by G. K. DeRosa
Ahead, brilliant light filled an archway. I squinted from the sweeping white after the dim tunnels. A wave of cool air wafted over me as I followed Talon to the mountainous exit. “How exactly are we getting to the Underworld?”
Talon turned, blocking the doorway and some of the frosty blasts of wind. “I figured we’d give your portalling powers a try, and if that doesn’t work, we’ll fly.”
I gulped as I peeked over his shoulder at the soaring mountain range and treacherous crags. I still couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that I was a warlock, but I sure as hell hoped it was true. Portalling seemed much easier than flying by dragon across this frigid wasteland.
“You seemed to enjoy it last time.”
“Huh?” I tore my anxious gaze from the bottomless snow-covered valley below.
“Flying. You’ve ridden my dragon before.”
And I’d love to ride him again. My lusty she-demon perked up. It was the first I’d heard from her since we left the confines of the fortress and the magic binding wards behind.
He cleared his throat and ran his palm over the back of his neck as if he’d heard my naughty thoughts. “It’s completely safe is what I’m getting at.”
“Gotcha.” I pulled my collar up as the wind whipped by and wrapped my arms tighter around the warm jacket. “I guess I should give this a try before I freeze to death.”
He nodded. “Your powers are fueled by emotions. Once you get a handle on those, you’ll easily be able to rein in your abilities.”
Great, my emotions. What if they were exactly the problem?
My mind flashed back to my escape from Thax’s underground castle. How had I opened that portal? I’d been thinking about Talon… and Draeko, and the prison. I was frustrated and getting desperate. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to harness those emotions again. Turning my thoughts inward, I searched for that swirl of magic that resided deep within my core.
Nothing but an empty void.
Dammit. I blew out a frustrated breath.
Warm hands closed around my shoulders, and my eyes snapped open. A pair of glimmering silver irises locked on mine. “You have to feel it, Azara. Don’t force it. Your magic will come back when the time is right.”
My jaw unclenched, and I focused on the mesmerizing pools of molten steel. I wanted to disappear inside them and never return. Why couldn’t I remember Talon? Those eyes spoke to me like they had a direct link to my tortured soul.
Chasing the frustrating thoughts away, I concentrated on my powers. My she-demon skimmed the surface of my skin, but I kept her at bay. I needed my inner warlock today. Talon and Logan refused to let me start practicing magic until I got my demon under control, so I’d have to wing it.
From the corner of my eye, I glanced at the purple tattoo on my arm. Not even a flicker. Apparently, my warlock was in hiding. “It’s no use. I can’t do it,” I grumbled, breaking free of his smoldering gaze.
He snagged my chin between his thumb and forefinger and lifted my eyes back to his. “It’ll come when the time is right. Just like your memories.”
“When did you get all Zen master on me?” I narrowed my eyes. “Where’d the pissed-off dragon I met go?”
Talon shrugged and turned his gaze over the mountainside. “Maybe my dragon realized all hope wasn’t lost.”
“Stupid dragon,” I muttered, earning an elusive chuckle from Talon.
“You’re probably right.” He took a few steps back and pointed toward the opening to the tunnels. “You might want to wait over there while I shift.”
“Nah, nudity doesn’t bother me.” I threw him a wink.
Again, an unexpected smile. “That’s not what I meant.” He rubbed his stubbly jaw as he regarded me. “How do I put this?” Another pause. “My dragon is pretty taken by you, and I’m not sure what his reaction will be after not seeing you for all this time.”
My eyes bugged out. “What the heck does that mean? Is he going to try to eat me or jump me?”
“More likely the latter.”
I slowly backed up, my heart attempting somersaults, until I stood in the shelter of the cave. “Do you really think this little rinky-dink hollow is going to protect me?” I called out.
But it was too late. Talon’s muscled, naked body stood against the alabaster blanket of snow. A golden shimmer curled its way up his legs, across his cut abs, and over his massive torso until it consumed his entire form. The gilded haze ballooned around his large frame as his skin and bones began to expand and contort.
