Page 8 of Psycho Devils: Aran's Story 2

It quickly turned to unease. The bright-scarlet flames didn’t jump and writhe to the usual pounding mating beat. Instead, they swayed slowly back and forth in silence, and streaks of light blue glimmered around them.

Any relief I’d felt dissipated like smoke because the slave tattoo had done something.

My hands shook as red streaked across my vision like splatters of freshly spilled blood.

I stared down at the bitch who’d messed with my mating bond.

She brought dishonor to us all.

“How dare you?” I breathed out quietly as I leaned toward her.

Bloodshot eyes blinked slowly as she inhaled smoke. Her expression was bored.

I repeated, “How fucking dare you?”

One dark-blue eyebrow arched upward as she chuckled softly, like the situation was funny. Air left her pouty lips in harsh rasps.

“I told you not to talk,” she whispered.

The surrounding air heated as flames crackled on my skin.

“You have no idea who you’ve messed with.” My low pitch was reminiscent of an animal’s growl.

Arabella acted blasé, but her neck pebbled in goose bumps.

A predator stood before her.

Only the most powerful devil families belonged to Houses, and I was the heir to the infamous House of Malum. An ancient family synonymous with power and pain.

I let her see it in my eyes.

A small shiver ran through her, and I smiled wider.

Subconsciously, she recognized she wasn’t standing in front of a normal man.

All devils could create swords of fire. But only a handful of extremely powerful men were born with soul fire.

These devils were viewed as godlike: the Ignises.

The House of Malum was a long line of these soul-fire wielders.

I was an Ignis, one of those godlike men.

Mate bonds were a unique soul tie that only formed around an Ignis. Our mates were fated to help us control our soul fire.

The devil mate structure was always the same: one Ignis, two Protectors, and one Revered.

Four powerful men.

One soul bond tying them together.

Protectors and Revered only manifested their abilities when they met their Ignis. Their powers were complementary to their Ignises and involved the manipulation of people. But each mating group had unique skills.

Everything depended on how the Ignis wielded the soul flame.

My father’s fire healed people who were sick.

As a result, his Revered could see sickness in the flame of a person’s soul.

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