Page 19 of The Cursed

I fell back against the door at my spine, my hand colliding with the wood. The magic within me refused to let go, pouring through the room as those dark veins spread over the walls, searching for life. "You cannot just keep me locked up here forever!" I shouted.

My anger reverberated through the room, spreading out like a pulse. It slammed into the furniture like a shockwave, rocking it in its place. Something shattered as it clattered to the floor, the sound coming only a moment before the windows shattered where they overlooked the gardens, glass pouring out to fall down to the ground below.

I winced, squeezing my eyes closed. “What’s wrong with me?” I whispered, more of myself than the archdemon in front of me. He wasn’t the one who could and would provide answers.

“Nothing is wrong with you,” Leviathan said as he reached out, touching a single bone that hung around my neck. His touch was surprisingly gentle, his fingers working to avoid touching my skin as much as possible. The magic retreated into me once more, sealing itself inside the bones and making it feel like I could breathe again. "But believe it or not, he's doing this to protect you. Some of the Coven have declared war on Lucifer. They blame him, but even more than that?" he asked, glaring down at me as if he dared me to try to escape again. "They blame his pretty wife for betraying her own kind."

"I didn't know what he was doing. I—"

"You know that, and I know that, but the Coven doesn't know that. They aren't exactly going to believe your side of the story, are they? They weren't there to see what he did to you," he said, his features softening as he took a step back. "Your safety is all that matters to Lucifer."

"If that were true, he never would have hurt me in the first place," I said, thinking of the burn of his blade when he'd shoved it into my stomach.

"You're alive, aren't you? He went through a great deal of trouble to keep you that way."

"It's not enough," I mumbled, pushing away from the door and walking to the sofa. I dropped down onto it without finesse, my body feeling heavy with the realization that in spite of the stupid fucking bond between us, he intended to keep me prisoner, too.

"Then I suggest you decide exactly whatwillbe enough. If you don't even know, how the hell is he supposed to?"

11

WILLOW

The door to Gray’s rooms opened later in the day. I shot to my feet, tossing the book I'd been reading down on the couch beside me in my anxiousness to get out of this room. Leviathan didn't bother to glance up from his book, though I saw his smirk from the corner of my eye.

"You're worse than a caged animal," he said, his voice light despite the mocking words.

Grabbing the book from the sofa in haste, I threw it at Leviathan’s laughing face. He reached up, snatching the book out of the air and neatly straightening the pages.

I appreciated that even if I would have rather it hit him first.

"Then maybe you shouldn't treat me like one," I said, tipping my head to the side with a mocking grin to match his.

Gray stepped into the room, leaning his shoulder against the doorframe with his hands tucked into his trouser pockets. He'd rolled up the sleeves of his white dress shirt, leaving the top button undone far enough to reveal a small piece of the maze I'd marked him with.

His lips tipped up into a smile as his golden eyes heated, drifting over me from my head to my feet. "Witchling," he said, his voice dropping low. I felt it in the deepest parts of my body, sinking into my stomach. My legs pressed together on instinct, blocking out that overwhelming need that he seemed to be able to create with nothing more than a word. It was worse now, as if consummating had only strengthened the bond that pulsed between us like a living entity.

I wanted to tear it from my soul.

His smirk spread into a grin as he sensed my reaction to him, and he pushed off the doorframe to make his way into the room. "I brought you a surprise," he said. I swallowed as he came up in front of me, lifting my chin with a finger so that I met his gaze. He leaned forward, stopping when his mouth brushed against mine ever so softly. "Although maybe I should just take you to bed instead."

"I want answers," I said, shaking my head and jerking back from his touch. Just because he was able to convince my body that he was exactly what I needed, that didn't mean I had to be reduced to a mass of flesh and desire.

Desire did not equal love.

Attraction didn't mean we were allies.

I could want to fuck him and plan to slit his throat all in the same breath, and maybe that was the best way to do it. My breath hitched at the thought, and I brushed it away before he could sense the shift in my thoughts.

Jonathan came between us, slinking between my legs to glare up at Gray. The devil glanced down at the tiny creature as he pounced, sinking his claws into Gray’s pants. I grinned down at him, wincing when Gray grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and held him up. Jonathan bared his teeth, his tiny fangs ferocious.

“Useless pest,” Gray grumbled, dropping Jonathan to the couch with a twist of his lips.

“At least Ilikehim,” I said, reaching down to rub the top of Jonathan’s head soothingly. My familiar settled, leaning into my touch with a look that I might have said was arrogant.

If he hadn’t been a fucking cat.

“Keep it up, Witchling. I’ll let your little pet watch so he can see just how much youlikeme when your clothes come off,” Gray said, earning a startled gasp from me.

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