I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the gruesome yet enthralling sight. When the shimmery fog lifted, an enormous silver dragon loomed over the cliffside. My heart crashed against my ribcage as my gaze climbed up the beautiful beast.
Like everything regarding Talon, a deep, repressed part of me recognized the shimmering silver beast. As terrifying as the massive creature was, my fingers itched to reach out and caress its sleek scales.
The dragon regarded me, his oddly human eyes lancing over every inch of me. He moved closer, and I took a step back. Sure, he was gorgeous, but he was also terrifying.
You coming? Or are you going to stand there and stare at me all day? Talon’s voice erupted in my head, and I nearly jumped out of my skin.
“How’d you do that?” I shrieked.
The overgrown reptile’s lips curved into a grin—if that were even possible. It worked before so I figured I’d try it again.
I took a small step from the cave, nearing the gigantic creature. “What does it mean that I can hear your dragon in my head?”
Silence.
“Hello?” I glanced up at the towering dragon. “I think your ESP is broken.”
The animal shook his enormous head and snorted, his silver irises drilling into me much like within the man they typically inhabited. Two puffs of dark smoke erupted from his nostrils, and the scent of smokey charcoal filled the air. Yikes, I had to be careful not to get this big guy mad or I’d be demon barbecue.
“So why can I hear you?” From my limited memories, I didn’t believe that was common between supernatural species.
We must still be connected somehow. Even in my head his voice was quiet, dark undertones lacing his thoughts.
“I don’t suppose you’ll elaborate on that?” I asked as I took another measured step closer.
Nope.
“Stubborn bastard.”
A chuckle rang out in my head, urging my feet forward and I closed the remaining distance between myself and the fiery beast.
The dragon dropped to his belly and extended a scaley limb. Come on. Get on. It’s a long flight to the Underworld, and I’d rather get there before nightfall.
Nightfall? Ugh. It was barely daybreak. How long would I have to endure the frigid temps on this reptile?
I scaled Dragon-Talon’s leg, gripping onto his elbow then shoulder blade. I lowered myself between his wing bones and heat seeped through my jeans. It was like sitting on a raging hearth.
Ready?
I tightened my grip around the joint of his bony appendages and squeezed my thighs. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
Chapter Fifteen
“What’s up with all these underground tunnels?” I grumbled as I followed Talon through yet another dark, dank passageway.
“Easiest way to sneak up on someone,” he called over his shoulder. “Now be quiet. I thought you wanted your revenge on Thax.”
I do. My she-demon purred. “How do you even know where you’re going?”
Talon’s hard expression darkened as he peered down the tunnel. “We’ve been here before.” A tendon fluttered in his clenched jaw.
“I take it that didn’t go well.”
“You almost died.” His words were so soft I thought I’d misheard him.
“So not only did my cousin kidnap me and mess with my memories, he tried to murder me first?”
“That wasn’t his fault actually. One of his demon guards got a little overzealous.”
Ima
ges of Thax’s narkin demons flickered through my mind. Nasty creatures for sure. I cringed at the thought of their razor-sharp tusks slicing through my flesh. A chill skirted up my spine as phantom pangs streaked across my back. Was that a memory?
Talon’s warm palm pressed into my lower back, pulling me from my dark thoughts. “This way.” He ushered me through a doorway and pressed his finger to his lips. He leaned against the rock wall with his ear to the earth, and I did the same. Even with my demon senses kicking in, I couldn’t make out a sound.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small pouch. Tipping it over the stone, he mumbled a few words. Magic danced over my skin as a tiny fissure ran along the wall in the shape of a doorway. The rock shuddered and cracked, and the mystical door slid into the wall like a handy little pocket door.
Talon’s arm slapped across my chest as I stepped forward. He slowly shook his head and moved in front of me. From over his thick shoulder, I could make out a vast chamber. He crept inside, and I trailed a few feet behind. There was no way I was missing out on this. My lying bastard cousin was getting a good soul-suck.
