The Umbra growled. The boulder was between them, looming like a dark shadow. He couldn’t get around it. He dove out of the way and?—
She barely had time to pull her legs up before it fell in a thundering quake. The rocks cut into her stomach as she clung to the mountain. Dust choked her. It seeped down her throat, smelling of wet dirt and salt.
Her ears rang as she held her breath. Had he been crushed?
No—she wasn’t that lucky.
"You bitch!" she heard the Umbra roar. "Why don’t you come and show me more of what you can do." The words cut through the dust.
Luella turned her head, cheek resting on her arms as she clung to the stone. She couldn’t see much through the dust. The boulder was large, gnarled tree trunks crawling up through the side of the mountain and jutting out like spikes—or a cage. The Umbra was trapped.
She scrambled up the side of the mountain, urged on and on by the fear inside her. All the while, she felt her jaw tingle where he’d licked her face. She searched inside herself for any change. But she felt nothing but terror and the faint thrum of her power, curled inside her like a woodland creature, cowering away from a monster.
Luella’s arms shook, but adrenaline pushed her far beyond what she’d ever been able to accomplish before. Finally, her fingertips felt a smoother handhold, and she gripped it with all her might, toes scrunching on the rocks as she hauled herself up. She fell against the cliff’s surface with an anguished sob, exhausted and horrified.
The stone was smooth and inclined, arching higher as it pointed out to the harrowing drop below. The wind whipped so harshly around her, she was afraid to stand.
On her back, forearms bracing her, she let her head tip back as she gulped in the air. Her lids fluttered as she stared at the dark clouds above.
"You think it’s that easy to run from me?" The words echoed.
She gasped, shooting upright, palms under her and slick with blood, as she crouched on the ground. Her wings were tucked tight to her back, and the wind ruffled her feathers, making her waver.
Luella squinted into the darkness before her, her back to the drop.
A mass of shadows curled over the rocks. Her eyes hurt from not blinking. She watched as the shadows grew and stretched, a dark hand shooting upward, from the very ground itself, as the Umbra crawled from within the shadowy mass.
He stood, staring down at her frozen form.
The moonlight filtered through the clouds above, illuminating his face. She could see him more clearly now. His hair was shorn close to his scalp, features sharp with anger. He clutched his sword in a hand, the tip dragging against the ground as he stalked toward her.
Luella stood fully, feeling the wind drag through her wings and tug her backward. She went with it, taking small steps back, back, until her heels scraped against the edge of the cliff, and a gasp was ripped from deep inside her—she had nowhere else to run to. Open air was at her back, and she didn’t dare turn her head to look down. Afraid to tear her eyes away from him.
He stood before her—they both knew he had her.
Unless…
"I bet you won’t jump," the Umbra said. "I bet your frail little wings don’t even work."
Her wings shivered involuntarily.
Slowly, he lifted the sword, the point dragging against the tip of her right wing. She shuddered at the feel of the steel against her feathers.
The cliff fell sharply into the sea. She heard the roar of the waves, echoing up the side. It sounded like a thousand pained screams.
Tears fell from her eyes, clouding her vision. "Please—don’t?—"
"Don’t what?"
Luella shook her head. It was stupid of her to beg him.
"I would say what I want to do to you won’t hurt, but we both know that would be a lie. I bet the sound of your screams is evenbetter than the sound of your cries." He slid the tip of the sword further.
It moved across her tucked wings until she felt it graze her arm, then he moved it across her chest. He teased the sword’s tip at the swell of her breasts, and the sound of her sobs rivaled the crashing waves behind her.
In one harsh movement, he sliced the sword down, rending the neckline of her gown in two. It scratched her chest, leaving a thin line between her breasts. She jerked her hands up to cover herself. The front of her gown gaped open nearly down to her navel, her breasts revealed to him before she was able to hide herself away. The chill seeped into her. She felt the weight of his attention on her, and her chin trembled. It felt vile and slimy.
The sword raked against her wrists, where she held her gown closed.
