Page 25 of Ashes to Ashes

With trembling legs and heaving breaths, Ashe finally burst out of the castle doors and into the gardens below. The cool night air hit her skin, making goosebumps rise on her arms as she continued to run for what felt like an eternity.

Ashe pushed through bushes and climbed over ivy-covered walls just to lose herself among the rows of vibrantly blooming flowers—their colors shifting like fireworks under a starlit sky—she raced through the maze-like garden paths, searching for any sign of an exit or at least some place hidden where she could catch her breath.

Wings flapped overhead. A quick glance revealed they were not Lily’s comforting silver ones, but large leathery black ones that could belong to only one man.

A sharp talon dug into her shoulder, spinning her around.

Leviathan’s bare feet hit the ground with a loud thud, sending cracks spider webbing through the balcony. His skin glistened in the light of the moon, and a wild look burned in his eyes as he stormed towards them, a mask of pure rage twisted onto his face.

“What are you doing? Where do you think you’re going?” he demanded through gritted teeth, his voice as loud as rolling thunder that echoed throughout the garden’s vast space.

She tried to pull away from him but found herself weakened by fear and exhaustion; all she managed was a whimper as his grip tightened painfully on her arm. “L-let me go!” She stuttered out between ragged breaths. “I have. . . I have to go.”

Fear of being exposed blossomed in her chest. She’d not expected the demon prince to care that she had fled.

He snorted derisively but didn’t release his hold on her just yet. “We need to talk,” he growled out. The smell of sulfur and brimstone filled the air around them as his body heat radiated onto hers through their proximity. It was like being enveloped in a fiery cocoon of danger and excitement.

Her heart raced as she tried to break free again, but he held her fast.

“You can’t just run off like this! I command you for your name.”

A rustle above them drew her eyes up. Lily had followed as well, the angel’s silver wings burning bright with the moonlight behind the angel.

Lily sent her hand down, silver sparks shooting from her fingertips into Leviathan’s wings. With a hiss, he let Ashe go, turning his focus on the angel.

“Run,” Lily whispered before blinking out of sight.

Ashe wasted no time following the command, knowing that the demon prince would not kiss her but would likely kill her. Her angel wasn’t angry with her, and she would have to be okay with that as reason enough to trust Lily.

Ashe ran wildly, her bare feet slapping against the hard ground. Her breath came in ragged gasps as she tried to put distance between herself and the demon prince. Trees flew by like paper in a gust of wind, their leaves rustling softly, and the ground shook beneath her with each step she took. The night sky stretched out above her, twinkling with stars that seemed to move closer together as if following her desperate flight.

Her heart pounded in her chest like a drum beating to a frantic rhythm she couldn’t control. Tears streamed down her cheeks from fear and exhilaration, making it hard for her to see where she was going, but adrenaline kept pushing her onward. She could hear the sound of his heavy footsteps getting closer and closer until they faded into the darkness behind her. She kept running, feeling his heat dissipating from her skin but still shivering from the cold touch that lingered like a ghost on her skin.

Ashe stumbled through a clearing, her feet crunching on fallen twigs and leaves. The moon cast a silvery glow over thescene, illuminating the bushes that seemed to bow in reverence to its light. And there stood Lily, just a few feet away, her pale skin glowing in the moonlight.

Ashe could feel the stiffness of tension rising within her as she prepared to be teleported away once again by the angel once she reached her. She longed for her freedom but knew it would come at another time, she’d ruined this attempt.

Leviathan still gave chase, his snarls bellowing in the night. Ashe didn’t know why he ran so slowly, but she would not pause to ask. She would only run into Lily’s arms.

Ashe ran faster, her feet pounding against the ground as she closed the distance between herself and Lily. The angel held out her hand, a small smile on her lips as she waited for Ashe to reach her.

Leviathan’s long, slender fingers brushed against her arm with a feather-like touch. She could feel the weight of his gaze upon her, burning into her very being.

“I must know who you are,” he whispered, his voice low and velvety. “Why do you run from me?” The words pierced her heart like a knife, shattering the safety she had felt in his embrace. Yet there was something unsettling in the way he said it, almost as if he took pleasure in her fear and pain.

She dared to turn and saw the moonlight glinting off Leviathan’s horns and illuminated his snarling face, throwing shadows across his features before she crashed into Lily’s arms.

They vanished from sight as they were teleported away from danger—the world spinning and blurring around them. The air rushed past them as they soared through the sky at breakneck speed, Lily’s wings carrying them safely away from harm in a means of travel ash didn’t understand.

A cabin appeared below them like a tiny jewel amidst endless darkness, an apparent haven for them.

Lily landed, letting Ashe go to stand on shaky legs. She gulped in great gasps of air as if she hadn’t been holding her breath moments before.

“You didn’t teleport!”

“No, his powers wouldn’t allow for it. Come inside.”

Ashe’s hand flew to her neck out of habit to grasp the gold ring from her mother. Her breathing hitched as she felt nothing but skin along her neck. Ashe dropped the tattered gown she’d held against her body even as she ran and rushed past Lily into the cabin.

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