Page 25 of Unraveled
A howl pierces the air. It sounds like a dozen souls crying all at once.
Gooseflesh breaks out over my skin, and my head snaps toward the wolf spirit, who’s still howling to the sky like a siren. I don’t know how I know, but I know she’s callinghim.
The king of the fae. I can’t believe I foolishly tethered myself to him. I feel him before I see him. Dread settles in my stomach, and I turn just as Ash swoops down. In the gray daylight, he stands in contrast.
I narrow my gaze at the wolf and climb faster, and the thorns shift away from my stomach, avoiding pricking me. My heart drums as I slip again, but this time, I catch myself with less trouble. Fear doesn’t register in my mind. I don’t have time for that.
The beating of Ash’s wings pushes cold air against my back.
The golden swirls of his aura shift around him like liquid metal, and I tighten my hold around the stem, willing myself to keep my grip.
“Where do you think you’re going, Monster?”
Chapter 10
My chest caves in,and everything closes in around me. I shut my eyes and breathe around the feeling. Ash got me—again—and perhaps it was foolish to try to escape, but how else am I supposed to survive this? How can I warn my sister, the only person I have left, if I’m trapped here?
I hate feeling powerless. Finley told me the lunargyres would feast on me, but if I don’t go back, they’ll feast on Penumbra’s citizens the minute Ash tears down the veil.
“Go away.” My voice trembles as I speak, and I glare at him over my shoulder.
His wingbeats send my hair flying over my face. The scent of pine and frankincense mixes with the rose musk, and I grip the bush harder, pushing down my fear. And my body’s reaction to him, which I refuse to acknowledge any more than I already have. His body heat sears my skin through the thin layer of my slip as he flies closer. A welcome reprieve from the icy wind.
“Do you know what you’ve done?” His voice is deep as his arms cage me into the rosebush. His breath against my neck raises gooseflesh across my skin.
My blood sings at his nearness, and I slam those feelings back behind a wall inside my mind. It’s a flimsy wall that I must strengthen if I’m to survive this.
“I’ve done nothing but try to escape your crumbling castle,” I snap, and even as the words leave my lips, I know that’s not entirely true. My mind feeds me images of Finley’s panicked expression when he noticed the roses were turning red.
I did something else, though not intentionally.
“How did you get out of your room, Monster?” Ash’s grip tightens around my waist, and a pleasant heat radiates from every point he touches.
I turn toward Naheli; she sits on the balcony, in the same corner as before, and is looking at me like she’s expecting me to follow his orders. The traitor... This is what I get for trusting anything that’s tied to the beast behind me.
“Did she let you out?” Ash whispers, and I turn just as he glances at the wolf. His lips tighten. “Please tell me you have nothing to do with this, Naheli...”
The spirit whines and tilts her head in that cute way that got me to trust her, and Ash mutters something in another language. He doesn’t sound happy. The wolf slowly vanishes into the shadows. Her eyes are the last thing to disappear, and they stare at me until they, too, are gone.
He wraps his arm tighter around me, and I hold on to the plant like my life depends on it, drinking in the soft pull of its magic. It feels like the roses are holding on to me as much as I’m holding them.
“Let go, Mia.”
My traitorous heart stumbles over the velvet notes of his voice, and how my name sounds on his lips. Gods, what’s happening to me? “What will you do if I don’t?”
He places his other hand on the wall, next to my face, and all the blooms on that side wither to brown mush. Whatever warmth was inside my body dies as fear takes over.
This is better, right? Fearing the beast is a normal reaction. I gulp, fighting to swallow the thickness in my throat. “If you wanted me dead, you would have killed me already.”
His lips thin, but his touch on my body remains gentle. “Perhaps I’ll change my mind.” His expression hardens. “You have a lot to lose, Monster. Let go of the plant.”
“You don’t scare me,” I lie. I know baiting him is foolish, but he ignites the rebellious side of me I hate the most.
“I’m not playing this little game.” Something rattles in his chest, deepening his voice. “I’ll put you to sleep like I did in the forest.”
I really don’t want that. I don’t want him to touch me, let alone lock me in that room. At least if I stay awake, I can ask him questions. Perhaps this time he’ll tell me what he intends to do with me. Now that I know who he is, maybe I can bargain for more.
While I know little about the fae, I know they like to strike deals. Surely, I can get out of here for a price?
