Page 63 of A Realm of Fire and Ash

I crawl onto his lap, settling myself in the cradle of his legs. Tilting his chin to meet my gaze, I whisper, "Let me win and I will."

Adjusting myself, his hands fly to my hips to still me as he grunts. "You keep moving like that and you're going to get yourself killed, little devil. Assuming you're still a virgin?" His brow rises.

I give him a curt nod.

He bites his lip, the ring glinting in the light. He opens his mouth to speak but I cut him off.

"I'll make a promise to you, that when I win, I will use one of my favors to ask for your freedom from your servitude."

Closing his eyes and leaning his head against my shoulder, he lets out a shuddering breath.

"You don't have to do this." His tone is soft but there is something fierce in his words. "You could ask for anything. Anything at all to make life so much easier for you."

I meet his eyes. "I won't let anyone else I care about rot in a prison when I have the power to help them within my reach."

My heart seizes in my chest at the reminder of Wilder. He stares into my eyes for what feels like an eternity, so many emotions flitting across his features, then he finally nods.

I cup the back of his neck as my lips crash to his, savoring his taste as I swallow his moan, like a long-deprived man finally getting a drink of cold water. His kiss becomes desperate, as his hands haul my hips closer, feeling the evidence of his desire right at my core. My mouth parts, and his tongue sweeps in, exploring mine.

The kiss deepens, and his hands travel up my sides as our hips start to move in a gentle rhythm. The clank of our armor and our heavy breathing echo around the room, amplifying the intensity of this moment.

A bright red light flashes behind my eyelids, and we break apart, glancing down at our flashing red gemstones adorning our chest pieces.

His eyes meet mine. "Deal sealed," he croaks. "The hunt starts now."

I scramble off his lap, pulling him to a seated position. Before I can turn away, he clamps a hand on the back of my thigh, pulling me so I'm between his legs.

"After you win, I'm cashing in the favor you owe me," he says, his voice thick with desire. "And I'll need to feed."

A grin tugs at my lips. "Of course."

I step away, the hum of anticipation coursing through my veins as we both turn to face the door. We are going to fight for our freedom … and we're not going to lose.

* * *

Azand I haunt the woods, the air charged with something dangerous. It's after midnight, and the beasts we encountered the other night are no comparison to what stalks these woods now. Flashes of red light catch our vision through the trees, and before we can turn in that direction, a twig snaps on the other side of me.

I whirl around, readying my bow and arrow. A creature with the body of a man and the head of a wolf stares back at me, its golden eyes twinkling in the moonlight. It snarls, baring its fangs. Before it can charge, I've loosed the arrow and it flies through the air and straight into its gemstone affixed to its chest piece. The man staggers and roars in pain before it collapses to the ground.

The mangled body turns to ash, and I watch as it sends a firework into the sky, illuminating my name with a one beside it. One kill.

Other fireworks sound in the periphery, but we can't see them through the canopy. They go off so often, it sounds like the bass of music.

I'm too distracted by a crimson light bobbing through the trees to notice someone sneaking up behind the trees until an arm wraps around my throat. My necklace activates, and the person drops to their knees, roaring as I whip around and drive my dagger into her skull.

One more kill.

Tangerine-colored light blinds me as I take in the sight of the fallen corpse, her face morphing from beautiful to monstrous in a matter of seconds.

Az slams his hand hard against my shoulder, turning me to face the giant line of crimson lights looming towards us in the darkness. They blink in and out like a warning beacon, snaking through the trees.

"How am I supposed to take out all of them?" I frantically search for a target and loose an arrow, but it splinters against the trees when one of the fae ducks.

"You let me handle this," Az growls in my ear, "and you take 'em out, one by one." His words vibrate with intensity and my fingers itch around a bowstring.

"What?" I hiss.

I can do this. All of us are here because we’re monsters. Not the kind that lurk under beds, but the kind who whisper honeyed words with our barbs of poison, leaching into everything we touch. Hurting good people who don’t deserve it.

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