Page 4 of Too Dangerous To Die

She is only human.

A creature meant to burn bright and die young, while I have endured centuries of slumber. Her life is fleeting. Mine was stolen.

It would not be a crime to take back what was once mine.

I clench my jaw, wrenching my hand away.

I shove down the hunger, forcing myself to focus.This girl woke me. Bound me.That means she isuseful.For now.

I glance toward the darkened treeline. The scent of elves lingers—there were more. They will come looking for their missing man. And when they do,they will find a monster waiting.

I shift my grip beneath her, lifting her as if she weighs nothing.She doesn’t stir.Her body is warm but fragile, far too mortal for what she has done.

Her head lolls against my chest, the delicate curve of her neck exposed.Her pulse beats faintly beneath her skin.

Weak.

She will not last long unless I find a way tostrengthen her.

I inhale again, forcing myself to ignore the scent of her magic, the sharp pull in my chest that demandsmore.Instead, I unfurl my wings—what little remains of them—and push off the ground, launching us into the shadows of the ruins.

The night swallows us whole. I find shelter in a hollowed-out temple, itspillars cracked and weathered, the old sigils nearly erased by time. This place was not built by elves or men.

It was builtfor creatures like me.

I set her down gently, an act that should mean nothing,but somehow, it does.

She stirs slightly, a quiet sound escaping her lips.Not pain. Not fear.

Something else.

The flicker of a dream, perhaps.

I watch her, arms folded, forcing myself to remainstill.

She is not beautiful in the way of elves—too human, fragile.But there is something about her that unsettles me.

I could understand if she was a warrior, a killer. Butshe is neither.

A healer. I feel her magic.

A creature meant to mend, not destroy.

And yet, she has done somethingfar worse than death.

She has bound herself tome.

She is mine.

She does not know what that means. But she will.

The night deepens, the air thick with the scent of coming rain. I sit beside her, watching the slow rise and fall of her chest.

The hunger stirs again, coiling tight in my gut.Soon.

3

NORA

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