Another shot went off, she staggered, her legs curling as she made a gurgling sound.
“Thosesinful flamesbelong to me,” Malakai said sternly. He had managed to grab my gun and shoot the abomination in the side.
“You—” she hissed as he fired another shot.
“Sorry, threats don’t really work on me,” he said lazily, reloading the gun. Her legs had loosened enough for me to pull out the quartz ammunition from my own satchel around my belt. I gathered them into my hand and used my flames to launch the shards into her chest, pushing them further inside her.
The spider staggered, and I fell to the ground when all her legs retreated, trying to hold herself up.
“I’ll make you pay,” she spurted. “He’ll betray you, like the demon he is.”
I pushed my flames harder against the quartz, shoving them even further in.
“He’s starving for you,” she told me, stepping close, leaning over me like a predator. “If he loved you, he wouldn’t restrain himself. He would devour you.”
She moved fast, her face close to mine, her hand reaching for my cheek.
And I burned it.
Fire exploded from me like I was borrowing the sun’s scorching flames. In the blinding flare, the demon shrieked and Malakai blocked one of her legs from trying to pierce me.
I stabbed her jaw with my dagger, flames erupting down the hilt, lighting its veins up from the inside out.
She thrashed, her legs thundering against the ground around us, making the earth itself quiver.
“I know him,” I hissed. “And he isnothinglike that.”
The demon spider writhed, her body slamming against the ground before everything turned still.
Silence.
A hand seized my shoulder, firmly, when I turned I met with eyes burning like blood on fire.
“You should’ve run away.” Malakai’s voice cracked with rage and relief all tangled together. “What if it had killed you?”
I grabbed his wrist, meeting his fury head-on. “I couldn’t just leave you to become her snack, or whatever she was doing.”
His eyes dropped to my hands, which still shook. “You were scared.”
“Terrified! Did we not see the same creature?” I barked. “Still, I willalwaysprotect you.”
His breath stopped.
For the briefest second, awe shattered his anger.
His hand slid up to my jaw, a claim spoken through touch; forehead pressed to mine, a low chuckle rumbled in his chest as he reveled in my trust in him. His eyes began glowing scarlet, like he was barely resisting the urge to sink his teeth into my throat to punish me.
“Sweetie,” he breathed. “You will be the end of me… but I’ll happily die for you.”
“That’s cute and all… Or just stupid, but those spider eggs are ready to hatch any second.” Jaden grumbled, limping towards us.
Malakai spared him a glance, his expression blank. “I must admit, I did not expect you to help.”
“Well, here I am,” Jaden shrugged. “Being helpful and all.”
“Are you okay?” I asked, looking him over.
“I just sprained my ankle a bit, nothing to worry about,” he waved it off.