The darkness closed in around us, the faint pitter patter of our footsteps the only sound throughout the large space. A grand hearth sat in the center of the room with a circular table surrounding it. Chairs were strewn haphazardly, like whoever had been there had left in a hurry. I neared the high-backed chair in the center, imagining my cousin sitting over his warlord friends. Soon this throne will be mine. I tamped down on my power-hungry she-demon as I scanned the gray ashes that filled the fireplace of the echoey chamber.
“Stay here,” Talon whispered from the opposite side of the room. Before I could object, he disappeared through tall double doors. I continued my investigation of the banquet hall, hoping it would trigger some long-lost memory. According to the guys, I’d been missing for three months. Had I spent the entire time in Thax’s underground lair in the Nether Lands or had I visited this castle too?
“It’s empty,” Talon announced from the doorway, and my heart leapt to my throat. “Not a single guard or servant anywhere.”
“Geez, put a bell on or something, dragon.”
“Why so jumpy?”
The hairs on the back of my neck rose as I walked toward the doorway he’d appeared from. “I don’t know. I think I was here before.”
“You were. I just told you—”
I raised my hand to cut him off and shook my head. “No, more recently. While I was missing.”
His eyes widened, a flicker lighting up his irises. “You remember something?”
“No. It’s just a feeling.” I walked out into the hallway, my fingers running across the dusty rock walls. My feet led the way, an invisible string propelling them forward.
We moved deeper into the heart of the castle, the odor of moist earth intensifying with each step. I reached a stairwell and followed it down, one floor, two, and finally turned down the corridor of the bottom level. Talon remained tight on my heels.
“Where exactly are you taking us?” he whisper-hissed.
“I’ll know when we get there.” I picked up the pace as anxiety twisted my insides. Flashes of the dark passageway streaked across my mind, fuzzy images ricocheting around my skull. I squeezed my eyes shut trying to place them, but they were too flimsy to hold onto.
We turned a corner, and a towering iron door loomed in front of us. A pit of dread formed in my gut, completely filling my insides. I swallowed down the bout of nausea and jiggled the rusted handle.
Talon hissed out a curse as the dark room came to view. Iron manacles lined the floor and walls. A long wooden table sat in the center of the chamber fitted with rusty metal cuffs and spikes that ran the entire length of the torture contraption. Two more chairs similarly outfitted sat along the far wall, blood spattering the worn wood. An iron wheel stood between the two chairs, metal spikes jutting out of each spoke and encrusted with more dark blood.
Sweat dripped down my back despite the chill that had overtaken me. I ran my hands over my arms, but it did nothing to chase away the frosty sensation. “I was here,” I muttered as I moved closer to the torture rack. A smaller table sat beneath it filled with potions and tinctures. The messy handwriting froze the blood in my veins: remna venom, chirus blood, shika urine, drestia poison and more and more.
Screams echoed across my mind. Shrieks of pain. My pain, my screams. I closed my eyes and gruesome images flew by: scorching hot pokers, whips, gleaming blades of varying sizes.
My knees buckled, and I reached for the table, but my sweaty fingers slid right off the edge. I waited for the smack of hard cement, but it never came. Warm arms encircled me, and I fell into a firm chest. I buried my face into his shirt as hot tears burned my eyes. “Oh gods, what did they do to me?”
“I don’t know, Azara, but I swear I’ll make Thax pay.” Talon’s arms tightened around me, and I sunk into his embrace as sobs racked my chest.
What if GG had been right, and I was better off without my memories?
Talon swept a tear-soaked tendril of dark hair behind my ear and muttered soothingly. “It’s okay. You’re going to be okay, I promise. I’ll never let him hurt you again.”
I glanced up to meet blazing irises so full of emotion they stole my breath.
“I’m so sorry I failed you, Azara.” The agony in Talon’s voice was mirrored in his expression. Something broke inside me. Another sob racked my chest, and he pressed me closer. A rush of fiery emotions swept my insides and bubbled to the surface.
