Page 22 of A Bond in Flames

That pause was enough of a tell that I knew he wasn’t going to share more than that—not yet, anyway—but there were also a whole bunch of holes in that story, not just what this “precious thing” was.

We carried on without too much trouble after that. At one point, Death spun around with a snarl, pounding his staff on the ground, and whatever had been following us changed their mind and stayed back.

The trees were dense here, and when we broke through to the other side, I saw it. The gateway. It was stone, similar to the gate out of Limbo, but this was made of glossy onyx, flecked with silver, like tiny stars.

Coldness, dread, evil seeped through the gateway as I stared at it. “I can hold my own, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid.”

“I won’t let you die,” Death said, his voice resonating through me.

I swallowed, my throat impossibly dry all of a sudden. “Promise?” I smirked up at him, as if I could hide just how scared I was.

“You have my word.”

Then Death took my hand, and we stepped through.

CHAPTER7

Zinnia

We entered into darkness.

“This way,” Death said, voice low, tugging my hand and leading me into a forest of jagged obsidian. Lightning flashed through the night sky while thunder rolled repeatedly in the distance.

Hisses and growls came from somewhere behind us.

Death spun around and cursed. “Run.”

He didn’t need to tell me twice. “Go, I can keep up.” He was fast, really fast, veering left and right through towering rocks. Pumping my arms, I shadowed his every move, afraid I’d fall and impale myself on one of the vicious-looking rocks poking out of the ground like giant stalagmites. The growls grew louder. “They’re gaining on us,” I called.

Death spun around suddenly, hooked me around the waist, flung me over his shoulder, and took off, just as a horde of something loud and angry exploded around the edge of a wide rock behind us. I hung on to him as he sprinted over boulders and tore around the jagged towers of stone that seemed to have burst through the ground.

Lightning flashed bright, turning night into day, giving me a good look at what was chasing us.

Holy fuck.

Their mouths were hanging open, drool streaming behind them as they chased us, moving faster than should be possible on all fours. Death’s powers were all but smothered here, but my magic still burned bright inside me. I couldn’t call on nature, to shake the ground beneath our feet or call on the wind, because we weren’t in the Earth Realm anymore; we were somewhere else, somewhere Mother Nature wasn’t.

So instead, I sent my power at them with a roar from deep in my gut, blasting them with a wall of magic. It had strengthened after cutting, after spilling blood, and several of the creatures flew back, smashing into the sharp rocks, but there were more coming. I called on the fire inside me, and it manifested, flames dancing above my palms. With another cry, I fired it at them—not easy while I was bouncing on Death’s shoulder and close to throwing the hell up. Several were tossed aside, engulfed in flames and screaming, but there were still more.

I had hoped to save Magnolia’s potions, but now seemed like a good time to use one. I shoved my hand in the side pocket of my pack. There were several different vials, all different shapes. I finally found the one I was looking for—the long, thin one. I tapped Death’s back. “Let them get closer,” I yelled.

“You better have a good plan,” he yelled back but instantly did as I said and slowed.

If I weren’t facing a horde of bloodthirsty monsters, I’d probably wonder why he so easily did what I asked, without question, but I was, so instead, I egged them on. “Come on, you ugly fucks,” I yelled. “Catch me.”

One of them roared, spittle flying everywhere and flashing their long, piranha-like teeth. They bounded toward us at full speed, and my heart pounded in my ears as the huge demonic creatures got closer. It roared again, so close to us now that I got a clear view of its tonsils. There were five of them left, and their eyes were wild and filled with hunger.Just a little closer.

The one at the front leaped, snapping its teeth barely a yard from us. The rocks had become less crowded. I needed to do it now, before the creatures had a chance to spread out. They snapped and bounded closer—

I tossed the vial hard, smashing it against the rocks beneath their feet. It shattered, the potion and its toxic fumes covering them. Their roars turned to shrieks as their flesh melted, dissolving, leaving only bone as they all but turned into piles of goo behind us.

Death spun around. “Fuck,” he said roughly, lifting goose bumps all over me. “That’ll do it, little witch.”

Silence surrounded us. We’d gotten them all—at least, the ones chasing us.

“So, um… you wanna put me down now?” I said from my position still dangling over his wide shoulder.

His hand pressed against the backs of my thighs and applied pressure as his other hand went to my back, and he carefully eased me down. He did it slowly, too slowly, and my front dragged all the way down his chest.

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