“This moment is even sweeter than I imagined,” it hisses.
Its form goes semi-translucent before solidifying again. It tilts its head skyward. “Such a lovely color,” it says of the blood moon, still beaming down on us. “After tonight, I’ll paint the worlds in it.”
I lose the fight with myself, and all the fear and panic I held at bay fills me to the brim, consuming me.
The demon glances around me to Becks. “Should I kill him now, or after?” it taunts. It tilts his head in a distinctly human move, like it’s truly thinking over the options. “I think I’ll let him live so he can watch. His despair and grief will make him taste that much sweeter.”
No. No!
Tears slip from my eyes, mixing with my own blood as it flows down my cheeks.
Drool drips from the demon’s jowls, as if it’s an animal anticipating a meal. I don’t think it’s going to eat me physically, but maybe that’s part of the process. Terror tightens its grip on me.
“Any last words?” it asks, shifting close enough that I can smell its hot putrid breath.
I gag. It waits for my answer, but I keep my mouth shut.
I’d plead with the monster, but it wouldn’t do any good.
Behind me, Becks is going crazy. Absolutely feral.
If only I could have another moment with him. Another moment to be held in his arms. Another moment to feel the press of his lips against mine and to tell him how I truly feel about him. How in this short time he’s become everything to me.
And that I love him too.
The demon makes a motion with his hand, and I turn in the air until I’m facing Becks. In these final seconds, I’m desperate for the sight of him, even as it shreds my heart.
Becks is covered in a web of dark cords that is pressing down on him, forcing him to the ground. Dark tentacles coil around his limbs and throat, holding him nearly immobile.
Even so, he thrashes with what little movement he has, snapping at the cords with his teeth. Every time one dissipates, another replaces it, and in the process he only injures himself further. Scales are missing where he tried to tear himself free, exposing raw flesh beneath. Both his wings are bent at unnatural angles, and blood pours from the slash the demon carved across his chest.
Despite all of that, he never stops trying to reach me.
A sob rips from my throat.
For him.
For me.
For the life we might have had that is about to disappear.
The demon’s hot breath brushes against the side of my face, and then something slimy travels from my neck to my cheek. I gag again when I realize it just licked me, lapping up my blood like it’s a delicious treat.
“I’m looking forward to an eternity torturing you,” it growls in my ear.
I shake, unable to keep it together anymore. Death is one thing, but what’s coming for me is so much worse than that.
Tipping his face skyward, Becks releases a bellow loud enough that the trees around us tremble, dropping snow from their branches.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see the demon’s cavernous mouth open. Without warning, thick tendrils surge from its depths and latch on to my torso, arms, and legs.
The first tug comes, the same sensation I felt in the sewers. I go rigid, knowing what’s next. Dreading it.
“I love you,” I say to Becks, but he’s too far gone to hear me as he tries to break free.
I say it again as tears stream down my face and the pressure builds until it becomes painful.
A gasp tears from my chest as the pain intensifies. It’s like I’m being melted from the inside out, every bone breaking and crushing, ground to dust.
