Page 46 of Fated In Forever
He was going to kill me.
His grand plan was ruined—he had no use for me, or my blood, or even my magic.
Darkness visibly coursed through his veins, black tendrils snaking beneath translucent skin. His pale features sharpened, mangled by hate and vengeance, shadows clinging to him like servants as he bore down on me.
“You will bleed into the pool. Every last drop.” Ravok decided, his voice echoing strangely in the circular chamber. “ I will become that which I would have commanded. The portal is open, the rift grows wider. The ancient barriers are crumbling. Soon, the Underworld will spill into your precious mortal realm, and there's nothing you can do to stop it.”
Was that true?I glanced at the pulsing doorway.Had that been his plan all along? To let a different realm swallow up ours?
That would be just like him.
To burn the world down like a petulant child.
I scooted back until I couldn’t scoot another inch, my hands scrabbling across the bare floor as I gazed up at him. He looked possessed, eyes glowing, mouth agape, dark veins crawling beneath his skin like worms eating something already dead.
And then, wonder of wonders, my hand closed over…something metal.
Metal that burned, like trying to hold onto fire.
But I welcomed the agony, because the pain would be worth it, as long as I could find an opening and slip this blade between his ribs. Clutched in my burning palm, the weapon hummed with unholy energy, and I bit back my whimper in favor of an insult.
“What’s the matter, Ravok? If you can’t have the world, nobody else will? You’re like a kid who lost his favorite toy. Grow the fuck up.”
Ravok's laughter was as sharp and cutting as broken glass. “Such a brave little mortal. Your blood will do nicely to fuel another change. Let’s hope there’s enough.” The temperature in the room dropped as his power surged, and I bit back a scream, clutching the demonic knife tighter.
“Now hold still and don’t make this difficult.” Ravok's eyes gleamed with predatory hunger. “Or fight me, and I’ll carve your head from your shoulders. Either way, blood will be spilled.”
His attack came without warning, faster than I’d expected and I ended up flat on my back in that damn pool, freezing cold water soaking into every little crevice andcrack, doing nothing for my burning palm, but I’d be damned if I’d drop my only weapon.
Ravok swung the silver knife straight down like an axe and I rolled again, toward him this time, almost to his feet, tearing the knees out of my jeans, crushing my elbow. His blade sang, hissing through the air, as I rolled again, somehow managing to keep my grip on the blade in my hand. I managed to steal just one glance at my weapon, my heart sinking.
Old. The blade was old, rusty, and the edge looked impossibly dull.
Nothing, compared to Ravok’s foot-long silver athame, honed to razor sharpness, capable of carving through the darkness itself.
Those long shadows still trailing from the portal before a wave of energy swept through the room, knocking Ravok off balance as he brought his blade down in a vicious arc, missing me by an inch. The doorway opened wider, and that relentless tugging inside my ribcageyanked, like someone had hooked me straight through my heart.
I managed to get my feet under me, planting the soles of my boots on solid ground by the time he righted himself, brought that awful knife up over his head again. Black shadows erupted from the vortex, wrapping around Ravok like hungry mouths. His curse echoed through the chamber as he was dragged toward that dark hole and I swore…
Did I hear Malachi screaming my name?
Could he still be alive, somewhere inside that darkness?
Ravok fought the darkness, slashing with his knife, cutting away chunks of shadow. One tendril fell to the ground, writhing like a snake without a head and I took a breath, measured the distance between me and my enemy.
Between me and the portal.
I froze for a heartbeat, my mind refusing to process—these were my two choices. But the male I loved was gone, cast into literal hell. As a reminder, there was an empty, aching place inside me, deep as any physical wound.
Malachi was behind that doorway.
If I remained in this room, Ravok would kill me.
One last wild slash and the shadows slithered back into the abyss, then Ravok's cruel smile landed on me with the finality of a guillotine. “There, you see?” He brandished the silver athame. “This blade cut through Death itself, it will make fast work of your skinny neck, girl. Now. You’ve caused me enough trouble. It’s time you earn your keep, and bleed for the cause.”
“I’ll never bleed foryourcause.” I firmed my grip on the knife, the reek of brimstone stuck inside my nose. “Your cause is a fool’s errand, planned by a fool, enacted by a fool, and you, Ravok, will still be a fool when this is over.” My voice cracked with fear, but I didn’t care.
He was the weak one, not me.
