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The twisted grin on Jett’s face said he enjoyed the sight. “Exactly where you belong.”
He tugged on the chain. His mangled arm had been healed while I’d passed out. I frowned. No, not healed exactly. Not like my magic did. Instead, it was like… like the pieces of his arm had been frozen together, into a functional shape. It wasn’t healed, not truly. He might never have use of his arm again if it didn’t heal right. Shifters recovered froma lot, but forcing the bone to fuse the wrong way could permanently handicap him. Did the Moon Goddess lack the power to properly heal him, or did she just not care? All lives were disposable to her, after all.
He did, however, wear black gloves now. I wondered if it took a lot of her magic to constantly overwrite Jett’s desires, which is why he was left with as much free will as he was.
Of course, his desires aligned with hers, so maybe not. He led me out of the throne room. I had the choice to remain seated and get dragged or stand and try to salvage my dignity. I opted to walk behind him, plotting his death.
He would pay for this.
The moon realm had appeared to be one wide open space, but that wasn’t exactly right. The sky itself parted as Jett led me out of the throne room. A narrow strip of clouds remained, forming a corridor. I half-wondered if I should jump to escape—could I cross the realms like that? But deep down I knew it wasn’t so simple, no more than you could dig in the dirt far enough to reach the underworld.
I stared. The night sky glittered, millions of stars scattered through it.
My magic was locked away, inaccessible, but there was something more innate that the Moon Goddess couldn’t control. Something that reached out psychically and recognized those stars for what they were.
Souls. Souls of dead shifters, denied rest, trapped in the sky at the whims of the mad goddess. Their pain, concentrated over years and years of slow suffocation, ricocheted into me. It was like they were crying out, pleading for help, and I was the only one who could hear them. I stumbled and fell to my knees. I tried to cry out around the gag, but that only earned more burning. Jett didn’t somuch as pause, yanking the silver lead. I snarled on reflex, my teeth grinding against the metal. For a moment, the pain flared so brightly I couldn’t even see, my vision a flash of white.
It was at that moment that Phaidros entered the hallway.
The Libra demon spotted me and for the briefest moment he stumbled, something close to guilt splattering across his face before he recovered, a cruel grin twisting on his lips.
“So, this is what it takes for your mate to spend time with you.” His voice was light, teasing, as if he was inclined to banter with the Alpha. Yet there was no happiness in his eyes.
Jett’s lip curved up. “It’s where she belongs.”
Hardly. I tried muttering the phrase we’d agreed upon to tell Phaidros to take me home, but I couldn’t form words with the gag in my mouth. My tongue burned from the effort, blood coating my mouth. I swallowed it, nearly choking on the coppery taste.
Jett tugged at the collar again. “Quit your moaning.”
I forced myself to focus on the demon rather than the agony of millions of shifter souls that were still crying out, begging for release. Jett, I couldn’t kill… not directly. But the demon? Oh, the demon would suffer for his betrayal. The pits would look kind compared to what I would do to him.
Jett strode by Phaidros without another word.
Phaidros’s arm snapped out, gripping Jett by the shoulder.
“What are you doing with her?”
Jett shoved off the touch. “I don’t see how it’s any of your business. If Mommy Dearest wanted you to know her plans, she’d tell you.”
“Everything with her is my business.” Phaidros kept his tone casual, but there was a clear order in his words.
Jett scoffed. “I may serve the Moon Goddess, but I’m still an Alpha.”
Phaidros’s expression hardened, the carefree expression gone in a blink. “Watch yourself,pup. You’re nothing more than a pawn here, and if you stop being useful, I’ll take you off the board.”
The shifter straightened, rising to his full height. “Any day, any time. You let me know when you want me to put you in your place.”
Phaidros rolled his eyes. The movement was quick, flawless, unlike his “mother’s” stilted movements. She’d probably learned all her expressions by imitating the demon she’d carved from her soul. There was no doubt in my mind in a fight, Phaidros would win. Jett had no idea how badly he was outclassed. As much as I wanted to coat my claws with Jett’s blood, I’d settle for Phaidros saving me the trouble. Especially if it got him condemned to the pits in the process.
Jett continued down the hall. Phaidros turned on his heel and followed, clearly pissing off the other male.
“Why are you still here?”
I didn’t need to see the demon to know he’d just rolled his eyes again. “If you think I answer to you, you’re even dumber than I thought. And that would be impressive.”
The sound of teeth grinding was audible to my shifter hearing. If it was possible to smile around the gag, I would have. We continued down the hallway of clouds. Each step was a fresh kind of torture, as more and more souls detected me and reached out. I had thought I had come here to find a way to save my kingdom. I’d vowed to protect the living and the dead. But these creatures were even worse off, trapped in an undeath, like the dragon I’d faced against. Not quite in one existence, nor the other.
I had to find a way to save them too. There was nothing I could dowhile I was bound, though.
