Page 64 of The Salvation

“No,” I growl from the festering guilt. Locking eyes with her, I remind her of some of our old words, our dynamic. “Pick at the scab some more, old friend. Let it hurt. Let it bleed. Let it fester.” I dip my voice into that knowing, playful croon. “She has seen, yes, she has.”

Quintessa rubs against me, tracing her lips upon my jaw. “And she’s here to stay.”

22

“It was the first night Shadow emerged.”

QUINTESSA

I rememberthat night after I’d unearthed Kyan’s soul in his very wings and restored him. I remember witnessing Merikh’s discipline that blurred the lines of punishment, how he unleashed his dark curse upon Kyan, how Kyan took it all.

“What happened, Merikh?” I press him, paying more attention to the dark world in his eyes and not the one around us.

“Malachor chained us both to the coffin that night. Whipped us. Fucked us one at a time. Then, he forced me to take Kyan as he took me.”

I bite back a whimper. Acidic fury sears my throat, and I can’t fathom what will happen to Merikh if Malachor rises. We will do what we must to protect Aislynn, to free her of Reaver’s hold. But how can we...? No, we must find some other way. We will.

“It wasn’t the worst night, little dove,” interjects Merikh. “One of Malachor’s favorite activities was using the venom of serpents to paralyze his pets. He did it with Kyan, and we played with the angel at the surface of the Sea of Bones. Tookturns raping him when he couldn’t hope to fight back, torturing him, clawing and biting his wings. Malachor used his dagger to cut and carve his wings, breaking bones. Malachor collected his screams, reveled in them. But they...”

“Tortured you.” I wrap my arms around him, sobbing for him, crying for him. He shakes with violence beneath me.

“It was the first night Shadow emerged.”

I snap my head up, widening my eyes at Merikh. He begins to thrust into me, hard, deep, and slow. Like the rumbling of seismic activity in the darkest trench of the sea. One hand lowers to my breast and thumbs my nipple. I inhale sharply, my blood heating and rushing from his power.

“After Malachor departed, leaving Kyan floating on the sea in a mess of his own blood, feathers, and bile. I would clean up his mess as usual. I carried Kyan’s paralyzed form back to shore. Against Malachor’s wishes, I used my blood-binding. Cast out the damn venom, restored his blood, and his divine cell matter grew back his feathers as a result. And then...Shadow manifested. It was my first night ever losing a battle. And the first night I felt a claw to my back and whip to my flesh that did not belong to Malachor.”

He pinches my nipple, flicks it, then plucks at the other before palming both my breasts. Thrusting deep. Slow-fucking me. My core grows hot, gushing with wet need.

“When Kyan resurfaced, we would come here together. Sink low. Forget about everything. And just fuck.”

He fucks me stronger, picking up the pace until I feel the cool. chafing kiss of those piercings. His hands squeeze my breasts harder, leaving fingerprints. Despite my deep moan, I don't look away.

“And the night I finally had enough, I smuggled him through that underwater tunnel. Got him the fuck out. The bloody feathered fool tried to get me to go with him.”

“Why didn’t you go?”

He growls and lowers his mouth to my neck, sucking firmly before scraping his teeth and fangs along the curve. My heart flips in my chest. Molten liquid surges through my veins. “As if the Demon of Death could ever enter the realm of angels. I’d known no other home but the Court of Blood. And Malachor’s blood and essence still ran in my veins. His bite mark upon my flesh. He still fucking owned me. No escape. If I left, he would hunt his favorite pet to the ends of the world and bring war to all five realms.”

“W-what happened?”

He deadpans, his eyes turning dark and cruel, more sadistic than ever. The sins of his past carve through the very scar upon his face, sharpening his features. Tonight, my scars overlap his, become his.

“He chained me to that coffin, used his serpents on me, and whipped every fucking part of me bloody. Every scar on my body came from him that night. No supernatural healing for the first time. He channeled his power in such a way as to ensure they would be permanent. He raped me boneless and bloody. Bit me, drank from me nearly to the draining point. I took it all.”

“Because Kyan was free.”

A low, deep growl is all I hear before Merikh pulls out and slams into me, knocking the wind out of me, robbing my breath. My heart almost fails.

“The feather-headed fool came back.”

I beam.

He grits his teeth, his cock growing and pulsing inside me, stretching me, burning my flesh. His eyes smolder. I gasp at the awe of what it means to be desired by him, for him to share this with me.

“The moment he set his serpents upon Kyan, it was the first night I unleashed the blood-binding I’d secretly trained myself for years. I don’t fight fucking fair, Quintessa.”

I shiver but arch my neck, and nodding, I kiss him. “I know. I’m glad you don’t. I never want you to fight fair. Not with me. Not with anyone.”

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