Page 86 of The Fearless Witch

I blinked in confusion, reaching instinctively for my shadows, only to find them gone.

‘What the hell?’

Panic squeezed my chest, then anger, then desperation, but as Malakai’s words sank in, I forced myself to relax. They were going to return. I wasn’t powerless again.

“So that’s why I’m so weak,” I murmured without realizing that I said it out loud.

Celeste and Malakai exchanged a quick look before she got up and carried the bowl away.

“You got it from here?” she asked, drying her hands on a towel before straightening her shirt. Nym got up, stretching his back before jumping off the bed and following after her.

“Yes, dear, don’t worry.” Malakai smiled at her. “Get some rest.”

She made a strange noise that sounded like a mix of snorting and laughing, then threw me a sharp glance before leaving the room along with the hellhound. I was still staring at the door when Malakai cleared his throat.

“I don’t presume to know why you took her to Hell, but I believe you owe her a proper apology. She’s the only reason you still have a body.” He raised an eyebrow as if waiting for me to agree, but I just averted my gaze. As expected, he did not let the subject go. “I’m not just talking about healing you. Roman does not look kindly on those who threaten her and I’m sure Isaac would agree when he gets back.”

“I didn’t…! Maybe if they were a little better at protecting her, I wouldn’t have had to do it myself!” I snapped, regretting my words immediately. They were true, of course. Everything I did was because the world of the living had become too dangerous for her. I wouldn’t… I wouldn’t have cared if she had more lives but… I could feel the sand in her hourglass trickling down. And there would be no reset this time because the glass was already cracking.

The smile that pulled on Malakai’s lips made me want to punch him. When I continued to ignore him, he got up and took a stroll around the room. The way he looked around suggested he was familiar with the place.

“She couldn’t save your vessel,” he said as he stopped by the table, running his long, pale fingers over the page of one of the books there. “She only slowed its deterioration. You’ll need to find a new body soon.”

Gritting my teeth, I pushed myself up, barely holding back a groan. Despite all my wounds being closed, it felt like my insides were not nearly as lucky. I embraced the pain, grounded myself in it, so by the time I let my feet drop by the side of the bed, it had turned into a constant but dull ache.

‘Maybe you should rest. Our body is too weak,’ Cyrus said quietly, his concern making me grimace.

‘Or what? We’re already deteriorating,’ I snapped. Clearing my throat, I added out loud.

“Not yet.”

The moment I got up, I lost my balance, but Malakai somehow caught me before I hit the ground. He said nothing, thank the fucking hell, just supported my weight until I could stand alone.

“Why not?” he asked when I turned my back to him. “Now that you are a prince, your power is tied to Hell, so you can fashion your own body if you wish. Isn’t that what you said?” I grumbled in agreement, bracing my hands on a table in the middle of the room when I felt like I might topple again. There were books on top of it, leaves, herbs, crystals, and a bunch of dirty mortars and pestles like somebody had mixed a lot of different concoctions. “Is there anything else keeping you here?”

I glanced at him over my shoulder. Judging by the smile on his face, he thought he already knew the answer. I hated how astute he sometimes was, even if it was rare for his mind not to be muddled by Fae wine. Talking about wine, he didn’t even smell of it when he caught me. Weird.

“If I make myself a body, I can’t leave Hell,” I sighed, turning around and leaning my ass on the table. It occurred to me that I was naked, but then I remembered he had seen and tasted every part of me, so I doubted it bothered him. If he was affected in any way, he hid it well. “It will take me months, even years, to acclimate,” I continued, trying to recall the crumbs of information I had gathered over the years. It wasn’t like I could go to one of the princes and ask them to tell me. “And if I visit this plane, I’d be weak, weaker than I was even before I became a prince.” There was a reason the Princes of Hell didn’t leave their domain often—their true power lay in the space they ruled.

“That’s only a problem if you want to stay in the world of the living.” Malakai raised an eyebrow again. I sure hope he was having a stroke or something because that shit was starting to piss me off. “You don’t even like humans, so missing a century or two shouldn’t be a loss. Those of us you do like,” his lips quirked up, “will still be here when you’re ready for a visit.” He strode closer to the table but stopped before he reached me. “You can finally have everything you fought for, Bel. No more serving, no more humiliation or pain. You will sit above them all.”

I pursed my lips, looking away from him. My eyes landed on one of the open books, written in Ecclesiastical Latin if I wasn’t mistaken. The faded drawing on top of the page depicted a shadow entering the human’s chest. I didn’t have to turn the page to see what the title of the chapter was.

Vessels. She had been researching vessels. A doomed venture, for sure, but still, she…

“She is something else, isn’t she?” When Malakai spoke, I glanced at him, but he was staring at the book, smiling. As if sensing my eyes, he met them, and his smile widened. “And once she has a taste of your heart, she sinks her nails into it and refuses to let go. So no matter the pain or the suffering, you can’t help but love her.”

Anger flared within me, mixed with something warm and uncomfortable that was no doubt coming from Cyrus. “Fuck off with that stupid shit.”

“Mm,” was all he said in response.

I couldn’t remember the last time I wanted to hurt him more than I wanted to fuck him, but when I took a step toward him, it was my fist that tightened. Unfortunately, my body had other plans because my feet wobbled and I had to catch myself on the nearest chair before I fell right into his extended arms. Slumping in the seat, I seethed with rage at my weakness while he folded his arms over his chest.

Damn him.

“You said I owed her an apology,” I said tersely, leaning my elbows on the edge of the table. “Well, then that’s why I’m here.”

“With words, Bel,” Malakai chuckled softly. “She will accept it even if you just say it.”

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