Page 8
She’s a threat.
This is about more than money now.
CHAPTER
FOUR
They seem even angrier than before, which is fun. I ignore their furious gazes as I walk behind them. Whether they know it or not, I saved their asses—well, more like I saved mine and theirs was just an added bonus. I glance at the cowboy again. A ghoul, how interesting. They are particularly hard to make.
Unlike most creatures, who are born, ghouls are created using reanimated corpses, then a beating heart of a current ghoul is shoved inside. Their body is revived using magic and the blood of the most powerful creatures one can find. Once alive, they are unfeeling, killing machines, unable to die or truly live. This one is covered in scars, and I’m curious how they found his body or if it was done after his reanimation. From the scarring, I would guess it was after, since they haven’t healed. I wish I could find the two ghouls who hide down here to ask them, but they have long since retreated, hiding when they went feral so they didn’t hurt anyone. It’s a risk with a ghoul. If they go too long without nourishment or simply give into their dark thoughts, they can turn into a mindless, flesh-eating predator. It’s where zombie films first got their ideas from, after one was accidentally spotted a long time ago. Zombies are nothing like they appear in films—I’d know, since my mother loves to experiment with that kind of thing.
“Hey, cowboy, what’s your name?” I ask. When we get out and break the bond, and I finally kill them, I’ll look up his story just for perverse pleasure.
He ignores me, but the long, grey-haired lightning boy slows his strides. Anger glints in his steely gaze, but there is also mischief. It’s clear he likes to cause trouble.
“Cowboy, as you call him, is named Emrys. The one you kissed is Kitt. The minotaur there is Torrin.” The bull man meets my eyes with a snarl before turning away, and the man at my side chuckles. “That’s Bram.” He indicates the man with the glowing eyes. “And I am the one and only Raiden.” He bows dramatically, and I simply turn away. The best way to get under someone’s skin is to not give them the notice they so desperately crave.
“Why would you tell her our names?” Kitt asks out loud, which indicates he did it for my sake, not theirs, as he throws me a deep glower.
Oh, I’m so scared.
“So she knows what to scream when we kill her.” Raiden chuckles as he winks at me.
I cup his chin. His glowing eyes widen infinitesimally, but I notice it and see his pulse thrumming in his throat. “You forget, pretty boy, that I’ve died ten times. Not once did I scream, but I cannot wait to hear yours.”
He swallows, and some of his usual cockiness returns to his face. “Like you could make us. Worse people have tried. You have no effect on us whatsoever.”
“No?” Cocking my head, I slide my hand down his throat and squeeze. “So why is your heart beating so fast?” I ask mockingly before letting go. The others are furious and ready to rip me apart. It seems whatever I do to one, they all experience it. I’d be curious to see how deeply that connection runs.
“Rai, don’t play with your prey,” Bram chides with that dark voice.
“But she’s so much fun. Usually they cry or fight, but not this one,” Raiden replies, skipping to Bram’s side and grinning up at him. “Can’t I play with her for a little longer?”
“Enough,” Kitt snaps, and then his eyes do that faraway thing again.
“If you’re going to gossip in your heads, you can do it while we walk.” Five pairs of shocked eyes land on me. “Your eyes give it away. I’ve seen something like that before.” More like felt it, but I don’t let them know that. No one will ever know that apart from two people, including me, and the other one? Well, he won’t be speaking again. “You’re all connected. Interesting, but I don’t give a fuck right now. Didn’t you say we are on a time limit?”
Without a word, they turn in sync, the creepy movement making me sneer, but I follow them, watching as Kitt checks his magic watch to take us in the right direction. It’s then I notice it. I spotted it a few tunnels ago, but I wasn’t sure until now. Slyly, I slide past them so I’m level with Kitt, and the others are behind me like sexy fodder—wait, sexy . . . Where the fuck did that come from?
Kitt gives me a frown but refuses to speak as I speed up, forcing him to catch up. Eventually, the watch on his wrist glows brighter and brighter.
“We’re close,” he mutters, and we step out into an oval chamber. There’s nothing special about it bar the glowing circle of magic showing a dark night sky and ground on the other side that seems to slowly inch closed by the second.
The way out is real.
The men stop, silently communicating, even as I glance behind us and to the portal in annoyance.
“We might want to get through quickly and stop fighting,” I warn with a grin. “Unless you want to die?”
“What—” A hiss fills the air, and I jerk my thumb in that direction.
“That would be the naga queen. She’s very smart and probably overheard us and is following. She’ll tear you apart and go through the portal. That will be fun, but not so much for the annoying bond we share, so let’s move.”
“We can just kill her,” Torrin mutters, smoke blowing from his nose as he produces two gilded blades.
“She’s a nice naga. Why would we do that? Well, nice enough. She did kill me once, but that was a misunderstanding.” I shrug. “She’s not harming anyone yet. She simply wants to escape like most, so leave her and let’s go.”
“Everyone down here is scum,” Bram growls.
