Page 151 of She Who Holds My Wrath

By the time two p.m. rolls around, I’m drenched in sweat.

My healer’s robes are clinging to me, my hair is damp, and the smell of sweat and coppery blood have given me a migraine. Us gingers are absolutely not built for sun exposure. Cassyr noticed my skin getting redder and redder, and brought me what I assumed was Hell’s version of sunscreen to help protect my skin—then made me wear a hat.

I look fucking stupid in hats. They do not suit me at all. So now I’m red, sweaty, and trapped under an ugly ass hat, all in front of the hottest demon in existence. Just put a sword through me already.

I sit beneath a tree near the healer’s section, and soak up the little shade it offers while watching Daisy command a group of civilians. She told me she was focusing on training Hell’s people who volunteered to fight rather than hide. Hearing her talk about her people and her plans had my heart bursting with pride.

Watching her now, watching how she moved, how she commanded like a true queen. It was an incredible sight to see. It’s like she was genuinely born for this role. And I guess, from what I’ve heard, she technically was born for this role. My little sunshine. A Queen of Hell. Who’d of thought it?

Cassyr drops down beside me, his arm brushing mine as he passes me a waterskin. We sit in silence, watching the mass of soldiers work perfectly together. It’s breathtaking to see thousands of men and women fighting side by side. They all look so different, wielding such different powers and weapons. Yet they all fight beautifully.

It’s surreal to think that people back home don’t have a clue that any of this exists. That creatures from several different worlds have come together to fight some weirdo gods who have gone power crazy.

I notice a younger looking soldier hovering near Daisy. He’s been near her group all day, but the longer the day goes on, the more skittish he looks. Maybe the pressure of the war is getting to him? But the more I watch him, the more something just feels… off.

“Hey,” I say to Cassyr quietly. “Look at that boy near Daisy over there.” I nod my head discreetly in their direction.

“The one with the blonde hair and pale-grey skin?” he asks in a low hush.

I nod. “Does he look off to you? Like, suspicious?”

Cassyr studies the boy for a moment, and I watch him, too, lifting a hand against my brow and squinting my eyes against the sun to focus on him.

“Yeah,” he says finally, looking at me. “He seems really on edge.”

I glance at Cassyr, seeing the concern on his face. “Do you think it’s because he’s scared of the war, or?” I mumble, suddenly feeling anxious that someone else has noticed that the boy is acting strangely.

Before Cassyr can respond, an ear-piercing scream sounds. I whip my head around to see the blonde-haired boy drive a blade into Daisy’s shoulder.

“DAISY!” I scream, scrambling to my feet as chaos erupts around us.

I run towards her on shaking legs as the world explodes into noise and panic.

Chapter 48

KORITHAX

Ihear her scream.

It doesn’t travel through the air first. It tears through the bond—pain detonating in my chest, white-hot and violent, like my entire soul has been split open by a blade. The world narrows to a single point as the bond howls, raw and panicked and wrong.

Daisy.

My eyes snap to her instantly. I see it all at once—the blade ripping free from her shoulder, crimson blood spraying against sunlit sand. The boy moves again, faster than thought, driving the weapon back towards her. Something inside me shatters completely, and The Void roars to life.

KILL HIM!

My wings explode from my back with a thunderous crack, shadow and smoke consuming me as I launch into the sky. Heat scorches the ground beneath my feet as I surge forwards, black fire pouring through my veins.

I don’t think. And I sure as shit don’t hesitate. Not when he has harmed my wife.

I land behind him and seize the back of his neck, my grip crushing as I lift him clean off the ground. He gasps, feet kicking uselessly as I slam him down into the sand with bone-breaking force.

The earth fractures beneath us as dust explodes into the air. He releases an ear-piercing scream at the impact. Good. My vision is red; my pulse is a fucking war drum. The Void surges inside me, intoxicating and ravenous as it claws for control.

HE HURT YOUR WIFE. I raise my hand to end him. To erase his existence from this realm.

“Korithax—NO!”