Page 167 of The Crown of Nyx

Grey cocked her head. “He would die for her,” she said, voice laced with venom. “I doubt you expected that.” What she didn’t say was that he would kill for her, too. He had the power to wipe everyone out, if he wanted to.

“So, she has a magic pussy.” The demon barked a laugh, which only sparked rage within me. That was enough to drag me out of my spiralling thoughts and force me back to the present. To him and the bear that he was going to use to fight us. “I bet it must piss youoff. That your mate would spread her legs for him. For someone more powerful.”

Grey didn’t react to his foul words, and I tried not to, either. But it was the creature who growled, rising on his back feet. “Your heart will be torn from your chest and fed to thethraxfor what you have done.”

The demon blinked in surprise. “What the fuck are you?” was all he could manage as he took a step back. With a shake of his head, he growled, “Attack, Thor. You kill them, you get your reward.”

The bear roared. His thundering footsteps shook the earth beneath us as he barrelled towards us.

I cursed under my breath and dove to the side, Grey doing the same. But not the Primal. He threw himself at the bear, and they hit the ground hard, rolling. The earth rumbled, shifting beneath us. Grey and I shared a look, but rage darkened her features as she made for the demon.

Fuck.

I glanced at the Old World shifter, who had the bear mostly pinned, and then to Grey, who circled the demon. He had a gun pointed at her. She could take a hit and take it well. She didn’t even flinch.

But I didn’t know what kind of bullets he had loaded. He could have dipped them in the same poison that killed Ivy’s mother. Or worse.

They could have runes carved into them designed to kill a Queen’s mate.

The Old World shifter was handling himself pretty well, and even if I tried to help him, I would get in his way. Plus, he had magic. I could sense it coming off him now, just like I had when he’d first made his way to us. I didn’t know what he was capable of. What power he had from living in this world.

Grey, though. I could help her.

I shifted and ran. The ground shifted between earth and stone, thick grass and man-laid pavers. The stench of smoke and wet stone met my nose as I reached them, the male’s scent confusing yet familiar. I quickly shook my head before the panic could claim me again.

I moved behind him and shifted again. Over his shoulder, I met Grey’s eye briefly before pulling out my own weapon, aiming it at his head. “You will either surrender,” I growled, “or die. I don’t care which.”

The demon chuckled. “I remember you,” he mused, holding his gun up in one hand, raising the other as if in defeat. Slowly, he turned to face me, giving Grey his back.

“Bad move,” I muttered. She had him disarmed and on his knees in an instant. I heard the crack of his kneecaps when he hit the ground. His shout of pain turned to a hiss.

He chuckled darkly. “You didn’t think it’d be that easy, did you?”

I kept the gun level on his head. “It won’t take me long to put a bullet in your brain. Now, we aren’t stupid enough for Grey to feed on you and access your memories. We have no doubt that there are safeguards in place. Orion let us know you’d been hoping to pull her into your ranks.”

A snarl lifted his lips. “The little bastard is going to regret ever defying his father. Hyperion will see to that.”

Behind the mage, Grey stiffened. I tried not to meet her eye, keeping my gaze steady on the mage. “Or Orion will finally kill his father for everything he’s done. Killing his fated mates, torturing his son, you know. All the crimes that would normally put him in prison with the worst offenders in our world.”

Better for the asshole to know we didn’t have Kingsley building a charm to drain their magic entirely.

From the corner of my eye, I checked in with thePrimaland the bear. Both were still fighting, completely in their own world as they circled one another. The Primal had gotten a few good hits in; blood poured from the bear’s matted brown fur, turning it a deep shade of red.

But the bear had managed to inflict a few wounds on the other shifter, too. It was less obvious because of his black fur and skin, but there were gouges around his abdomen from being clawed at. He was already healing, but so was the bear.

“Just shoot him,” Grey deadpanned. “He isn’t worth keeping alive.”

I shrugged, clicking the safety off. “Whatever you say, boss,” I replied, keeping my gaze on the mages.

His eyes widened in shock. “Wait!” He held up his hands, panic souring his scent. “He has it! He has thatthing,” he whispered. “And he’s going to use it on her.”

I sucked in a deep breath, tearing my eyes off the male for only a moment. “Fuck.”

But that was enough time for him to summon shadows to take him away.

68

Hawk

---