Page 129 of Devour
It’s a toxic, dark plan that alights this time. Something I never would have done before.
I press my behind tighter against the new Dread, rocking against him.
“Fuck,” he mutters.
“We have a moment to spare first, don’t we?” I purr. My aching heart races faster than ever.
He pauses. For a long moment, he doesn’t respond.
Then, with a growl he twists me around and pushes me against the wall, his chest against mine. He presses forceful lips against my throat and hastily works to unfasten his pants.
I ignore the disgust rising in my throat and hold tight instead to my anger. And the knife at my thigh.
Giving in means I’ve let them win. I might fail spectacularly, but I will never give up the spark. That’s something they can never take from me.
I don’t expect to kill this one. I don’t need to.
I slam the blade into his stomach and push as hard as I can. One single moment is all I need as he screams, stumbling back, his dick half out of his pants.
I leap into darkness, falling to the depths where I will certainly find my end. But I’d much rather feed the stomach of a draken than feed the appetites of a Dread.
58
Lina
Itumble down and down and down, slamming into jagged rocks and sliding against slick stones, gritty with dirt. I don’t know how far I fall or how many stones I hit on my way, but when my body slams against the final rock, I know nothing but pain.
It lances its way through every limb.
Finally, a voice hisses.
My eyes fly open, but I can see little beyond blackness. Even here, in darkness so thick it’s like a living thing, there are shadows. They shift and slither. Dim, faded gray in the dark.
Then, in the distance, two tiny green lights flicker in and then out.
Despite the immense pain, I force my body upright, panting and shivering.
I’m going to die. Here, in this dark place. Here, alone and cold and afraid.
Am I already dying?
Forgive me, Astella. I tried. I tried to make it back to you.
I still don’t know where she is. Is she here? Is she out in the world, fighting to survive?
Please be okay. Please fight. For me. For us.
For a world that doesn’t have to be like this.
I mourn us one last time. I mourn the hope I held so dearly. I believed it. I believed I could make it out of this place, but instead I found tricks and games and comfort that was fleeting. A façade. I knew it. It knew it all along, and yet, they almost got to me.
Healmost got to me. He almost made me believe he could be good. He made me believe there was something worth fighting for, not only out in the world, but even down here in this hell hole.
One last trick.
I won’t fall for it again.
I squeeze the beads of my bracelet.Lucca. I miss you too. I’m sorry I—I betrayed him. I swallow. I wouldn’t forgive me if I was him.
