Page 63 of The Kingdom of Flames and Ash

Eye twitching, Eldrin laughed. “So what if you kill me?”

I threw my head back and laughed, not even needing to pretend near insanity. The pure hatred I felt for this man caused my hand to itch to kill him. But that was a tolerable fate to him, which meant I couldn’t. “That’s the thing,Eldrin. I plan on removing your wings and then letting you go. Yes, I might be forced to marry Pyralis.” Those words caused a deep ache to pierce my heart. “But you’ll have to live amongyourpeopleunable to fly. I’m thinking that sort of fate for you would be the same as mine if I can’t remain with Tavish.” Which was sad. I’dgive up one wing or both if it meant I could remain at Tavish’s side. The only reason I wasn’t willing to break the vow my parents had forced upon me was because of the consequences—the Seelie would lose their magic. That would make the fae magic unstable, which would hurt Tavish.

He shook his head hard. “You wouldn’t—”

Time was precious, and I didn’t want to be near him more than required. With no other choice, I pivoted the sword, placed it at the top of his wing, and pressed down, increasing the pressure inch by inch. I wanted the removal of his wing to be slow and agonizing.

Jerking, he tried to retreat, but all that did was allow the blade to slide a little bit deeper.

Blood flowed like water, the dark color barely noticeable against his black wings. I was about halfway through the base muscle that connected his left wing to his back.

“Stop!” Eldrin’s bottom lip quivered. “I’ll tell you something. Just stop.”

Against my better judgment, I lifted the sword, admiring how the wing hung haphazardly from the top of his back. “Yes?”

His face was strained as his eyes glistened with unshed tears. “If I tell you this, I risk my own safety. What guarantees—”

Not amused, I lifted the sword and moved so that it was back in place. “You get no assurances of anything other than not losing your wing. I won’t stop—”

“All right,” he shouted. “I’ll tell you how you can get out of the deal with the dragon prince.”

My heart lurched, but I tried to keep my emotions steady. However, I heard the sound of the basement doors slamming open and the sound of wings flying inside.

No doubt Tavish and the others.

Static electricity hit my back, indicating that Tavish now stood behind me.

Eldrin’s head tilted back as a tear tracked down his face.

“What’s going on here?” Dad asked in a voice an octave higher than normal.

I didn’t have to turn around to know that his mouth was hanging open. I’d never had a malicious bone in my body. He’d never witnessed me being forced to fight.

“We’re about to learn how I can get out of the vow with Pyralis.” I tilted my head, keeping the sword ready to slice Eldrin’s wing once again.

You’re blasting sexy like this,Tavish linked, his arousal floating through the bond and into me.

We can handle that when I’m done here. Besides, we’ll need to celebrate if he actually tells us something.I tried pushing away the heat flooding me. I couldn’t deal with a distraction when we were so close to answers.

Eldrin closed his eyes, and I moved to finish what I’d started.

“Time’s up.” I slid the sword back into the section.

He inhaled deeply and said quickly, “The dragons set everything up.”

I froze. That didn’t make sense. “What do you mean?”

Eldrin lifted a shaky hand. “Remove the sword, and I’ll tell you.”

“I won’t stop next time.” I lifted a brow. “Do you understand?”

“Yes.” He winced as his eyes narrowed.

If I’d thought he hated me before, I’d been so wrong. One side of the face of the man standing before me now curved with ultimate disgust.

Still, I removed the sword, eagerly awaiting answers.

“Out with it,” Father commanded behind me, making me want to roll my eyes.

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