Page 49 of Magic and Mayhem

When nothing happens, Master huffs out a breath and crosses his arms. He stares at me and the fire that strokes my skin.

“You should be burning.”

“Silly boy,” I taunt, circling him with flames in my hands. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you that witches don’t burn?”

His gaze widens, horror stretching over his features.

“You-you can’t be. We killed them all.”

Bile coats my throat as I think about how afraid my mother was hearing those gunshots, how sad my father was knowing it was the end for them.

They knew what was going to happen to our coven, but they gave me a chance to run. It just so happened that I ran right into the arms of the man who had a hand in killing my people.

Anger courses through me, and the flames around me burn brighter, their heat pressing into even me. Eryx presses a clawed hand to my shoulder, and I turn to him to see his violet eyes sparkling with mischief.

“He said he wanted Hell’s fire in his veins. Show him what that feels like, Love.”

Eryx may be kind and gentle with me, but I have a weakness for the moment the demon underneath shines through.

Like right now. He isn’t holding me back from killing the man that caused me so much pain that I didn’t know what it was like to live without it. He’s standing by my side as I wreak havoc on my nightmares, watching with glee as terror spills from every pore of Master’s body.

I reach out a hand to him, but he turns to flee like the coward he is. Thankfully, Eryx foresaw it and erected a wall of fire behind him.

Master turns back to me, finally afraid of the real monster here. He knows that at this moment, he no longer holds anything over me.

“You should have left me alone, but you didn’t. Now I’m going to show you what real power feels like. You can observe firsthand how your mortal body could never withstand the might of Hell’s flame and know that the very being you thought would grant you that gift destroyed everything you ever built.”

Screams tear from his throat the second the flames touch his skin, but I don’t allow it to stop there. Eryx turned the others to ash in an instant, but I want to test my newfound powers.

Willing the flames to only burn his veins, he experiences every excruciating second as they travel all the way to his heart until the fire wraps around it, burning every blackened piece until there’s nothing left.

Master’s cold eyes are set ablaze, bugging out before they implode, and I’m certain that my face was the last thing he saw on this earth. Then, and only then, do I allow him to turn to ash.

The moment he vanishes, and I know for certain I willnever see him again, the flames around me die out, and I fall to my knees. Utter relief washes over me as I lean back to lay on the ground.

Eryx stands over me, scanning the woods as his pointed ears twitch back and forth. It’s so cute that I want to reach up and scratch at them, but I have a feeling that wouldn’t be appreciated. Or maybe it would? He does quite enjoy it when I hold onto his horns.

Eryx’s head whips to me, his teeth flashing me that perfect smile and his forked tongue sticking out like a snake.

“My love, is that lust I taste in the air?”

Chapter 14

Witnessing my mate destroy the man who caused so much pain in her life was akin to observing the birth of a star. There was chaos and rubble, but strength so powerful that it rippled through the cosmos.

She was terrifying and immensely beautiful, and for the first time in my existence, I felt true fear in the wake of her power—while also being equally turned on.

Thankfully, all of her attention was on slaying the man in front of her and not the three times I was forced to adjust my pants.

Now, I stare at this beauty on the ground with the sweet taste of lust swirling in the air around her, and I no longer have the power to fight this bond thrumming between us.

She was made for me, my equal by Fate’s hand. The most stunning creature I have ever witnessed wield the flames of Hell.

Evolet tilts her head, looking around and then gaspingas if she were shocked at the ash in the air.

“Did you kill them all?” she questions sarcastically before reaching out her hand. I pull her to her feet and crowd her space instantly.

“Oh, my love, do not pretend to be some frightened woman seeing the lengths I would go to for your protection. We both know the fight turned you on as much as it did me.”

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