Page 48 of City of Promise and Light (Mates of Gods and Fae #1)

Sybil

T he world felt unreal to me. My mind still couldn’t comprehend what had happened today.

It wasn’t supposed to go this way. This new world was supposed to take me away from the constant badgering of a mundane life.

It was my chance to escape the never-changing cycle I had found myself stuck in, repeating every single day more lost than the day before.

This was a chance at something new, to experience the adventures that I’d read about—that I longed for in my dreams.

But this wasn’t a dream; it was a nightmare. I only proved my father right. I was a monster and a curse. I was an evil that tarnished the world around me. I had taken two lives today. Two innocent lives that could never be returned.

I opened my hand, the necklace still there, though now I could see the dried blood that stained the silver.

I ran my hand along the warm edges of the ring, my stomach twisting.

Every breath I took made the nausea grow.

Swallowing back the bile, I put the necklace around my neck, still clenching my hand tightly around the ring.

I let my hands fall to my lap, tilting my head back to stare at the pink and orange clouds littering the sky, feeling the breeze on my face.

My fingers twitched and I looked down, inhaling sharply when I saw the blood that still covered my hands.

My throat tightened and a sob tore out of me, hot tears falling down my face.

I wiped the bloody flakes off my skin, my breathing turning frantic at the red stain left behind.

My stomach heaved and I vomited in the grass beside me.

I held onto the sharp green blades around me, screaming into the ground until my voice turned hoarse.

Silent whispers snapped me from my hysteria. Whipping my head toward the sound, I anxiously looked around, finding nothing but the vast open field and the forest in the distance.

My eyes narrowed on the darkened forest, movement rippling from between the trees.

I saw it then, a black shadow that danced along the tree line, keeping to the murky forest. My breath hitched, the silent whispers continuing their sweet melodies as I watched that shadow twist and turn.

The longer I watched, the louder the whispers became.

I felt drowsy, numb. As I stood, it felt like the world fell away; only a bridge of green grass stood between me and the shadow that beckoned me to come closer.

Step after step, I ventured to the woods, my mind so quiet and calm. The song of the forest surrounded me, encouraging me to follow, to become one with it.

Stepping into the thicket between the trees, my body felt languid, like it was no longer my own. But I didn’t care. I was too absorbed in wanting to be part of the song that wrapped around me.

I made my way through the dark woods, passing gnarled trees covered in deep green moss. Small hills and caves began to form, surrounding me in shadow.

A branch snapped, quieting the whispers, and I blinked once. Twice. I looked around, my heart beating heavily in my chest. The woods were quiet, the air still and heavy, like it was hesitant to move.

I remembered looking at the forest, but the rest was a blur. I didn’t know how long I walked within the groves or how I even came to be here, surrounded by large moss-ladened stones.

Leaves crunched behind me, sending an icy chill up my spine.

My breathing became faster, fear keeping me as still as a statue.

More leaves crunched beside me, closer this time, and I flinched, not daring to look.

I reached for my side, hoping I still had Ezra’s dagger, but there was nothing.

I silently cursed myself for not bringing a weapon with me, but in my panic and despair, there was no room to think.

I felt for my magic, but it was weak and strained from being used too much.

I was completely vulnerable to the beast circling me.

I closed my eyes, trying to think of a way to escape. A twig on my right snapped, sounding closer. I forced my eyes to open, slightly turning my head to the sound, breathing out as slowly as I could.

My breath wavered, my heart lodging in my throat.

My mouth gaped open as a large body of a snake rose above the trees.

I lifted my head high, swallowing thickly, meeting the yellow eyes of the serpent.

The snake’s tongue slid out of its mouth, flicking in the air, tasting my terror.

Rising higher, the snake towered over me, its greenish-blue scales glimmering in the light creeping through the trees.

There was a motion to my left, something large hurtling toward me.

Gasping, I quickly jumped out of the way.

The sharp tail of the snake narrowly missed me, slamming into the ground where I had been standing.

