian, mouth agape to devour him whole.

I pause for a moment, assessing if he needs my help, but Killian is a force of nature, his movements precise and deadly as his swords manifest in his hands. I’ve always thought of them as cheating in battle. He wields them like they’re part of his body, moving with precision.

With swift, calculated strikes, Killian decapitates the creature, the water clouding with blood. He grabs the severed fish by the tail, tying it to a rope from his belt with practiced ease. He attaches a float to it—a device that expands automatically with oxygen and drags the carcass up to the surface. We don’t waste kills; everything goes to feed our people.

As he turns for his next kill, my attention catches something lurking in the shadows, watching me. It starts to circle me, and a grin spreads across my face.

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