Page 29 of Eternal Sacrifice
I sat on the chair Jasper created, turning to look at the fire. It wasn’t cold in Hell, but there was something hypnotizing about watching the dancing flames. It also helped to calm the demons. Rather than threatening each other, they started to discuss former hunts well into the night.
“Do you remember that one?” Justice asked, waving his hand as if painting a portrait. “The one that talked you into letting her kill her ex.”
“Yeah,” Jasper chuckled. “I let her kill him, too.”
Jax’s palm rested on his forehead as he shook his head. “Then she took off, and we spent the next eight months tracking her down.”
“We almost won that hunt,” Ryan said, beaming.
“We still pulled out the win.” Jasper smiled. The close call had only made the win sweeter in his eyes.
“Did you know the only reason we went after the Haitian Necromancer was that we were trying to pull big points to slide into the lead?” Zeb said, leaning forward on the stump he sat on.
“That’s why you chose that file?” Jasper asked before laughing darkly.
Springfield rubbed his elbow, shooting the rest of the demons a narrowed glare.
“Well,” Jace said, breaking up the conversation as he moved to stand. “I need to stretch a bit.”
Small sounds from the various animals that inhabited ring nine could be heard from inside the forest’s darkness, but the demons around the fire went quiet.
“Everything good?” Jax asked as he looked over at Jace.
“Yeah, all good, mate,” Jace smiled before walking into the forest. The darkness swallowed him whole before I turned back toward the flickering flames while the demons began to reminisce again.
“The shot went left. Likewayleft. Missing the ghoul entirely.” Springfield was animatedly regaling one of their hunts, highlighting a time when he nearly died.
I sighed, settling back into my log chair. I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do, but the humming vibrating energy inside me wished for something different. Sitting and reminiscing about a past I wasn’t part of wasn’t doing it for me. My body was crying out for movement.
“Nope,” I announced, deciding to get to my feet. “I need to stretch a bit too.”
“I bet you have to stretch A LOT to keep up with a demon pack,” Springfield laughed.
I raised my eyebrows, waggling them suggestively before smiling. “My mates know exactly how to stretch me.”
Springfield’s laughter died out slowly, as if he was trying to keep it going despite no longer finding it as humorous. It dug into him in a way I hadn’t expected.
“Go on, Fox,” Justice said, making me turn toward him.
He was lounging on the recliner. His feet were crossed at the ankles while his hands were folded over his stomach. The bright white of his skin reflected the amber orange from the flickering fire, but his green eyes glowed as he looked at me.
“Get some vampire stretching in.” Justice smiled widely, and his eyes shined even brighter.
Yes. I think that is what I need.
The demons went back to telling stories of their former hunts while I walked into the dark shadows of the forest. The further I got from the fire, the calmer I felt. Flipping through the minds of the animals I heard in the trees, I looked for Jace. Most birds were sleeping, already tucked into their nests for the night. Plenty of squirrels were running through the branches, but they were more concerned with finding their mates than watching out for mine. I would have thought I was alone if I hadn’t known a vampire stalked in these woods.
I took a step forward and moved back ten feet instead. My back hit a tree while a familiar cool body pressed into my front.
“Hello, Love.” Jace pressed into me, erasing any semblance of space that might have remained between us. “Did you want to join me for a stroll?”
“A stretching, apparently,” I laughed. “Just needed to move a bit.”
Jace leaned in, and I expected him to kiss me, but instead, he tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear before leaning in. “Justice told me about your vampire fantasy.”
“I didn’t make any executive decisions in the dungeon. I was just along for the ride.”
“A vampire ride,” Jace said, adding an amendment to my words. “But if you want a vampire, Love. Then you should ask the vampire.”
