Page 59 of Wings of Lies (Daughter of the Seven Circles #1)

“Sweetheart,” Aspen gasped, awkwardly twisting my face toward his.

The rune flickered between skin and red light, mirroring his emotions as they wavered between worry and emptiness.

“Listen to me, please. I know you can’t shield your emotions, but no more questions, or we won’t leave, and I need you safe. Once I open the door, run.”

His eyes . I reached up, tempted to touch them. They glowed. He wore two pairs of magical suppressing cuffs, and his eyes glowed with power.

“Did you hear me, Lucille? Run and leave us.”

I pressed a hand to his cheek, realizing even with my Binding Rune and his power-suppressing cuffs, nothing stopped the tingles of our bond. “But I have to save you,” I said, staring into the eyes of the male who wanted me to stay safe, staring into my Aspen’s eyes.

He dropped his forehead to mine. “There’s nothing left of me to save.”

Magda threw her head back and laughed. “Sorry, darling, but I no longer need her questions with how much sorrow and hope she’s throwing about. It’s so raw and potent. Delicious,” she tittered. “ Although I will say, Lucille. You won’t have to wait long before you find your mom again.”

What did that mean?

As Aspen approached the door, she dropped her head slowly, her gaze locking onto us with eyes that mirrored the color of her pendant—a hue that filled me with growing dread.

“Run, Lucille,” Aspen snapped, pressing me against the door.

Even if I wanted to, the doorknob wouldn’t twist.

Magda stood, hair floating around her in a glowing halo. “You’ve given me quite a meal. I’m not ready to let you go yet. Not with one last thing to do.”

A strand of golden hair lengthened, floating over to Oliver, who scrambled toward us. It caressed his cheek. He flinched back as the glowing hair seared a line into his skin.

“You should’ve listened to the princeling, darling.” She prowled forward. “But I’m quite glad you didn’t. The last time the prince came, he gave me nothing. But you two. You don’t shield your emotions. It’s delectable.”

“Uncuff me, Luc—prisoner.” Aspen vibrated with tension and warmed my hands with his unnaturally hot back. The heat penetrated his thick leather uniform. Almost as if the rune sent its searing heat through his body or his power sought release. I couldn’t tell which, or maybe it was both.

“She doesn’t have the key. I do, and I think it may be best to leave your cuffs on,” Oliver said next to me, trying his hand at opening the door.

“But Nephilim, don’t you know what’s on the prince’s wrists?” Magda said, smiling like she was about to win something.

Oliver raised a brow. “I do know. They’re called cuffs. ”

“But they can?—”

“Get me to my sister? Yeah, Lucy told me.”

“But my vision showed me she hid that information…” she trailed off and frowned.

“Sorry to ruin whatever chaos you had brewing, but your next emotional meal isn’t on the menu.”

Magda sighed as her skin shimmered like the glow in her hair. “Fine, darling. We’ll do this the hard way, then.”

“Uncuff me!” Aspen bellowed.

But before we could react, Magda sent a flare of golden light at Oliver, and it sank into his skin.

“I hate doing the dirty jobs.” Magda pouted. “So please knock out the female and kill the prince for me. He’d make a lovely addition to my fence.”

Oliver slid a dagger from the sheath on his hip and stepped toward us. He smiled in a twisted sort of way. In a way I’d never seen. “With pleasure.”

“Touch Lucille, and I’ll have you begging for mercy, Nephilim,” Aspen snarled, shifting his body to protect me from Oliver and Magda. I wasn’t sure if it was the queen’s Aspen protecting me or my Aspen.

“How? You’re cuffed?” Oliver sneered at him, stepping closer.

“Oliver, whatever she’s done to you, fight it! You don’t want to kill Aspen or hurt me!”

“The prince works for the queen who has my sister. That’s reason alone for him to die.” He stepped closer to Aspen, pressing his dagger into Aspen’s neck, their chest nearly touching. An unnatural heat radiated from Aspen’s shoulders .

My stomach dropped to my toes. I tried to squirm around Aspen to protect him, but he only shoved me back.

“Back up, Nephilim.”

Oliver glanced down at Aspen’s chin. “I think you look better with the queen’s rune. At least then we know where your loyalty lies.”

“My loyalty will always lie with Lucille.”

Oliver snorted, lifting his gaze to me. “You only wish that were true. But your queen has you leashed like a good little pawn. How long do you think you’ll have this time with her? How many sweet lies will you whisper into her ear before you turn on her because of that rune?”

Aspen nodded down to Oliver’s wrist. “If that rune is what I think it is, are you not a pawn?”

“Sure. But the difference, princeling, is that I was her protection detail.”

“And now you’re going to betray her and knock her out to let the witch do whatever she wants with her?”

Oliver shrugged, eyes apathetic. “Not my problem.”

I flinched back from Aspen and the sweltering heat coming off him. He raised his flameless sword to Oliver’s neck, and my eyes widened. He couldn’t have taken that out of its sheath with his hands cuffed. I looked down at his side and found melted leather and ash.

But how?

Then I saw a flicker of blue flame snake around Aspen’s cuffed hands holding the sword. It wasn’t enough power to transfer to the blade, but it captured Oliver’s attention. Not that he seemed concerned about the sword at his neck or the flames that were trying to breach two sets of cuffs .

“I said back the fuck up, Nephilim. Or I will take your head. I don’t care if the witch is controlling you or if Lucille hates me. I have taken enough lives to no longer care about my soul or what I have to do to protect what’s mine.”

I glanced at Magda and found every part of her glowing, gazing at Oliver like he was dessert, controlling my first friend and making him turn on us.

I was so sick and tired of haughty power-hungry bitches thinking they could control anyone they wanted.

And when her eyes flashed and both of Oliver’s hands shot out, Aspen only managed to block the knife diving toward his chest. But Oliver had a fail-safe as he latched his other hand onto Aspen’s wrist, making my guardian crumble.

Pricks and itches tickled my skin, and music whispered in my ears.

I glanced down at my Binding Rune. It turned lighter. How? Then a piece of a dream-walk memory came to me, of me on my bed, bathed in flames, looking at a Binding Rune that my powers destroyed. At that time, I had no control; now I had some.

I smiled down at my rune and dove to the deepest depths of my power, finding a mass of brilliant light and coiling darkness ready to aid my vengeance. Pressure pushed at my eyes, and itches swallowed my torso until my rune turned white, and purple flames enveloped my skin.

Oliver crouched over Aspen, pressing a knife against his neck. A fierce protectiveness surged through me, and I threw out my hand. A ball of ice smashed into Oliver’s forehead, knocking him out. I felt terrible for hurting him, but I had no choice.

I turned to Magda. She shot a flare of golden light at me, but it did nothing against my purple flame. I tsked. “You unleashed hell. I hope you’re ready to freeze in it.”