Page 23 of Urn My Love

“Jazriel, whatever you are thinking about, don’t—” I warned, but it fell on purposefully deaf ears.

With a wild toss of his head, and what sounded like the horse version of laughter, Jazriel lunged forward. He immediately fell back into that dangerous loping canter.

This time, he didn’t hold me in place with his wings. Instead, he held them out to his sides, allowing my body to roll against his powerful muscles beneath me.

It was beyond embarrassing how quickly that feral need built inside me, and it was a matter of minutes before my legs gripped his sides, hissing his name through clenched teeth as I rode out what I realized must be an orgasm.

He didn’t immediately stop, and I climaxed a second and then a third time. My eyes closed and my body trembled as I clung to him. Jazriel finally took mercy on me and returned to his smooth, floating gait, tucking his wings against my limp body.

A soft caress brushed my mind, and I heard him whisper. Body. Soul. You are mine.

August spent the remaining days of the trail ride alternating which horse he rode on to ensure they didn’t become overexerted. Despite my efforts to convince August my fall hadn’t been bad, I could see in his eyes that he wasn’t buying what I was selling. For once, the two men agreed on something, and I was only allowed to ride Jazriel for the remainder of the trip.

I’d rolled my eyes. Was this what Ryls had to deal with her mates? I was fairly close to invincible, yet they were treating me as though I were a glass doll. August didn’t know my identity, but I had a sneaking suspicion it wouldn’t have changed his stance in the slightest.

The third day, I was once again lifted onto Jazriel’s back. I’d spent the previous night cradled between the men, but to my disappointment, there were no repeats of the first night’s activities.

The long hours on the trail without having to guide my mount gave me the opportunity to read through the notebook. Tears slipped down my cheeks as I learned the truth of Jazriel’s treatment.

Countless injections, breaking of bones every time he attempted to escape, the horrific ways they’d tried to force him to shift so they could torture his secrets from him. Through it all, Jazriel never broke. He never shifted to his human form, and he’d refused to show them any of the abilities he might possess.

I’d healed the outward signs of his decades of torture, but I didn’t know how to help with his inner scars. By the time we stopped to camp our final night, I was emotionally drained from what I’d read and imagined.

August dismounted beside us and stretched his back. Jazriel shifted, catching me in his arms and cradling me to his chest.

“There is a river ahead. The horses are too tired to cross tonight, so we’ll make camp here.” Jazriel set me on my feet. “I’m going to go check it out and find the safest place to cross.”

August nodded in agreement. “I’ll come with you. It shouldn’t be hard to grab a few fish from the river for dinner as well.”

Jazriel blew me a kiss and the two men disappeared into the woods. Once they were out of sight, I pushed to my feet and began removing the saddles from August’s horse and the rest of the horses who were carrying our gear. The guys were going to fuss about me exhausting myself, but I couldn’t stand around waiting for them to take care of me.

I’d just finished starting a small fire and setting the frying pan next to it when I heard a woman cry out from the woods. Standing up, I turned toward where I thought the sound had come from and strained to listen.

Again, the pained cry came from the woods. Without thinking twice, I rushed toward it. As I darted between trees, I would pause every few minutes to listen for the woman’s cry, and each time it was closer.

Was it an injured or lost hiker, or could someone be keeping her captive? With woods as untouched as these, it wouldn’t surprise me to find out some people used the wildness for nefarious purposes. Just like the men who’d held Jazriel.

I’d braced myself for just about every possible scenario, except the one where a mountain lion emerged from the thick undergrowth with its claws extended. She slammed into me, sending us tumbling to the forest floor, where the big cat lunged for my throat.

I could’ve turned her to ash with a burst of flames, but I didn’t want to injure the magnificent creature for doing what she was built to do. Calling flames to my hand, I waved them in front of her snarling face, and sighed in relief when she leaped away with a roar.

Not ready to give up on having me for dinner, the mountain lion circled me, her eyes reflecting the blue glow of my fire. Pushing to my feet, I began to back away. The oversized kitty cat stalked after me, her tail flicking in irritation.

Keeping my voice soothing, I tried to reason with her. “I swear phoenix doesn’t taste like chicken.”

She hissed, closing the distance between us. My wings ripped through my shirt, and I turned to leap in the air, but the cat was fast and her claws sank into my back and her sharp fangs bit down where my right wing met my shoulder.

I screamed as agony tore through my wing. Gathering my magic, I sent a small burst of electricity through her, hoping it would be mild enough to only stun her for a moment so I could escape.

It worked, and she dropped from my back so fast that I staggered…

Then tumbled end over end down a rock-covered bank…

Before finally crashing into a rushing river.

I was quickly sucked beneath the surface, where my wings got caught in the violent current, making it impossible to resurface. My efforts to shift were futile. I simply couldn’t focus with my body slamming into submerged boulders and my wings feeling as though they were being ripped from my back.

Managing to break the surface, I sucked air into my oxygen-starved lungs. A heartbeat later, I was yanked back beneath the water. I continued to fight the powerful river, cursing my inability to portal myself away.

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