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A growl tore from Fane as the bound figure finally touched the ground, his bare feet scraping over the puddle of his own blood.
“Oh, shit.” I rushed toward an unconscious Ruin, his arms and legs restrained with heavy binds that had suspended him in the air. Gashes, burns, bruises, and blood covered his bare chest, and tears ripped into his jeans, stained black from his blood.
Ruin’s head hung to the side, his navy hair damp and tangled in his bruised face. I tugged at the leather gag over his mouth.
Fane gripped one of the chains and tried to snap it. “Motherfucker! It’s enchanted steel. It won’t break easily.”
“Who did this to him?” My fingers trembled as I ran them over the tiny stab wounds on his neck. Did someone strangle him with a spiked chain?
A moan slipped out of Ruin’s mouth as he regained consciousness. His lids fluttered, and those vibrant blue irises landed on me. A line formed between his brows, and then, as if something registered, his eyes widened.
“No! Get out of here!” His voice was raspy and raw like he’d been screaming for days. He found Fane on his right and frantically shook his head. “Get Tate out of here. It’s a fucking trap.”
ChapterForty-Two
As soon asRuin uttered the warning, Fane snatched me around the middle and shoved me toward the door. But it crashed open, and a daunting figure marched into the room, flicking on the light hanging above the door.
The shadows peeled away from him, and frost trickled down my spine.
“Mykel.” Fane spat the name, and his lips curled back to reveal sharpening teeth.
The colossal guard from Vlehull, who worked for Princess Venna now, grinned, his glamour dropping and unveiling his muddy yellow eyes. “I was expecting you.”
A dark laugh spilled out of Fane, one that made the hair on my nape stand on end. “I hope you don’t think you can take me, Mykel. I’ll wipe the blood from the floor with your face and then use your guts to decorate the chandelier.”
My stomach heaved at the images Fane thrust into my mind.
Mykel casually smoothed a wrinkle in his black suit, the blunt horns on his knuckles shining from the faint moonlight streaming through the high windows. “I think you’ll be too busy trying not to die to do any of that.” He slammed the door shut, and demons streamed in through every hallway that branched off the main room.
Icicles crystallized in my veins, dragging against the walls and threatening to tear holes. There had to be over a dozen dux demons, their glamours dropping to expose various shapes and sizes, some with horns, some with scales, but all with sharp teeth and lethal claws. Saliva dripped from a few near the front.
Flesh eaters.
A deep snarl burst out of Ruin as he jerked on the chains, more blood spilling from his wounds. “You and that bitch Venna will pay when this Shadowbane drains out of my system.”
Demons used Shadowbane to immobilize their victims while maintaining feeling in the nerves so they could still experience pain. That was the only way Mykel could have managed to torture Ruin and set this trap.
“We’ll be gone long before then, Lord Ruin.” Mykel sneered. “You’ll have to travel to Morhyde, and I know how much you want to avoid that.”
Ruin spat blood onto the floor and laughed. “You have no idea what I’m willing to do.”
Mykel ignored Ruin’s threat and returned his attention to Fane and me. “I’ll try to keep you both alive to deliver you to Princess Venna so she can punish you herself.” Mykel shrugged. “But things might get a little out of hand. I’m sure she’ll understand if I at least bring Tate back partially alive. She’d very much like to torture her for killing Ziva.”
Fane kept his focus on Mykel as he spoke into my mind.“Do you have a sword?”
“Of course.” The hilt was shoved in my boot.
“We’re going to fight.”His hand slid down my arm, rough fingers wrapping around mine and squeezing.“If you get the chance, run.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
His lips thinned, but he gave a quick nod, knowing it was pointless to try to convince me otherwise.“Let it out if you have to.”
Trepidation filled my bloodstream like poison.“After the fight with the agrigons, I don’t know if—”
“Let the Infernal Sol the fuck out to stay alive, Tate.”His head finally turned in my direction, his piercing eyes almost too intense.“I mean it.”
My heart squeezed at the desperation behind his fury. He wasn’t afraid of death himself. He feared it for me. I found myself nodding, agreeing to use the Infernal Sol no matter the consequences.