The tail retracted, looking like that of a scorpion.

My stomach dropped at the brown liquid dripping from the end of the stinger.

Noticing my hesitation, the snake struck, its gleaming teeth missing me by centimeters.

I screamed, falling backward, rolling away when its tail flew at me again.

Breathless, I staggered to my feet, running to the nearest path, weaving between trees, praying they would slow the snake enough for me to get away.

But the snake moved faster than I imagined, moving swiftly between the trees and quickly closing in on me. My breath rasped in my lungs, my bowels feeling watery as I jumped over fallen logs—as low-hanging branches clipped my face and arms.

A deep voice yelled from close by and my head whipped upward to the sound, distracting me from a small tree in front of me. I struck the rough bark with my shoulder and cursed, stumbling to the ground, pain throbbing down my arm.

I surged back to my feet, ready to run when a sharp spike pierced my skin. Pain and fire seared through me, my scream echoing through the forest as the snake withdrew its stinger from my side.

Stumbling, I placed a hand on my wound, hissing. The venom burned through my veins, making my legs feel weak. I propped against the nearest tree when a glimmer of steel flashed, flying in the air. Hitting its mark, the dagger struck the snake in one of its yellow eyes.

The tall, powerful frame of a man jumped from the tree line, landing beside me, his crimson gaze narrowing on the blood mixed with venom running down my leathers.

I tensed, ready to run when he wrapped his hand tightly around my arm, pulling me after him in a sprint.

The burn of the venom made my legs slow and sluggish, my vision becoming fuzzy, but the man raced along the forest floor, not allowing me to stop.

The snake hissed, lunging at us while we ran.

My muscles screamed, begging to stop; my breathing became labored.

Dark spots formed along my vision, but the man kept running, picking up his speed.

“Take a deep breath,” he yelled, slinging me forward off the edge of a rocky cliff.

I screamed, the world flying past me as I plummeted, my stomach flipping.

The man jumped from the cliff behind me just as the snake snapped those sharpened teeth at him, missing by centimeters.

Crashing into the freezing lake below, the frigid water took my breath away, quickly rushing into my mouth and lungs as bubbles drifted around me.

I kicked my feet, fighting to break the surface of the water, but the weight of my boots pulled me down.

The world was growing dark, my body too weak to swim as I sank to the bottom of the lake.

A large, callused hand reached into the darkness, grabbed me by my arm, and instantly pulled me to the surface.

My lungs burned and I coughed up water, gasping and gulping for air.

I thrashed, pushing to get away from him and to stay above the water, but his hand held firmly around me, pulling me against the hard lines of his body as he swam us to the edge of the lake.

The fire in my veins and at my side cooled from the water, but the gaping wound still burned, pain slicing with every motion.

Trees around the lake groaned and snapped, and I dared a glance behind us, my heart beating hard with dread.

The snake was slithering between trees, disappearing into the shadows of the forest on the other side of the lake.

Ease washed through me when the last of its body finally vanished.

My relief didn’t last long though, not as the man pulled me from the lake, water dripping from his midnight-black hair, his golden-tanned body.

Those dark crimson eyes narrowed on me, raking his gaze up and down my body.

Shivers ran down my spine at his perusal.

He took a step closer, and I faltered back, stepping into the water.

There was an intensity in his eyes that sent electricity storming through my veins, gathering in my core.

His tall, muscular frame warned me of his strength, whispering caution that he was not someone to mess with.

I swallowed, my body shaking from the cold—from his unwavering stare.

I took another step back, my foot slipping on the mossy rocks of the lakeshore.

Catching myself before I hit the ground, my wrists barked at the sudden impact and Arbus’ necklace slipped free from my jacket, the ring dangling above the water.

I quickly tucked the necklace back, the air around me crackling with energy. The pressure of the atmosphere grew heavy, the wind picking up speed. “Where did you get that?” he asked, his voice tight and the rigid lines of his muscles tense.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I breathed, watching him closely, careful of my movements.