Page 25

“Release us, Lord of Shadows,” the Novian snapped, his hand squeezing the stone.

Corvus didn’t even look at him, and I saw it because I anxiously watched him approach me. I craned my neck to keep my eyes on him. Shadows whipped around him, and his wings twitched with irritation.

“What is this?” I croaked, jabbing a finger at the crowd.

Corvus cocked his head. He looked evil and frightening—like death.

“Meals,” he responded succinctly.

My mouth dropped, and I didn’t know why I was so fucking shocked. The prisoner’s shouts and sobs ripped me out of my paralysis. “Let them go.”

“No.” He said nothing else.

“I’ll kill you?—”

Corvus lifted his hand, and shadows enveloped the Novian, whirring until he was hidden within the shroud. Once it pulled away, it left behind a husk. Cries exploded from the rest of the observers.

“Corvus,” I snapped, feeling like I was going crazy. Guilt writhed in my gut because I’d been enjoying him while people were suffering down here.

“Yes, my Little Mortal?” he rumbled, his voice silky and dangerous. A swell of chatter wove across the onlookers. Pieces of conversation reached my ears.

One of the women detached from the huddle.

“I will offer myself to you, Lord of Shadows.” Her expression was set with determination.

“What are you doing?” I spat, shaking my head.

She raised an eyebrow at me and turned away. “I am a much better option than this woman, Lord.”

I couldn’t see the color of her eyes with the shadows playing along her features. “I will please you,” she purred, her voice taking on a seductive tone.

I gasped, my eyes widening, but worse was the jealousy thickening in my throat. She took another step forward, and shadows descended upon her. It happened within the span of moments, then they lifted, also leaving a husk that began to disintegrate. She’dpissedhim off.

He hadn’t even allowed me a moment of jealousy. I studied the people gawking at the dust on the floor. One of the men shook with rage, and his eyes settled on me.

“Don’t—” He charged at me. I backed up as another and then another person joined, converging on me. The flames of the torches fluttered with the whip of darkness, and screams erupted through the shadows. They suddenly cut off, and the shadows dissipated, leaving me staring at piles of husks, some disintegrating more than others.

Corvus shivered and flared out his wings. He groaned with pleasure.

“I will bring you anything you please, Little Mortal, they have fed me.”

My mouth closed and opened.

“Why,” I croaked.

“None threaten what is mine. They deserved death.”

He snarled,pacing from one end of the chamber to the other. I tried so hard not to look at him, fixing my gaze on the terrace in his bedroom. The platform was blocked by a see-through door, but I could see the columns propping up the awning over it. He made me feelthings, and I knew it was wrong, but I still wanted to touch him, fuck him, be with him—I couldn’t handle this guilt.

“Speak,” he hissed.

I pressed my lips into an even tighter line, crossing my arms. I’d given him the silent treatment for the last however much time had passed, and he seemed increasingly erratic.

While I’d been sitting on the edge of his bed, I’d taken in the items in the room. The intricate designs carved on the oversized chest to the edge of his bedroom were similar to the ones on theframe of the bed. He’d pulled out a black linen shirt and trousers the same color from the chest.

“Enough.” The word ripped through my dazed thoughts, and he suddenly gripped the back of my neck, dragging me toward the terrace. Shadows whipped open the glass double doors and bent me over the balustrade. The air was sucked right out of my lungs as I gaped at the deep fall to the ground. I’d hit the protruding bits, and if I managed not to get impaled on them, then the stones at the bottom would finish the job.

My fingertips and toes immediately began to tingle. Anger and frustration bubbled to the surface.