Page 63 of Kiss of Magic

Blake knelt beside her, clutching his shattered arm close to his chest so he didn’t bleed on her. Her eyes were closed and her hair was stuck to her face in damp strands.

“Blue. Hey, Blue, wake up.”

Her eyelashes fluttered and he caught a glimpse of her turquoise gaze. Relief flooded through him. She blinked groggily and licked her dry lips.

“Magic… sucks.”

He gave a low laugh.

“You got that right.”

Behind them, Denara shifted impatiently.

“The release words, human. Now.”

Blake kept his eyes on Dani.

“I have something to tell you, Blue.”

“What?”

“I love you.”

Her eyes widened, confusion chasing across her face. Did he just say…? She replayed the words and inexplicably, joy welled in her heart.

He loved her.He loved her!It shouldn’t have meant anything to her. It was an emotion she hadn’t gone looking for, especially not from this muscle-bound neanderthal who’d dragged her into one dangerous situation after another. And yet bizarrely, it felt like the most natural thing in the world.

It was wonderful, incredible. She wanted to kiss him. Here, in this dank cell with both of them weak and battered, she wanted only to press her lips against his and drown in his strength.

She opened her mouth to say something and in that moment there was a tinyclick.She looked down. The bracelet on her wrist sprang open and fell to the floor.

Twenty Eight

Arjhan

The demon squatted on the chest of the dead witch like a monstrous locust. It had six limbs, all of them moving industriously as it tore lumps of flesh from her bones. It stuffed them into its mouth, guzzling noisily. The repellent sound overlaid the soft chanting that continued, despite the terror that permeated the room.

Cassia immediately stepped into the vacant space left by her dead sister. Her gaze rested on the demon, and then on Kam. She nodded at him. He knew what she was asking him to do.

Be convincing.

They were out of time. He had to lead this thing away or it would tear through the witches like confetti. He summoned his power and let his wings of light unfurl from his shoulder blades. He deliberately made them bigger and more defined than ever before, making sure to delineate every sinew, every quill, every feather.

He even shaped his clothing to resemble the illustrations in the old texts about the angels, removing his shirt and covering his modesty with a pure white cloth draped low on his hips.

Then he rose majestically into the air.

“Demon,” he roared. “How dare you defile this place.”

The dark spirit paused in its gruesome feast. It took in Kam’s hovering form, at the glowing wings spread wide and almost touching the walls to either side. Its lips drew back in a snarl, revealing the rows of razor sharp teeth.

Angel.

It sprang. Its speed and agility took Kam by surprise. One moment it was crouching, the next it was airborne. Kam hadn’t even seen it move. He only just evaded its outstretched claws and turned to exit the room.

He had to fly at full speed to keep ahead of the thing. It bounded through the deserted corridors, leaping from floor to wall to ceiling as if gravity did not apply to it.

The euphoria Kam had felt in managing to lead it away from the witches evaporated in cold realisation.

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