Page 67 of Of Mercury and Mist

“Yes.” Isaac’s dark smile washed over me the same time a chill entered the air. I glanced at Matthew, who’s eyes glowed with an inner light. I’d never seen the phenomenon this close up before from him and couldn’t stop staring. The air around him was freezing, as if one had stepped outside in the middle of a blizzard and was seconds away from hypothermia.

Isaac’s presence pulled me back into to his warmth while we were enveloped in the sorcery. Matthew slid the blade of the knife across the pad of the Isaac’s thumb, leaving behind a swell of blood that began trickling, coursing through the wrinkles of his finger.

He lifted his gaze. “Ashley, do you swear to obey Isaac and maintain faithfulness and loyalty, trusting him with your existence?”

“Yes.” I’d almost said, “I do,” as if we were getting married.

He grabbed my hand and slit my thumb in the same exact spot as the man I was tying myself to. I winced, clenching my teeth at the sting. Matthew’s magic swirled around us, tangible but invisible, and my skin was covered with goosebumps. Whatever spell he was weaving, I was sure it wouldn’t be easily undone.

Taking us each in hand, he pressed our thumbs together and threaded our fingers. We were chest to chest, and I wanted to burrow into Isaac for heat. I suppose it wouldn’t have been that strange to do so, seeing as we’d just committed to each other in a joining that felt more permanent than husband and wife.

“It is done,” Matthew announced. “Ashley, do you have any questions?”

I had a hundred but couldn’t bring myself to ask for the answers. If I truly had a choice in what just happened, why did I promise in blood to obey? I suspected the response I’d receive would be dismissive and Matthew would reassure me I would want to do everything asked.

Isaac was laser focused on me, his dark gaze searching my features as if he was waiting for me to revolt.

If I’d known what was coming, I would’ve run.

TWENTY-THREE

Micha

My driver opened the car door for Ashley. “Thank you, I’ll take it from here,” I told him. The man was a lower-class demon. Quiet, but efficient, and well-practiced in keeping people away. Josiah and I had kept a low profile but there was always the occasional photographer, or in my case, a desperate woman who’d felt scorned after I’d used her and tossed her away.

“What are we doing now?” Ashley asked before entering.

I rested my hand on the edge of the vehicle, caging her in. “You are going home.”

The penthouse suite of a luxury boutique hotel awaited her arrival and would be our home until the end of the initial term of the contract we’d both signed. Afterward, when she realized there was no escape, I’d move her into my penthouse.

She’d completely forgotten about me and entered an arrangement withIsaac.It was all I could do to contain my fury. Her wary gaze and measured steps told me she knew I was on edge, careful to be utterly compliant. She hadn’t looked a single guest in the eye on our way out, and she ignored a blonde woman’s farewell, letting me shepherd her from the establishment with zero fanfare.

The pain I felt was unreasonable; I knew that logically, but common sense wasn’t winning. The way I felt about her was irrational and deeper than anything I’d felt for my ex-girlfriend, Anna from long ago.

She had been the love of my life—or so I thought. Her life was ended by men other than me when she was caught feeding on children. Later, I found out she had been engaging in the despicable behavior for a while and utilizing magic to hide her vice from me. Kids were off-limits to all beings and stealing from them the highest form of theft. If others hadn’t beaten me to it, the thrust of the blade would’ve come from me.

While Ashley was a thief, she wasn’t cruel. Sure, her use of immature social media slang and whatnot pissed me off in the past. And yes, she could be scatterbrained, leaving messes behind at her workstation in the form of coffee cups and other odds and ends.

But she was it for me. The brightness of her spirit called to me, her love of life, and her adventurous spirit touched me on a daily basis, making me feel a little lighter, a little less burdened.

Josiah and I had been stuck in a rut for a long time, building Ipomoea into what it was today. It was time for me to live again. Ashley would be a big part of that and anything that interfered would be torn down, literally.

“What?” My angel glanced at me.

“Get in.” I nodded at her. “I have some quick business to attend to. Stay in the car.”

The first thing I had to do was get rid of the parasite I’d witnessed her entertaining. He was in the club again; we’d passed him on our way out. He’d touched her.

That was not allowed.

Closing the door firmly behind Ashley, I unbuttoned my suit jacket and strode back inside, breezing past the receptionist.

Once I got to the main room, I passed several tables until I found my mark and set myself down right beside him.

“Excuse me? Do I know you?” Irritation flashed in his eyes as he slid his beverage closer to his chest. The vampire probably thought I was about to poison him.

Cruelly smiling at him, I replied, “That won’t be necessary, gorgeous.”

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