Page 24 of Horns for the Holidays

With lightning speed, she reached into her pocket and withdrew a small pouch. Before I could react, she blew a shimmering powder directly into my face.

I staggered back, coughing and sputtering. The world began to spin, colors bleeding together in a dizzying kaleidoscope. Heat flooded my veins, setting every nerve ending on fire.

“What did you do to him?” Laramie’s voice sounded distant, muffled, as if coming from underwater.

Devlin’s laughter echoed through my skull. “Just a little inhibition powder. Brings out one’s baser instincts. In this one’s case... Well, let’s just say his moremonstrousside is about to make an appearance.”

Everything felt too bright, too loud. But one thing remained crystal clear—the overwhelming need to protect Laramie. To keep her safe, no matter the cost.

“Now,” Devlin’s voice cut through the haze. “Be a good boy and hand over that pretty little medallion of yours.”

My hand flew to my chest, clutching the Medallion of Minos. Some distant part of my mind screamed that this was wrong, that I couldn’t give up my ancestral birthright.

With trembling hands, I lifted the chain over my head and held out the medallion. Devlin snatched it from my grasp, her triumphant laugh grating against my heightened senses.

I struggled against the haze enveloping me, fought to cling to reason. I watched helplessly as Devlin pressed the medallionagainst the wall. The precious metal caught the light, its blue opal center glittering ominously.

Cracks spiderwebbed across the wall. The ground shuddered beneath my feet. Ancient magic flowed through the air, calling to the blood that coursed through my veins.

The wall split open with a deafening crack. Stone groaned and complained as reality itself seemed to tear apart, revealing a dark passageway beyond.

The labyrinth. Devlin had summoned the entrance to the fucking labyrinth.

Mylabyrinth.

“Kotos?” Laramie’s voice cut through the fog in my mind. She stood at the edge of the chasm, fear and concern warring in her eyes. “Kotos, what’s happening?”

I tried to answer, but another wave of heat crashed over me. My horns felt heavier, my muscles coiled with barely contained energy. Every sound, every scent, was amplified tenfold.

I gripped the railing, my knuckles turning white as I struggled against the rising tide of animal instinct threatening to overwhelm me.

Protect the labyrinth. Slay all who enter uninvited.

“Oh, this is even better than I’d hoped,” Devlin cackled. With a flick of her wrist, she sent Laramie tumbling into the labyrinth’s maw. “Let’s see how long your little human lasts against therealminotaur.”

“No!” I bellowed, my voice barely recognizable. I lunged for Laramie, desperate to?—

The last vestiges of my humanity burned away as I crossed the threshold.

Laughter echoed off the stones as the wall sealed shut. My labyrinth stretched out before me, a maze of twisting corridors and shadowed alcoves.

A heartbeat. The scent of fear and anger.

I whirled. A tiny human held her hands up. Her mouth made soothing sounds.

Part of me wanted to gather her in my arms. Lick her. Taste her. Take my pleasure until we couldn’t move.

But another part, a darker, more primitive part, saw her as an intruder. A trespasser in my domain. And I...

I was the monster tasked with her destruction.

CHAPTER EIGHT

LARAMIE

My back slammed against cold stone as I stumbled, desperately trying to get my bearings. Stone walls stretched as high as I could see. Patches of moss clung to the craggy surface. The air hung heavy with the scent of dampness and something else—something ancient that made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.

A scraping sound echoed behind me. I whirled, heart leaping into my throat.

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