Page 146 of As Above, So Below

Laughing, Kassil snaps his fingers.

In a flash of hellfire, I’m rendered immobile.

Hellfire shackles sear into my wrists, my neck, my ankles. Mythroat burns with my screams, Kassil approaches as I fall to my knees in pain. The stench of burning flesh fills my nostrils and I nearly retch.

“Violent as always, Ves,” he taunts, his lip curling in dark amusement. “How I’ve missed it.”

He continues speaking as he strolls toward me. “I never would have guessed you’d last this long in the mortal realm with Netharis capping your innate.” He laughs, a deep, wicked sound. “It’s honestly impressive, but your father and I are not going to tolerate this tantrum any longer.”

I can’t look at him as he rambles on. My eyes are on Cora’s still body in the distance behind him. He follows my stare and turns back to me, tilting his head.

“Have you grown attached to the mortals?” he asks, making a soft clicking sound with his tongue. “How… quaint.”

He reaches down, wrapping a hand around my neck and lifts me off the ground. With the pain of the hellfire threatening to steal my consciousness, my reality begins to feel dreamlike.

“It’s time to come home, moonflower,” he whispers, trailing his fingers down my cheek. “Your father signed our contract the moment I told him I’d found you.”

He snaps his fingers again, the hellfire bindings vanishing. The release from the pain is euphoric as is the coarse gasp for air. It becomes difficult to keep my eyes open, lids growing heavy, but to the right, a contract unfurls.

Our marriage contract.

My eyes are drawn to the signature line where my heart seizes and the blood in my veins turns to ice. Netharis’ signature lies upon it in place of mine. He’s signed it on my behalf after all.

My innate screams, and in an explosion of darkness the ground begins to shake. Kassil’s hand leaves my throat, and I land on my back on the ground. The wind knocked out of me as my vision fills with white stars, I force myself to stand, unsheathing my dagger.

“Ryc.”

I sob, gasping for air.

“Ryc, please. Don’t let him take me.”

Staggering through the shadows that cling to the courtyard,struggling to see through the darkness, I find Kassil lying on his side. Still. It takes everything I have to approach him.

Reaching him, he rolls onto his back and I lunge.

I cannot afford to lose this opportunity. The dagger plunges into his chest, and white hot searing pain rips through my side, into my chest. With a downward glance, I’ve sunk the dagger too far to the left. I’ve missed his heart, and his tail has missed mine.

The night sky suddenly comes into view, and the taste of blood fills my mouth. A bright white flash dispels my shadows, revealing the cloud-darkened night sky, and my chest seizes with coughing. The raking contractions send blazing pain through every part of me.

Kassil’s laughter rings through the air, followed by another bright flash. The sulfuric tang of hellfire is carried on the cool breeze that runs over me, and I close my eyes.

My innate ripples, and I feel the comfort of the shadows rolling over my wounds. It’s doing what it can to repair and restore my battered body. I nearly slip into the darkness, but it’s Eve’s scream that tears through me, forcing my eyes open.

As my head lolls, I catch sight of Eve sprinting past me, a sword of hellfire flaring in her hands. My vision goes in and out of focus, making it hard to follow her movements. But as things come back into focus, Kassil is wingless and on his knees, Eve’s sword cutting through the air, aimed for his neck.

Another flash of light. And gods, that beautiful fucking fae appears, towering before Kassil, ready to throw his life down to save mine.

Ryc strikes at Kassil’s chest as Eve’s sword swings clear, and the archdemon’s his head falls to the stone. The moonstone in the pommel of the bloodstone dagger glints brightly in the moonlight. With a sigh, my eyes close again and I curl into my darkness.

?????????????

Surrounded by darkness, familiar voices reach me.

The typical calming timbre of Ryc is filled with panic.

The expected teasing tone of Eve is replaced with soul crushing cries.

“She needs a healer!” The voice sounds like Lilith’s.