Page 57 of Sticks and Stones and Broken Bones

“What?” Korbin asked.

“Explain,” I demanded.

“You know she has a darkness buried within her; I can feel it. It calls to me, a soft whisper at the back of my mind.” Raevyn closed her eyes, and a hum left her lips. “Such power. Such… chaos.”

“You’re who she’s been talking to,” Korbin mused.

Her eyes flashed open and the embers burned brightly. It felt like looking at the entrance to Tartarus. “Yes. But soon, I will claim her, and she will set me free.”

“Stop talking in riddles!” I yelled. “Tell us who you are.”

She just laughed. “Soon, pretty boy. Soon.”

She slammed Rook’s head on the floor, knocking him out cold before her body went limp. She fell forwards, her wings wrapping her protectively before she hit the ground. The giant bird flew over to his perch and his beady little eyes looked at me with a knowing stare. This fucking bird knew something. Maybe knew everything. I had the sudden urge to rip his head from his neck to see if I could divine the answers that way.

“What the hell was that?” Casimir asked as he made his way over to Raevyn.

“I don’t know,” Korbin replied as he reached Rook. He placed his hand on his lover’s chest, and I watched the soft glow of his fingers as he sent a healing energy into his core.

Rook’s eyes flew open, and a startled gasp left his lips.

“Hush,” Korbin said softly as he dragged him into his arms. “I’ve got you.”

A sob burst from Rook’s mouth as realisation hit him with what looked like a fierce punch to the gut. It threw me back to the last time we’d found him covered in blood when he’d turned feral and left a trail of destruction and murder for us to follow. He was so powerful after all the blood he’d consumed that the three of us had to bring him as close to the edge of being completely drained as we could. I don’t think any of us had really got over that day. It was seared into my memory, stark and painful.

“I’m sorry,” Rook mumbled into Korbin’s chest over and over again.

“I know, baby boy. I know.” Korbin rocked him and stroked his hair, humming some tune that seemed to keep Rook from turning into a complete mess.

Hawk wrapped a blanket around Rook and I almost blanched. Who knew the monolith could be so… human. Perhaps there was something decent buried beneath all the hair and tattoos and aggressive growl.

“Take him,” the giant Moroi said softly. “We will look after Raevyn.”

Korbin nodded and stood with Rook in his arms. “Let me know what happens.”

Hawk nodded and adjusted the blanket over Rook. His sobs had quietened to whimpers but I knew it would take some time for him to settle. A hatred of Hades flashed in my core for a second. Why did he make us this way. Why give us gifts we couldn’t use or make them so that if we did use them, it exacted a high cost. Korbin could see the future but couldn’t see, Rook had a great power but could only use it if he was out of his mind with bloodlust, I could feed off sex, but cumming myself…? I wasn’t so lucky. And Casimir was a whole other case of dark and tragic woes.

“Hey, snap out of it,” Casimir barked. “Let’s get her more comfortable.”

I walked over to them and tucked her wings more tightly around her body before scooping her into my arms. I placed her back on the bed, which smelt like Raevyn and sex, and I tried desperately to ignore the scent because now was not the time to be sporting an erection. I was sure her wings would disappear eventually but for now, I bet they were aiding in healing her.

“Who do you think that was?” I asked as I settled in the space next to her on the bed, smiling as Hawk and Casimir did the same on her other side.

“I don’t know,” Casimir mused. “But I can’t shake the feeling that it felt familiar.”

I pulled the covers over Raevyn and curled into her side. Casimir grumbled as Hawk settled in behind him like a ginormous spoon but surprisingly didn’t push the guy away. Interesting…

I knew what Casimir meant though. It was unsettling how familiar the person had felt. Like I’d sensed their magic before, their presence. It was disconcerting and somehow thrilling. Almost as if I was on the cusp of welcoming home an old friend. It was with that unsettling thought that I drifted off to sleep to dream of fiery eyes and dark feathered wings.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Raevyn

My eyes opened to thick, unnatural darkness. I took a breath and realised there was no air to breathe. Panic bloomed in my chest as I threw my hands out, trying to find some sense of where I was but I couldn’t feel anything. I had to remind myself that I didn’t actually need to breathe, but I could still feel my body rebelling at the idea. Like it was still an alien concept that was going to take some time to get used to.

“Hello,” I called out, my voice echoing in the empty space.

Raevyn…

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