Page 30 of Releasing Darkness
Maybe I had been independent and strong for so long, for hundreds of years, that it was time to let someone else take that burden from me. Maybe it was okay to allow myself to sink into the warmth and comfort of my mate. Perhaps I didn’t have to stay on guard every minute of every day. The thought was scary, but it was also a huge relief.
“Varos…” I breathed out, letting my fingers brush over his strong jaw. “Did they hurt you?”
At my words, he set me down when I hadn’t even noticed I was wrapped around him like a koala bear again. He glared atthe hole in the shoulder of my leather jacket, and then his hands went to the zipper. After studying the design for no more than a second or two, he yanked it down and then parted the material. His hands carefully peeled the jacket over my shoulders and down my arms, until I was freed from the leather, then he tossed it aside to land on my satchel. His eyes grew glacial as he took in all the blood that the jacket had concealed.
“I’m okay. Hey!” I took his face in my hands, feeling how tight his jaw was as he ground his teeth together, forcing him to look into my eyes. “I’m okay.” His eyes closed, and he touched his forehead to mine, letting a slow breath out.
“I don’t ever want to watch that happen to you again. When the arrows pierced your skin—” he cut himself off with a menacing growl.
“I know,” I whispered, knowing that it would have been terrifying for me if our roles had been reversed. There was nothing more to say, nothing that I could do to erase the image from his mind. But I could show him that it was over.
I took a step back and tugged my shirt from the waistband of my jeans until I could pull it over my head. Then I lifted my hand to rub at the blood staining my skin until he could see that the injuries were nearly gone. “See? I’m okay.”
He lifted a hand, his fingers trembling as they ran over the pink flesh where the arrow had been in my shoulder. Soon, the pinkness would fade away, and there would be no trace left. “I hated to see you hurt. I can’t see that again. I will destroy everything if I lose you.”
I looked into his eyes, willingly letting him see into my soul. “I know. I would do the same for you.”
Chapter
Eighteen
VAROS
After assuring myself that Sasha was safe and that every soldier who had come to take her from me was dead, I found the nearest beelennya plant. I had to wash away as much of the blood on my mate as I could. My rage would keep simmering until it was gone. The High General was already going to die, but now that he’d hurt her, I was going to make him suffer in the most painful ways. I had many, many ideas of how to do it, too, since he’d done them all to me over the years.
I watched as Sasha put her shirt back on with a grimace, lamenting about how disgusting it was. My lips twitched as she complained about the new holes in her favorite jacket. I didn’t find the idea of how those holes had gotten there funny, but my mate was cute when she was grumbling.
“I hope they can be patched. Stupid arrows.”
I chuckled, sticking the tip of my finger in the one on her shoulder. “You know, back when I was a boy, all clothing was repaired when damaged instead of discarded. Even for a prince.”
She eyed me as if she were sizing me up. “Is that what you are? A prince?”
I sighed, reaching down for her satchel and sliding it over her head, knowing she’d want to hold on to it. “All four of us. Our mother was one of the first demons created after the Underworld came into existence. The Diety that designed the Underworld did so with multiple rulers in mind. Always several kings to rule over all. It was the only way to keep such a vast amount of deadly breeds of demons under check. There’s just no way to control them all with just one leader.”
She looked thoughtful as she picked up Max and scratched behind his ears. “I know it’s been a while since I lived here, but I recall Lucifer being the head of all the other royalty.”
I shook my head in disgust. “He always had big aspirations. He doesn’t even have a right to a throne.”
Her look of shock wasn’t surprising. Lucifer’s father had been a soldier. When he died, one of the other kings, who’d had his eye on his mother, took her as his chosen mate, giving Lucifer ideas for the throne. My brothers and I had our suspicions about what truly happened with his father. It was all too convenient. Knowing now what we did about Lucifer and how far he would go to get what he wanted, made everything that happened leading up until now suspect.
“We didn’t know him before the accident, but after Lucifer moved into the palace, we had to spend time with him when we had our classes. There was something about him that none of us liked. He was arrogant and spoiled, and I often saw a calculated look in his eyes. He was also intelligent and cunning.”
“Do you think he planned all this,” she gestured around us, but I knew what she meant. He got rid of the four of us, making way for more power for himself. “How did he get away with it if he isn’t even an heir to the throne?”
I gritted my teeth and took her hand as we walked quickly down the path. We were still far from the portal and every minute that we spent in the Underworld, Sasha was in evenmore danger. I didn’t trust the High General to not employ more dangerous tactics to retrieve us. “Friends, I would think. Or people he hired.”
“Or threatened,” she said thoughtfully. “He has witches working for him, right? They don’t like working for demons, never have.”
Witches were captured and brought into the Underworld shortly after the realm was created. As soon as the portals were discovered, demons began to explore. At some point, witches were brought back as slaves once it was discovered the kind of power they held. The Kings set them free as soon as they uncovered what was going on. After that, many made a home in the Underworld, but it was entirely possible they were still being used without their consent.
“It is definitely something the demon I knew as a boy would have done.”
We walked in silence for quite some time, rushing toward our destination. At some point, Max had jumped back onto my shoulder and curled his body into a comfortable position to rest. Sasha never broke stride as we walked at our quick pace. She was just as determined as I was, and again, I couldn't help but be impressed by her strength and capabilities. She was as well trained as the best soldiers in the realm.
The sound of wings caught both our attention, while at the same time, Max made the high pitched trill I had already come to recognize as his warning call. I cursed and pulled Sasha’s hand, darting into the forest for cover. Even though the tree limbs were sparse, they would still provide enough cover that a flying predator would have trouble swooping down for an attack.
“Harpies,” Sasha bit out as we searched the sky. I looked to where she was pointing and saw she was right.