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Chapter Two

ARABELLA

A rabella floated in a fathomless darkness before her feet touched down.

There was no ground beneath her or anything to indicate there was any substance in this place. But she was able to stand on her own.

Where am I?

She glanced around into an endless void.

There was nothing in any direction. No people, no buildings, no land. In the darkness, there was a deeper black, branching all around like creeping, leafless vines with large, protruding thorns.

Glancing down, she studied her hands, which glowed faintly with a gray-white light. She realized it wasn’t just her hands that glowed. It was all of her skin that appeared above her leathers.

How strange.

She wondered just how she’d gotten here. Last she knew, she’d been standing outside the castle before pain struck her.

Had Breckett struck her down when her back had been turned?

Even with the others guarding her back, she’d been foolish enough to turn from him when he was furious.

Did he have some secret power he’d been hiding from her and used it when she’d taken the syphen from him? Or had it been something else?

Another thought struck her.

Was Elias being tortured again? Did she black out from experiencing his pain?

If that had been the reason for her passing out, she needed to learn how to separate the sensations and feelings of her mate from her own.

Or else, she’d risk fainting at any moment.

If she blacked out in the middle of her journey through the forest when they left the castle, she’d be demon fodder.

But she wouldn’t remain in the castle for any longer than she had to.

The moment she was conscious again, she’d set a course for Elias.

It didn’t matter if she was outnumbered by Magnus’ army even with the help of the syphen. Facing Magnus was still worth the risk.

She couldn’t do nothing.

Suddenly, a gray-blue light shimmered on in the distance. It wasn’t a true horizon, as there was no true beginning and end to the darkness. But far away, the light shimmered as it descended before disappearing.

She began to raise her arm to wave but hesitated.

Whatever it was could be an enemy—some monster seeking to consume her soul. It could also be her ticket out of here. Maybe it was someone who knew what this place was and how to get out. More likely, it was just some phantom in a dream she’d soon wake up from.

The light was gone as quickly as it had appeared.

Sighing, she tugged her braid, wondering what to do next.

Was this just a dream, and she simply needed to wait until she woke up?

Or had Magnus summoned her here, and this was some strange place between realms where he could take her out?

She wasn’t sure whether the sorcerer was possessive enough of Elias that he would go out of his way to take her out just to ensure he’d have Elias forever.

Casting her thoughts out, she allowed her senses to spread into the endless dark.

Doing so had become instinctual. As a magic wielder, she could sense when another being with magic was nearby.

When her mind scraped against something, she started.

She hadn’t expected to actually sense anything in this place.

There was something—or someone—out there that possessed magic.

It wasn’t alive, exactly. But it wasn’t nothing . It was like some dark vortex lurked somewhere just beyond her sight.

Suddenly, a second presence blossomed behind her. Then desire swirled through her so strongly that her breath hitched.

The world stilled as the tugging in her chest—the one that she’d felt since the moment her memories returned—went slack. She breathed a sigh of relief at the lack of pressure, which was replaced by an urgency to move .

Again, lust swam through her, so thick it was hard to think straight.

She’d only felt this type of carnal attraction with one demon.

Arms wrapped around her middle, enfolding her in a larger body that smelled of citrus and pine.

“Elias?”

The word escaped her lips, sounding like a prayer.

For a moment, it was all she could do to breathe, to remain standing and not fall to her knees.

Some part of her had wondered if she’d ever feel this attraction again.

This was an illusion, a conjuring of her mind, surely.

Glancing down, she watched as one of those muscled arms skirted up until a hand wrapped around her throat, tightening. Her mind swam in just the way she liked, and she leaned back into strong shoulders, eyelids fluttering closed.

She realized she didn’t care if this was an illusion so long as it didn’t stop.

His other hand skirted lower until it was between her legs. A single finger ran over her pussy, and quite suddenly the feel of clothes against her skin was too much. She needed to feel his skin against hers, to feel his body everywhere—wrapping her in his warmth.

Then the arms turned her so she faced him, and her breath hitched.

The illusion looked just like Elias.

