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“Cuffs,” he says, staring his amber and alabaster eyes at me. Quietly, I lift them toward the bars and he yanks them outside of the cage. Making quick work of removing them, he hangs the cuffs off the edge of the cart and starts to walk away.
“Wait. You didn’t remove hers,” I call, shivering as the night air slices across my bare flesh. They made me remove Kai’s armor and left me in nothing more than cargo pants and a thin t-shirt. When our version of the sun goes down, it grows colder and colder until the hell flame rises again. You won’t freeze to death, but in the dead of night, you’ll think you will.
Asmodeus stops in place, slowly turning around and heading back. “You really want to chance that? The enchantment of the cage won’t stop her from shifting and killing you in seconds. The girl is a rabid beast, and I watched her murder dozens at her reception. Trust me, I’m doing you a favor by leaving them on. If you know what’s best for you, you’ll put the mask back on her, too.”
I scan over the woman opposite of me. She doesn’t look like a monster. Fuck, if you gave the girl a bath, she’d be one of the prettiest I’ve ever seen. Even now, with the leaves and dirt in her snow-white hair, and the bloodied, tattered clothes, she’s beautiful.
“Take them off… Please,” I say, turning my gaze back to Asmodeus. He huffs but does as I ask.
“It’s your funeral.” He yanks her arms back so he can undo the cuffs, causing her to wince as her shoulder bends unnaturally. The metal clangs against the bars as he pulls them from the cage and hangs them near mine.
Slowly, Eva wiggles, wincing harder as she moves her arms to her lap. Something pops in her shoulder as if they partially dislocated it to put the metal bands preventing her from shifting on. Her bright blue eyes find mine, as she drags in heavy breath after heavy breath, as though those cuffs prevented her access to air.
“Thank you,” she says, reaching up to grip her left shoulder as a shiver rakes through her. Her teeth latch into her full bottom lip until a bead of blood seeps from it, muffling a cry of pain.
I’ve dislocated many things in my lifetime and can attest to the fact that every little movement fucking hurts, and shivering is going to be excruciating for her. I’m cold and at least my clothes don’t have tears and massive holes. The torches illuminating the camp go out one by one as the creatures and men get ready to rest for the night. With each light around us that goes out, the air grows colder until my teeth chatter and rattle my skull.
Someone shoves a small blanket, the size you’d wrap a baby in, through the bars. The scratchy fabric lands on my lap as a man with a husky voice and a face I can’t see says, “You’ll have to fight for it. We only have one. We weren’t planning on moving two prisoners.”
I lift my gaze to find blue glowing eyes staring into me as something, whether her or someone else, growls low in their throat. “We don’t have to fight. You can have it. I’ll be fine,” I offer, holding out the blanket. It wouldn’t have done much for me, anyway.
The fluorescent blue fades away until her side of the cage is completely dark. I don’t see her hand, but I feel the fabric pull as she takes it. Then small, bony hands press against my thighs and snow-white hair comes close to my face. I gasp and trap the air inside my lungs, holding up my hands as if surrendering to enemy forces. Eva methodically moves, curling her body against my chest and tucking her head, leafy hair and all, beneath my chin.
“You shared. So can I,” she whispers, tugging the blanket up around her shoulders so it drapes down my sides.
My heart races in my chest as I breathe deep, trying to calm it, and I gently feather my fingers across her hurt shoulder. Carefully finding where her arm bends over her stomach, I wrap mine beneath it for support. The cool air claws at my back while I pull her close, but the warmth her tiny body offers is enough to keep me from shivering. She’s like a space heater, though all shifters tend to have higher body temperatures than other creatures.
Resting my head on top of hers, I breathe in the earthy smell of mud and leaves, along with something sweeter—flowery, even. It makes my rapid heartbeat slow to a steady thump and, reluctantly, sleep overtakes me.
31
Alice
I spend the better part of the night packing while the men continue working through their battle plans. It’s not that I don’t understand their need to protect the kingdom, because I do. Just to me, Finn, and keeping his little heart beating means more.
Maybe that makes me the bad guy. Who knows, but I believe in the possibility of doing both. We can keep the people of Hell Hold safe behind the boundary while someone goes and breaks Finn out. That someone being me and Luri.
I’ve packed what I’ll need for the week, which should be plenty of time to get to Solaria or ambush his transport along the way. Luri can sniff the man out like no one’s business, so finding him won’t be a problem. He’s her favorite plaything, and like a dog who can excavate a bone they buried a year ago on a whim, she’ll be able to recognize his scent.
Everything else will have to be done on the fly. You can’t plan for what you can’t see, and I have no idea who will be guarding Finn’s transport or where they’ll keep him prisoner while he awaits execution, or whether they intend to kill him at all. I’ll be able to figure out that portion of the mission once I see what I’m working with.
Gliding toward one of the arched windows, I release the latch and push it open, leaning down to find Luri waiting at the bottom of the tower. A year’s worth of sneaking out has prepared me for this moment. Just as a year’s worth of training with Finn has prepared me for this mission.
I hang the duffle bag full of food and clothes and weapons out the window, then let it plummet toward the ground, using my magic to catch it and set it down gently. Her yellow eyes glance up at me before she scoops the handles of the bag inside her jaws and trots off.
“See you soon,”she says into my head, galloping toward the boundary where she’ll wait for me.
There’s only one last thing to do… Okay, maybe two.
Exiting the room and traveling downstairs, I make my way toward the library, sleeking through the shelves until I find my red book. I pull it from its spot and the pages flip open, recognizing my presence. Placing my hand against the stack of books, I press inside my little room. No one will find it here unless they’re directly looking for it. Not to mention, until I arrived, no one read the books from this section. They were covered in a thick layer of dust. I doubt anyone will bother now.
Once inside, I shift through the papers taped to the wall, aka my crime scene evidence… It’s everything I have on my parents, both Earthly and afterlife. I was so close to finding them, but it will have to wait.
Snagging my mother’s necklace from the wall, I untwist the wire holding the moonstone in place. This will have to do. I can’t have my power going haywire behind enemy lines and nor can I leave myself vulnerable, should I need more of it. So, taking the bloodstone with me will be the best option, and it should fit nicely into my mother’s necklace.
I set the moonstone down, then place the marbled crystal inside, shrinking it down until it fits within the small clasp. Once the metal strands are bent back into place, I take one last look around. Layers of books stretch up three times my height. I run my hands along the creases between the paper textures and exit, stretching through the wall and shoving the red leather book back into place.
One more thing to go, and for that, I’ve already gained the upper hand. Lucifer and Kai helped me without even knowing it. By using my blood to put up the boundary around Hell Hold, it ensured me a way out while they’ll be trapped inside until I release it. And since Kai opened up a hole when we met with the High King last year, I know exactly how to get us out without them knowing or compromising the spell.
