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“Would a monster have met Asmodeus on that mountain top? No.A monsterwouldn't have given two shits about owing a life debt, it would've let the pretty little princess burn.” Loric steps even closer, forcing me to match his advance with a step back. His silver eyes darken until his pupils drown out the colored rings.
“I wasn't supposed to burn at the stake. The king demanded I be thrown into the riff. He wanted to damn my soul.”
Loric chews the inside of his cheek, standing up straight so he can look down at me from beneath his dark lashes. “Same difference.”
“I beg to differ and would much rather burn, knowing I’ll be reborn someday. The riff, on the other hand, my soul would’ve been trapped down there.” I shrug. If he’s going to berate me, he might as well get his facts straight.
“Who. Is. He?” A muscle in Loric’s jaw ticks as he stares me down.
I breathe out heavily. He’s not going to stop. “He’s a man who took advantage of me, alright? He was a prisoner in the cell beside me and pulled my fucking heartstrings, hoping I’d help him escape.”
“Took advantage, how?”
I toss a hand out. “Does it matter? He just did, and when everything was said and done, he left me in that cell and started a new life. So, I don’t care what you do to him, just leave me out of it.” Shaking my head, I start toward the treeline.
With all the shit on fire in my life right now, the last thing I want to do is take a trip down nightmare lane with a man I barely know. Loric can do as he sees fit. Something tells me he would anyway, even if I got down on my knees and begged for him to spare Gael.
“I don’t want to freeze,” I whisper, my shoulders drooping, defeated. Leave it to Gael to ruin the only place to stay.
The noise that leaves his throat sends a wave of heat fluttering through my middle. “You won’t. I made a promise to keep you alive and I don't break my promises.”
Tossing my arms up, I start to speak, except I catch movement out of the corner of my eye. Brenn. When did he leave the others? I don’t remember seeing him walk out of the woods.
As he inches closer, stopping a few feet away from us in the open grass, as if space is a necessity. He dips into a lazy, overdramatic bow. “Hate to interrupt…”
“Then don’t.” Loric doesn’t look away from me as he speaks.
Arching a brow, I cross my arms and turn to Brenn. His short white hair catches the waning light. I’m ready to hear him out, even if hisleaderisn’t.
Brenn holds his hands up in a mocked surrender. “The last thing I want to do is get involved in whatever sexually charged nonsense is going on here, but while the two of you argue and ogle each other, Mira is losing fingers.”
“What?” Loric snaps, stretching to look over his head. I can barely see the horses and they glow. Their leads twist around the trees as they pace, hooves beating against the ground as they try to break free.
What are they scared of?
I squint, but it’s impossible to make out anything in the shade. The light isn’t strong enough to pierce the veil of leaves in the canopies.
“Fuck me,” Loric breathes. “Stay with her.”
Brenn nods his understanding as Loric jogs off, leaving us to twiddle our thumbs in the weeds.
Chapter 8
Calamity
Ifrantically shake my head, trying to wrap my mind around what is happening, but I can’t see anything beyond the forest line.Someone is losing fingers? How? Why? Did someone from the bar attack them?
A growl tears through the air, coming from deep within the trees. My face blanches, eyes widening as I fight to calm my breathing.
There’s something out there.
“What the fuck was that?” The words leave me in a whisper.
“A never cat. There’s a pack of them in the woods.” Brenn purses his lips, looks me up and down, then spins on one heel and starts toward the trees. The metal hinge around his knee whines with every sure step he takes.
“And you want to head towards them? Shouldn’t we be running inside? I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we’d be safer hiding in the sea of murderers.” I catch up to him, pleading with my eyes for us to turn around. There’s no way I’ll go inside that pub alone. Not with how its occupants looked at me. Yet, stayingout here makes us sitting ducks and going toward the creatures is flat out stupid.
“Yes. My mate is in there and I’m not welcome inside the bar.” He brushes past me and continues toward the woods. “Stay if you’d like or go inside. I truly don’t care. Loric might not be able to go back on his word, but I can, and I have no intention of risking my life to protect the mad king’s daughter.”