Dark curls fell to his shoulders, and a thick beard covered his handsome, angular face. Eyes with widening pupils soaked her in. It was as though she was the light of day in deep, fathomless space.

Like his arms, his thighs were thick with muscle. His light brown skin was as smooth and rich as she remembered it. But as her eyes roamed over him, she thought she saw slashes along his arms. Before she could truly look, his hands were at her corset, untying the laces.

Distantly, her mind registered how unlike him this was. In the past, he’d used his magic to undress her. Why wouldn’t he do that now?

But his fingers moved swiftly. In moments, her corset was undone, and he pulled her undershirt down. Cool air kissed her breasts, and she longed to have him squeeze them until it hurt, until she screamed his name and begged him to stop.

This could be a trap , some distant part of her thought.

But after everything that had happened with Magnus, the Witch of the Woods, and losing her memories, she wanted a moment to pretend Elias hadn’t sacrificed himself for her.

That he wasn’t out of her reach and being tortured by a sadistic sorcerer.

She wanted to allow herself to believe that he was here, with her.

That they had all the time in the world to explore each other and learn just what it meant to be mates.

Soon, all worries faded to the back of her thoughts as she let herself be swept up in the dream.

She wanted this mirage to ravage her. To fuck her until there was nothing left so that when she awoke, she wouldn’t have to feel the chasm that had opened in her chest the moment she’d realized he was gone.

“Please,” she begged, uncaring of the desperation in her voice. “Take me. Take all of me.”

A snarl escaped his lips before he tore the rest of her shirt away, pulling her free of the rest of her leathers until she was utterly naked before him.

He guided her until she was lying in the darkness. It didn’t feel like cold, hard ground. Instead, it was soft as the clouds of night.

The phantom Elias tore his shirt and tossed the fabric aside. Had there been streaks of blood on it? But she wasn’t thinking straight, couldn’t focus on anything but the male before her—or the mirage of him.

Something buzzed in her chest at his nearness. It was as though something in her came alive, and she wanted to lose herself in the feeling.

He lowered himself between her legs until he knelt.

Rather than running his tongue over the length of her, he trailed kisses along her inner thigh—moving slowly from her knee to her hip.

Then he moved to her other leg and did the same.

Only, as he drew closer to her hip, his soft kisses turned to licking and nipping.

She craved him even as she felt him, needing him to drive into her.

He stopped, and his eyes fixed on her. She felt his warm exhale on her clit, and she bit back a whimper. His lips moved, but no sound emerged. Then he leaned down and licked her from her pussy up to her clit.

Grasping at the darkness around her, her fingers slipped through the shadows as a moan escaped her lips.

Again, she watched his lips move as he stared longingly at her pussy. Like if he looked away, even for a moment, she would disappear.

As though he didn’t think any of this was real either.

She opened her mouth to speak, but then he was moving. He turned his body around so that he kneeled over her—his cock above her mouth and his mouth over her pussy.

Oh fuck .

He wanted to eat her out while fucking her mouth.

She felt herself grow wet with desire, instantly ready for him. Ready for anything he gave her. At that moment, she’d say yes to anything he asked.

She needed him more than she needed her next breath.

Then he descended on her.

Opening her mouth, she took in his wide cock, grabbing him around the base.

She worked her hand in time with her mouth’s movement along his shaft.

As she did, his tongue glanced against her clit in a single flick.

Slowly. As though to tease her. Then he was moving, giving her the pressure she craved as he licked in the long up-and-down motions she loved so much.

Their desire entwined in the quiet darkness.

Neither stopped moving, eager to please as much as receive. It was as if this mirage actually wanted her.

His cock pressed deep into her throat, pulsing and hardening further as he moved.

She could feel veins bulging and tasted the faint saltiness of his precum.

His hips moved as though he were desperate for more of her.

To plunge into her until he found her center, and they were no longer two separate bodies but a single soul—intertwining, bonding, mating .

Her hips began moving of their own accord, thrusting against his mouth, eager for even more pressure. His tongue focused on her clit, and her entire body hummed. But she longed to be filled, and not by his tongue or fingers. She wanted him to fuck her until she forgot her name.