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He laughed darkly, pushing away the scrolls and platters on the table behind us.
“Enough talking.” His eyes flashed. “I’m hungry.”
Zhèmson snapped his fingers. In a blink, my clothes disappeared. Heat flooded my body. I trembled with need as he devoured me with his glare. Zhèmson gripped my thighs and spread me wide before him. My head fell back, my eyes fluttering shut.
“Mm. She’s become my favorite. Just the right snack for me.” His mouth found my bundle of nerves, breathing a hot breath against my core. “Will she taste like eldyrberries? Or just like honey?”
He licked his lips, grinning like a wolf. Then Zhèmson dove into me until all I could see were clouds, ladders, and stars.
Daliah
I curled inside the crook of Zhèmson’s arms, content. I’d lost count of how many times we made love. Our way of making up for the time we've been apart. Our bodies were interwoven landscapes. The angel had been carved onto the tablets of my heart as I’d been fused into the fabric of his own. If Zhèmson and I continued mating with this same passion, it wouldn’t be long before we populated this cloudy haven and made our own Avari.
We adored one another. The Domenent had become my greatest love. I’d entered this prison on a mission to betray him. Now I secretly plotted on how to help him escape.
Behind me, Zhèmson snored, the sound as familiar as the beat of my heart. I snuggled up to him and was about to drift off when something shiny caught my eye in the dim light. Blinking sleep away, I squinted. Was that what I thought it was?
I leaned over Zhèmson's arm, trying to get a better look. I hissed. My eyes hadn’t betrayed me.
On the floating nightstand was a gleaming dagger. The hilt was translucent ivory like glass overlaid in film. The dagger was made from metals that reflected different colors under the light. I gripped the sheets beneath me, fisting the fabric so I wouldn’t scream out loud.
How'd this dagger end up here? I knew for a fact it wasn’t there when we fell asleep. My stomach churned with dread. What if Zhèmson woke up and saw the dagger? He’d think I was trying to betray him again!
A thought clicked in my mind. Could the Sky Watchers somehow overhear our conversations? Kiranon had seemed pretty confident in guessing I’d fallen in love with Zhèmson. Was it possible he’d heard us this entire time? I flushed, thinking of all the flirtatious whispers between the angel and me, most of which were far too inappropriate to repeat.
A small note fluttered above the dagger. Unwilling to touch it, I leaned close to see what it said.
Well done, Temptress.
Now we know it’s his hair.
Use the dagger.
Chop it all off.
Now.
I shuddered. Rotting hells! The gods had failed me. What was I to do? If there ever was a time I needed help of the supernatural sort, it was now. But I’d called on the gods before and they never intervened. Who was it Zhèmson called on all the time?
Alpha above, he’d say.
“Alpha,” I whispered. “Uhm… hi.”
I felt like an idiot, but I pressed on. I kept my voice low so I wouldn’t disturb my Domenent. He squeezed my waist as he snuggled closer. The infinitesimal movement warmed my blood. Zhèmson slept peacefully, his arm curling around me. I smiled, memorizing him like this.
“Great Alpha, or so Zhèmson, calls you. This dagger has to be gone before he wakes up. I won’t have him thinking I betrayed him to the Sky Watchers.” I felt tears coming, but I fought them back. “Please. Please. I don’t know you, but will you help me? I don’t think the gods will answer. But I have a feeling you just might.” I bit my lip before breathing out the truth. “I love him, Great Alpha. So very much. I can’t, I won’t lose him. I came to this tower with a bargain to go home. But I’ve learned my home was never a parlor in the Sèlie Court. My home has always been within my Domenents’ hearts.”
The tears fell, a flood of emotion overwhelming me. Righteous fury heated my blood. Licked my bones. The Sky Watchers would not take this from me.
I turned back to Zhèmson. He still slept like the dead. I giggled, studying his perfect face. He’d fallen asleep with his locs loose. The long strands splayed across his back between the folds of his membranous wings. His jaw hung unhinged. He looked so young, so innocent like this. I kissed him gently on his nose, sniggering when his snore brushed over my face.
I slipped free of Zhèmson’s grasp, taking the note. I tore it into little pieces, then grabbed the dagger, tiptoeing to the window. With some effort, balanced on the windowsill, I cracked it open at the center, and tossed the dagger out with as much force as I could muster.
“The Condemned is no treasonous beast as you had me to believe, you liars!” I shouted into the dim sunlight that signified nighttime. I knew Kiranon could hear me through some kind of magic. Tonight, he’d crossed the line. I had words, and he was going to listen. “He’s no Condemned at all. He’s an honorable Judge, protective warrior, and the purest, sweetest, sexiest of all loves.”
A shift in the light of the dimmed sun emboldened me. As if all of Urien stood with me.
“At his worst, he will forever be greater than you could hope to be. To hells with your rotting bargain. I’m not betraying him. If you try to cross my Zhèmson again, you’ll have proven yourself to be an everlasting fool. Now once and for all, you bastards. Leave. my Zhèmson. alone,” I snarled.
