Page 141 of A Drop of Anguish
I roll my eyes. Yeah, sure, this’ll be a good option. Give me your soul, and I’ll let you live.
“Candice will sign the contract into the games, and Jarron will sign this.” A new parchment appears, suspended midair. “In which you admit that your chosen is Elizabeth Montgomery, who has rejected you. You forfeit all rights to the Orizian throne.”
“Are you through talking yet?” Jarron’s demon hisses, his eyes hooded and dark. His anger is quiet. He is too calm. Has he already made up his mind?
Jarron drops Mr. Vandozer, shoving him back onto the ground. Mr. Vandozer sucks in panicked breaths, and then scrambles on his hands and knees over to Liz— as if she’d protect him while he keeps her bound and threatened. He clings to her leg, even while others from the council hold a knife to her heart.
“You’ve put me in a difficult situation,” Jarron says smoothly. “But you’ve made one miscalculation.”
“Oh?” the man says. There’s a stillness to his body, but his voice sounds confident. It’s enough to make him recount his chickens and glance around the area to see if he’s missed something. “What’s that?”
Jarron smirks at the masked man.
Then, there’s a flash as Jarron makes his decision and the entire world around me explodes into ash.
57
Never A Second Choice
Magic crackles around me as my vision flickers back. An orb of dark power surrounds me, and… someone is carrying me.
His arms are warm and gentle, cocooning me in safety.
Stone shatters and shoots around us, a swirl of dust. Then, all at once, the hurricane of rock ends and we’re surrounded by a star-filled night sky. The dark magic falls away, and I am soaring through the sky in his arms.
His leathery wings beat smoothly in a rhythmic pattern, lulling my mind into a hypnotic ease.
This is a good dream, I think.
I’d like to stay in this dream forever.
“Where are you taking me?” I murmur through dry lips.
“Home.”
Home. A word with so many different meanings. I like that word, though. It has such possibilities, but they all mean comfort and safety. I want those things.
My gaze drifts down to the treetops getting closer and closer. I blink, watching the green rolling hills. Dizziness sets in.
And recognition that I am very much flying through the air and moving toward the ground.
And the demon’s claws are digging into my leg.
“Holy crap!” I holler, suddenly realizing this is not a dream, and I’m hundreds of feet up in a demon’s arms. I twist to desperately wrap my arms around Jarron, pressing my face into his neck.
He chuckles softly. “You are safe, bright one. I will not let you fall.”
The ease of moments before, when I believed I was dreaming, falls away and smashes on the rocks below, leaving a mess of panic. “What the hell is going on? What happened?”
“Stay calm. We’re almost there. We’ll talk then.”
I squeeze him tighter. He seems comfortable cradling me through the air.
It’s incredibly peaceful, despite my panic, as I watch the clouds pass over the moon beyond the mountains in the distance.
“The authorities have arrived,” he murmurs. “Late as always.”
Jarron dips down, and I squeal, squeezing him tighter, eyes pressed shut. Down, down, down.