Raw energy crackled to life, seeping through my veins and raging to be freed. I squirmed from Talon’s embrace and splayed my hands out. Flashes of crimson energy exploded from my palms and demolished the torture rack. Shards of wood splintered across the room, shooting from one torture device to the other until nothing remained but piles of ashes.
Darkness seeped into my vision, and my demon scraped her way to the surface. I welcomed her this time, the pain too much for me to take. I wanted out. I didn’t want to remember.
“Hold on, Azara. Please.” Talon’s warm breath ghosted over the shell of my ear an instant before his arms came around me once again. He cradled me in his chest, and the black receded. He rocked me back and forth, the strength of his arms and warmth of his tone grounding me. “Stay with me, Azara. Don’t let her win.”
When I opened my eyes, the darkness had disappeared and the tears had been swallowed up by Talon’s shirt. The roar of blood across my eardrums had passed, and a strange calm settled over me.
Talon’s chin rested on my head and the slow, steady thrum of his heart tamed the erratic beating of my own. I hazarded a glance up and met his concerned gaze. “You okay?”
I scanned the destruction and couldn’t help the ghost of a smile tipping up my lips. “I think so.” I curled into his lap and nuzzled the soft fabric of his shirt. “Thank you,” I muttered.
“I’m the last person you should be thanking, Azara.”
I shook my head as my fingers dug into his shirt. “I may not remember much, but I know you’re wrong. I have a feeling you’ve saved me more than once.”
“But not when it really counted.”
“And yet, here I am.”
He arched a brow but didn’t utter a word.
I closed my eyes, happy to revel in the sudden calm and reassurance of his firm embrace. We stayed like that for a while, a peaceful bubble of security within the terrors of Thax’s torture chamber.
Finally, I must have nodded off. I vaguely remembered Talon lifting me and his warm breath against my ear. “Let’s get you home.”
Chapter Sixteen
The dull roar of voices and clatter of trays in the busy mess hall jumbled together in the background. I couldn’t focus with the slew of new images floating around in my mind. More than random images, they were memories. I was still having a hard time deciphering them, but GG’s potion was working. In the past few days, bits and pieces were starting to come together.
Vander threw a limp fry from across the table, the golden flecks in his hazel eyes twinkling. I ducked, anticipating his move, and the soggy potato smacked into an approaching Flix.
“Hey,” he squealed as the fry slid down his pale-yellow jumpsuit, leaving a greasy track down the front. “Not cool, wolf.”
“Sorry,” he laughed. “That wasn’t directed at you.”
“Whatever.” Flix folded into the empty chair beside me. I’d rekindled my friendship with the pixie, under the watchful eye of one of my bodyguards, and despite not remembering much about him, I could totally see why we’d hit it off in the first place.
“That was a ninja move, Azara.” Vander beamed at me as he sat back in his chair. “It didn’t seem like you were with us.” He pointed at his head. “More memories resurfacing?”
I chewed on the inside of my cheek and nodded. “Something like that.”
“Don’t pressure her, Vander. Her memories will come back when they will. Let the poor girl have some fun. With me.” Flix turned to me with a mischievous smile. “I convinced Logan to let you help me and Valeria set up for the big moon fest party tomorrow night.”
“Party in prison?” I quirked a brow.
“It’s a Darkblood tradition.”
Dallas sauntered over and took the seat beside me. “More like an excuse to get wasted on moonshine and tear up the boneyard.” He smirked and flashed his fangs. “I’m not saying it’s a bad thing of course.”
“So did I forget about this or is it new information?” I couldn’t imagine a penitentiary holding a party for a bunch of psychopathic inmates.
“New information,” said Hayden as he appeared behind Dallas, carrying a tray filled with an assortment of mini cereal boxes. “The warden was trying to keep it from happening.”
“Party pooper,” Flix interjected.
“But he was outvoted by the prison’s governing council,” the angel continued. “Something about it being good for the inmates’ mental health.”