Page 47 of Queen of Shadows and Roses
My eyes flicked to the sound of the voice, but it was dark. As my eyes adjusted to the murkiness, I realised I was in a cave. It felt foreboding, and a shudder rippled through me. At random intervals, stalactites and stalagmites joined from the floor to the ceiling. I stiffened, and my stomach flipped with anxiety as the cold air chilled my damp skin.
A flash of flames appeared in my periphery, prompting me to turn my head and look up. The breath froze in my lungs. A tall woman with blazing orange eyes and hair of flames stood within feet of me. She had mismatched legs: one of brass and the other covered in fur, ending in a hoof.
Well,shewas a bucketful of nightmares.
‘Who are you? Where am I?’ I slowly inched back on my ass, the body-wracking pain making me wince.
‘I’m Empousa.’ She gave me a wild grin, showing her long canines, and I groaned. For fuck’s sake, why did they all have fangs? I attempted to summon my magic, but nothing happened. I was weak and vulnerable, and the venom of panic gave me a sharp bite. Shit. I didn’t want to die in a dank, dark cave at the hands of a freaky-looking demon.
‘Wait. You don’t want to kill me.’ I raised a hand. ‘Hades will not be happy. I’m his wife.’ I puckered my brow as I said the word ‘wife’. I quite liked it, but now was not the time to psychoanalyse my stupid brain.
She laughed, and the sound made my skin crawl. ‘I know who you are.Shetold me.’ Terror was a bitter taste in the back of mymouth. Then she flew at me, grasping my hair and lifting me off the ground. Searing pain scorched through my scalp, which was nothing compared to the agony of her teeth clamping down on my neck.
A knot built in the back of my throat that tasted of undiluted rage, and I could feel that slumbering giant in my chest pounding to break free. I was angry. So very angry.
I’d been brought here from my life in London; told I was a goddess once wed to the absurdly beautiful Mr Grumpy and Deadly. Other gods were vying for my hand in marriage. Now I had a freaking donkey-legged demon sucking at my neck, and the pain—it hurt. Gods. Ithurt.It was the sort of pain that burned as if some invisible flame were branding me—a million tactile nerves felt as if they’d combusted and been replaced with howling torment. I bared my clenched teeth as the thrum of energy in my sternum returned like a maelstrom… and I exploded.
Black scrolling shadows erupted from my hands, writhing like living smoke, coiling thick and merciless around the Empousa. Head to foot, she was bound in my fury, her shrieks splitting the air as she thrashed. Rage wasn’t just inside me—itwasme, a living, ravenous thing, and I was powerless to stop it.
The Empousa convulsed, her eyes wide with terror, and then her body began to wither. In the span of a heartbeat, she crumbled inward, her form collapsing like ash in a storm. A brittle snap, a hiss of air—then nothing. Just dust.
The silence after was deafening. My stomach lurched, bile burning my throat as I gagged, panting hard. My knees gave way, and I crashed to the floor, trembling as the pile of her remains mocked me from the shadows.
I dragged in a ragged breath, every inhale burning as blood from the wound in my neck slicked the floor beneath me. On myhands and knees, my body trembled, my head hanging low, eyes squeezed shut against the waves of pain that rolled through me.
How did I get here? How could I getoutof here? I kept my eyes closed as shock waves of dull, nauseating pain ratcheted through my whole body.
Suddenly, a flurry of shadows enveloped the space, and I hitched a breath as I lifted my head.
‘Persephone.’ It was his voice. Hades.
Then blackness enveloped me.
‘Persephone.’The deep voice roused me from the darkness. My eyelids fluttered, heavy as stone, until I managed to pry them open. His face swam into focus—the beautiful god of ash and death. Silken sheets whispered beneath my fingers. A bed. His bed?
I tried to sit up, wincing as pain seared through every synapse in my body. ‘Ugh. Ouch. What… what happened?’ I whisper-groaned.
He didn’t answer. Instead, his fangs elongated, sharp and gleaming, and he bit into his wrist. Two rivulets of purple-blue blood, shot through with shimmering gold, welled from the punctures. I gasped. ‘What are you doing?’
‘You were dropped from a great height. You’re bleeding out, and your powers haven’t matured enough to heal you. A normal human would already be dead.’ His voice was low, dangerous, but almost tender. ‘Please… feed.’
He brought his wrist to my mouth, and I recoiled, wincing again as pain like the fire of a thousand suns sparked through every nerve ending. ‘Dropped?’ Ugh. I’m not drinking blood!’ I rasped.
‘You must. It’s the only thing that will heal you.’ His blue eyes swirled with gold as they met mine. One large hand slid behind my head, steady but firm, and he raised his wrist again to my mouth. I hesitated, but lowered my head to the open wounds and closed my lips around them.
‘Suck,’ he said. His voice was husky—the word almost sounded sinful. Heat invaded my cheeks, and I did. I sucked. The scent of his blood filled my senses. It was him—the night air mixed with fresh wood and spices. The first taste of him was delectable, and my eyes fluttered closed. The wash of his dark power flooded my senses—a force so seductive, imbued with sin and shadows.
Desire and temptation cascaded over my tongue, igniting a tingling sensation down my throat and throughout my entire body. His taste… It was exquisite: sweet with smoky undertones, reminiscent of smoked paprika. I swallowed greedily, and the warmth of his blood felt like the heat of the sun’s rays penetrating sinew and bone. The warmth flowed and ebbed, igniting my insides and rushing through my veins, creating a heady sensation that swept through me, easing my pain and sending me into heavenly bliss.
‘Just a little more.’ He gently stroked his hand against the back of my head. His voice was thick and deep, and only then did I realise my fingers were fisted tightly into the fabric of his shirt. A swirl of emotions invaded my every synapse: lust, love, craving, and misery, which caused my throat to thicken. ‘I think that’s enough.’ His voice shattered the emotions as he pried his wrist away, and my eyes fluttered open. Hades sat on the bed next to me and swiped his tongue across his wrist.
‘Are you well?’ His eyes locked onto mine, and my breath caught in my chest.
‘Yeah. Yes,’ I whispered, somewhat dazed. ‘Much better.’ The pain was gone, and I exhaled slowly. I felt my neck; the gaping wound had vanished. ‘Thank you.’
The effects of his blood continued to run rampant through my body, and I shifted awkwardly, twisting my fingers into the sheets. Molten lava coursed deep inside me, and the swift arousal I felt made me squirm, stealing my breath. Heart pounding, the intense wave of tingling sensations invaded every nerve, every synapse, and every inch of my flesh. My nipples hardened, and my thighs clenched. I throbbed. Yearned. Oh, gods. My eyes shot to him, and his face paled.
He cleared his throat. ‘I’ll go and get you some food and wine,’ he said, his voice like gravel. As he stood and glanced at me with pure gold eyes, I saw the thick ridge of his erection straining against his leather trousers. Gods.
