Page 5 of Savage Hunt

As those words repeated in my mind, I bit my lip to keep the sobs in as a few tears rolled down my cheeks. My lids grew heavy from exhaustion. Fane wouldn’t give up, and neither would I.

It was just so fucking hard.

I closed my eyes and pictured the demon shifter stretched out behind me, holding me. It felt like a hand caressed my back, and warmth leaked through my veins, restoring my energy.

Fiera mika.

A sob slipped out as Fane’s nickname for me swirled into my ears. I could almost smell his leather and bergamot fragrance.

I had no idea if this was real or simply my tired soul seeking comfort, but I pretended Fane was with me. The soothing touch on my back lulled me to sleep, and the last thing I heard before the darkness pulled me under was my nickname again.

Snarls startled me awake, and I scrambled into a sitting position, pressing my back into the abrasive wall as four guards shoved a dux and a high demon down the hall. The inmates still donned regular clothes, so they just arrived in Heldrok.

“The dampening sigil isn’t doing much to drain their strength,” Vankis hissed as he struggled with the male dux demon.

The other guard holding onto the prisoner’s left side cursed. “These two are absolutely out of control. I don’t think anything will stop them except for knocking them out with a spell.”

“Let’s get a witch CO to meet us.” The female guard dug her talons into the high demon as he bucked in her grip. “I’m not a bull wrangler.”

Ice coiled through my bloodstream as the four officers struggled to keep the two inmates still. The high demon prisoner locked eyes with me, and the only thing within those onyx depths was hunger.

Drool slid down his chin as he sniffed the air and then charged toward the bars of my cell. Metal rattled as he tried to bust inside.

“Hungryyyy.”

My hands curled into fists, and my muscles tensed, poised for a fight. Noticing what had caught the other inmate’s attention, the dux demon fought his guards to get to my cell. They reminded me of the beasts who attacked Roxie and Hawk when I escaped from Ruin’s and also the high and royal who tried to suck my soul in Mohan Wilds the night of the agrigon attack.

What the hell was going on with these demons?

The guards cursed and struggled to maintain control of the new inmates. “These aren’t the first two who have acted like this,” the female said.

“I had one just the other day.” Vankis snatched the dux demon by his horns and yanked him from the bars of my cell. “The bastard almost bit my nose off.”

The four officers finally wrestled the two inmates down the hall, disappearing from my sight, and the growls and snapping teeth faded. The sallow yellow bulbs barely lighting the corridor glowed on a lump of metal a few feet from my cell.

No fucking way.

My heart pounded as I bolted out of my bed, wincing from the explosion of fireworks in my tired body. One of the guards had dropped their keys.

I crashed to my knees and slid my arm through the bars, the keys just out of reach. A curse burst from my mouth as I stretched on the ground and tried to grab the metal ring. The guards could realize they lost their keys any second and retrace their steps.

A dribble of sweat leaked down my temple, my tendons straining and arm shaking. My fingertip brushed the cool metal of a key and nudged it closer. Closer.

The hard edges pressed against my palm when I finally had a grip, dragging the collection into my cell. I gave a manic laugh and staggered up, my hands trembling as I tried the first key.

It took four attempts before the lock disengaged. My heart slammed against my ribs as I yanked the door open and darted into the hall. The other inmates trapped in their cages paid me no attention, either exhausted from torture or too broken to care. Hell, maybe they thought I was a hallucination.

I sure as hell hoped I wasn’t imagining this whole thing.

As a shadowy alcove emerged, I pressed my back against the wall, breathing heavily. Fane could be anywhere in this hellhole, and I wasn’t stepping foot out of these walls without him. I laid my palm against the tattoo on my neck and concentrated on the demon shifter.

The bond swirled and sizzled within my core. The dampening sigil tried to smother it, but the more I concentrated on Fane, imagining him in front of me, the more I felt the invisible strings tying us together.

My lids opened, and I slinked down the corridor, taking the first left as that pull directed me toward the demon shifter. Nothing would keep us apart forever, not even this prison in hell. I would find him.

“I’m coming, Maverick.”

Heavy footsteps pounded the ground, and my heart shot into my throat. Shit! Someone was coming. If I didn’t duck through one of these doors, I’d be left standing in the hall like an idiot, and my escape plan would shatter.

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