Page 53 of Mastering Mayhem

She swooped toward the clearing at a speed that would surely turn into a crash landing, and I forced myself to keep my eyes open. I was riding an effing griffin! Talk about your once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

We didn’t crash., thankfully. Instead, she landed softly in the grass and lowered her front end so I could slide off.

“Put your weapons away,” I said. “She isn’t going to hurt anyone.”

Shade and Miles hesitated, their expressions wary, but they sheathed their knives. “How did you tame her?” Miles asked.

“She was already tame. I only comforted her.” I glanced at Mayhem. “And she does understand words.”

“Amazing.” The look of awe in his eyes made my stomach flutter.

“Did you retrieve the amulet?” Chaos asked.

“About that…” I ran my hand down her silky shoulder. “She swallowed it.”

18

MAYHEM

Icouldn’t tear my gaze away from my witch. Not only had she tamed a creature from Hell, but she had discovered a way to communicate with it that no one had found before. Ember was the strongest, most capable woman I had ever met, and I was in awe of her abilities. Of everything about her.

And she had almost become mine for all eternity.

By opening the rift to Hell, my connection to her had amplified one-hundred-fold. I could no longer tell where my soul ended and hers began. Nor could she, it seemed.

She had tried to cross over, to take me with her. Why had I stopped her? We could have been done with this quest. All the turmoil and strife we had endured could have ended if I’d simply let her step through the rift.

But the feral look in her eyes, the way she’d behaved… I couldn’t tell how much of that was Ember versus an amplified version of my own desires. She wasn’t completely herself in that moment, and that was why I stopped her.

Had I done the right thing by removing my mark? I wasn’t yet sure, but it was the only way I could think to end her hysterics.

I missed the connection the second we severed it. My love for her remained intact. We didn’t need a sigil to recognize that we belonged together, but the magical bond we had shared was no more. I was free to do as I pleased, no longer bound to do her bidding. But the emptiness I felt without it made everything clear.

I would choose to serve her for a million eternities before I would endure a single day without her.

“All she wants is to go home. She didn’t mean to come here.” Ember stood there, resting a hand on the griffin’s shoulder as if they were the best of friends. “As soon as the amulet passes through you, the guys will open another rift and send you home.”

“Fabulous,” Ash said. “The fate of the world lies in the timing of a griffin’s bowel movements.”

“All we can do is wait for her to pass it.” Ember shrugged. “Let’s hope she has to poop before she lays her eggs. I’d hate to shove them through a rift not knowing where they’ll end up.”

“The demons can carry them through when they go home,” Patrice said, the tone of her voice indicating the moment couldn’t come quickly enough for her liking.

I narrowed my eyes, unable to stop the growl rumbling in my chest. “We are already home.”

“That’s a sensitive subject.” Shade laughed humorlessly. “I’ve learned not to bring it up.”

“I have ipecac syrup.” She held up a brown bottle, ignoring the warning. “If you can convince her to drink it, she’ll throw up.”

“It’s already in her intestines.” Ember glided her hand down the griffin’s side. “The only way it’s coming out is through the back door.”

The griffin let out a pained groan and lay on her side, the eggs shifting inside her visible beneath her fur. As I stood there in awe of both the creature and my witch, my skin turned to gooseflesh. Vibrations from across the veil registered in my psyche, and I snapped my head toward Chaos, who nodded, confirming my suspicion.

“We must find a safe place to hide her,” I said. “The veil is too thin after what we did here. Ember, can you speak to her? Let her know she isn’t safe in this location.”

My witch kneeled by the beast’s head and rested a hand on her feathers. “Can you still move? It’s not safe here.”

The griffin rolled to her stomach, lying in a sphinx position and watching Ember intently. She let out a quiet squawk and dipped her head as if agreeing.

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