Page 75 of Princess Avenged

Flame retrieves it, throwing it onto the roaring campfire.

“Fuck, man.” Crusher takes a small step toward me. “Who the hell were you planning to use that stake on?” The hurt in his eyes is clear, and the lack of trust in his voice rips me in two.

I look down. “I should have used it on myself.” Leaving the men, I race through the woods and then dive off the high cliff I discovered that first night. The cold water takes my breath as I cut through the surface.

I’ll swim, stay well out in the lake until the sun rises, and then spend another day in that cave. If I had any courage, I’d stay in the water past sunrise, letting its rays burn me each time I come up for air.

Chapter

Thirty-Two

Ana

Istare out the window of the private jet, my second time flying with windows and my first time flying in daylight. The earth beneath us fills me with amazement. So much wide-open space. So many different colors, and they grow in detail as the world comes closer and closer.

The plane is dropping. We’ll be reaching our destination soon. We’re headed somewhere in Arizona. I barely heard its name when Ember told me. I was so overwhelmed by hurt and fear.

It’s been hours since Phil attacked me. And attack is the only word I can think of to describe what happened. And the way Phil looked at me was even worse than what he did and threatened to do. I saw no trace of Phil in the eyes of the vampire who slammed me against that door.

Back when Phil hated me—or was feigning hate to cover how he really felt—even then, I could see who he truly was beneath all that menace.

“You okay?” Blade’s voice draws me out of my thoughts, and my eyes away from the sights below the plane.

I nod.

“Can I sit?” His eyes are so full of hope.

Speaking of hurt, Blade was crushed when I told him I wanted time alone on this flight. Time to think and to process all that happened, without the temptation of Blade to distract me from my pain.

We had sex before leaving the lake. Ember, like me, hasn’t learned to tame the intense urges vampires feel after feeding. Some vampires never learn to, or don’t even try. For Ember, it’s because she was so recently turned, whereas for me… My sexual urges never emerged as anything recognizable, until I met the brothers.

My body heats at the thought.

“Of course you can sit,” I tell Blade, and then raise the armrest that divides the generously sized seats.

Bending to accommodate his height, Blade slides in next to me.

“Please fasten your seatbelts,” the pilot says over the intercom. “We will be landing in Sedona soon.”

Within minutes, the earth rises to meet the wheels of the jet, and my chest fills with hope.

Today I will learn how we kill that demon. Today I’ll learn how to get back the man that I love.

Ana

The orange-red rock beneath me radiates warmth. Leaning back on my arms, I smile as I take in the view. The Arizona scenery has lifted my mood and filled me with even more hope. How could one not feel amazing in a place such as this?

Ember left the rest of us an hour ago to meet with the council. Heading to our right, she went down a set of stairs carved into the rock. But the stairs completely disappeared as she turned the first bend. I don’t know whether the trail she took was an illusion created by magic, or whether what we’re seeing now is what’s fake. The scenery here is so beautiful, it wouldn’t be hard to believe the entire area is a magical creation.

All around us, rock formations glow in shades of orange, red and gold, and in shapes that seem to have been sculpted purely for aesthetic purposes. The sky above is intensely blue, in contrast to the shades of orange. It’s been over a hundred years since I’ve seen a daytime sky, but I am certain I’ve never seen one this shade of electric blue.

“I wish Flame could see this,” Blade says beside me.

Like me, he’s taking it all in, marveling at the natural beauty around us, and now I’m marveling at the natural beauty of Blade. The sunlight is bringing out new colors in his dark skin, bathing it in more amber tones than I see in the moonlight or indoors. The scars on his face nearly fade into the shape of his cheekbones, and his eyes are sparkling like fireworks.

Shading his eyes, he looks down toward me. “The sunlight’s intense.”

“It is.”

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