Page 91 of The Magic of Revenge
I threw a glance behind me to see where the mysterious elder demon went, but nobody was there. Bryce was crying hysterically and all color had drained from his face. I heard a squelch and the drip, drip, drip of fluid hitting the dirt. Did he just...
"Fucking choke on it, you sick fuck," Sloane growled, easily squeezing Bryce's mouth open. I watched in horror as Sloane shoved Bryce's bloody cock down his throat. He'd ripped his dick off. Ripped. His. Dick. Off.
Bryce hit the ground, his face turning blue, blood covering his lower body. When he blinked and his eyes landed on me, I slowly lifted my hands and gave him two big fuck you middle fingers. Sloane didn't hesitate, grabbing him by the ankles. He spun around a few times and let go, and Bryce flew over the cliff as Sloane launched a blast of fire that sent his body up in flames.
I must've made some noise because Sloane spun around, his body coiled for a fight.
"R-Red?" His voice broke and then he was launching toward me. A sob burst free the moment he crashed to the ground in front of me and scooped me into his arms.
"Oh baby, I'm so fucking sorry. I'm sorry. Jesus..." Sloane rambled, petting my hair, kissing my head, rubbing my back gently. All I was capable of doing in that moment was crying... Crying and shaking like a leaf. "Thank fuck for your wings, huh? Gods..."
I shook my head. “Bryce hit me with a dart when we got out here, it had that stuff on it that we gave to Laurie to make sure she couldn’t use magic.”
He jerked back in shock. “You mean you didn’t have your wings?” Sloane’s face paled, as the realization that I should be deader than dead at the bottom of that ravine overtook him.
Tears were streaming down my face as my whole body shook. “No. That’s why I couldn’t use any of my magic to defend myself, or you.”
“But— How the hell did you get up here then?”
“A demon. I didn’t know him, but he caught me mid-air and flew me back up. You were busy with Bryce, your back was turned so you wouldn’t have seen him. Then he was just… gone.” I shrugged. “I’ve never seen him before.”
“Jesus. I’m so fucking sorry. I thought you— If he hadn’t been there…” he trailed off, his nostrils flaring, as he stared at what must have been a particularly interesting rock on the ground. My throat tightened at the memory of knowing I was going to die as I fell through the air. It wasn’t his fault this happened, and he’d had no way of knowing that I didn’t have full use of my power. I knew he’d take this personally though, and I had this sudden fear that he would shut me out again.
When he met my eyes and I saw the broken man gazing back at me, a little whimper left my mouth. He wanted to be the best at everything, but even with that—he’d never believed it himself. He mistook my sadness as a reaction to the trauma we’d just gone through together and cupped my face with so much softness, more tears slipped out. "Shhh, Kitten. I've got you. I've got you."
Sloane brushed my tears away, kissed my forehead, my nose, my temple. Bryce was dead. Finally. I never had to worry about him again.
"Are you scared of me, Red?" he whispered against my neck and the heat from his breath sent goosebumps over my skin.
His question took me by surprise and I found myself wrapping my arms around him and burying my face in his chest. "Never," I whispered back. Sloane was an absolute beast of a man. A protector in the truest sense of the word. He'd ripped Bryce's dick off with his bare hands and then choked him with it. The thought should've been horrible, fucked up, twisted. Instead, it made me feel safe, protected... and I'd enjoyed the whole thing much more than I probably should have.
"I gave him the double birds before you launched his ass over the edge," I said softly, and then jumped when Sloane barked a laugh.
"Stars, you really are the perfect woman for me," he breathed, his blue eyes twinkling. His eyebrow was split, along with his bottom lip. There was blood splattering his face, but it wasn't his. The sight of it made me smile. "What's that grin for, Kitten?"
"Just thinking about you," I admitted, heat spreading through me now that the threat was gone. My body was hurt, but the magic suppressant Bryce had shot me with must've been starting to wear off because I could already tell I was healing. My fingers searched for the spot where Sloane had been stabbed and I pinched my face in confusion when I found there weren't any wounds.
"You healed?" I asked him, pushing his ripped shirt out of the way to take a closer look.
"Yeah. I think it must be my dragon power or something, I have no idea. How am I a dragon, Red?" Sloane asked, wonder on his face as he stared into my eyes.
I sighed. "I have no idea, probably something to do with bonding to me? I'm sorry if it's not something you want..."
Large hands held my face, Sloane's eyes boring into mine as he slowly tilted my head back. "Are you kidding me? I'm a dragon. That's fucking incredible." He smiled and it made him look almost playful.
I scooted closer and wrapped my legs around his hips, crushing my body against his. Gods, we'd both almost died tonight. His large arms wrapped around my back as he held me tightly. Safe.
"Uh, Red?" Sloane shifted beneath me and I felt something hard poking me in the leg.
"Hmm?" I murmured, my face buried against his neck. I felt fat raindrops hit my bare shoulders and looked up as more rain fell from the night sky, washing away the horror that had taken place.
"Beautiful," Sloane whispered, and my gaze fell from the sky down to the man holding me. He was staring at me with such tenderness that my heart squeezed and I leaned down, pressing my mouth to his. It was soft and fast, and I pulled back, looking for his reaction. My hand reached for the hair that had fallen into his eyes and he intercepted it, turning my hand and pressing his lips to my palm.
My breath hitched at the sweet gesture and he did it again, his lips moving slowly to my wrist where dark finger-shaped bruises were already fading. He kissed each one and the rainfall increased, the blood on our bodies slowly starting to wash away.
I pulled his shoulder to get him closer and rose up on my knees to push his wet hair aside. My own lips found the rapidly fading cut on his eyebrow and I kissed it softly, earning me a soft hiss. Then I kissed his jaw which was red and swollen. Shifting again, I placed featherlight kisses on his lip, which was still puffy from being split open.
"Red, I..." He shuddered when I licked the wound. Sloane didn't move, he barely breathed as I made sure to drop my lips to every scratch, bruise, or cut that was on his face. When he inhaled sharply, I moved back, looking down at him. His eyes were glassy and my heart nearly broke at how sad he looked.
