Page 83 of Vicar
Possessed by the bad guy.
Not for much longer, she vowed. Not if she could help it.
Which meant he better have been right when he boasted that his incarnate’s Múspellsheimr residue would only ever protect him and most likely her because she had come directly from that world. If that were the case, while her life would be forfeited to the dragon who had snagged her before, she should be able to save Vicar from Violence and preserve Loki’s Dagger too. She understood that would disrupt what Loki had going with the Forge, but she had faith in everyone to find a way without her.
“You truly think you can get away from me?”Violence taunted.“You think you can outrun the beast I’m in?”He issued a dark chuckle.“Because we both know you can’t.”
“Probably not,”she granted, fully aware he was right on her tail. A mere chomp away.“But I’m going to give it my best shot.”
In sync with her other self, she held fast to the dagger, pulled all her Múspellsheimr magic close, cut a hard right, and leapt into the pulsing maroon residue of Vicar’s previous incarnate. Straight into what he had once said was a gateway into Múspellsheimr for dragons of that world's bloodline.
Thankfully, Violence took the bait and leapt in after her.
When he did, she rallied every bit of Alfheim magic she could muster and shot it back at him. Just as she’d hoped, combined with the spot’s need to protect Vicar, it stopped him from passing through the gateway.
Not Violence, though.
His ugly energy shot out of her mate and flailed into Múspellsheimr.
“Take the dagger,”she roared, whipping it back to Vicar before she swung around, determined to lead Violence deeper into a world that would eventually destroy him.
If Violence didn’t destroy her first, that is.
After all, she might be able to sustain in Múspellsheimr but not her inner Alfheim. Magic that would soon render her too weak to fight off the enemy’s attack. But by then, it wouldn't matter. He would have been in Múspellsheimr too long as well and would go down with her.
“I don’t think so,”Vicar growled.
He caught the dagger, reached into Múspellsheimr, and snatched her back.
Unfortunately, that gave Violence enough time to return as well.
When the enemy attacked them both with vicious, battering power, Vicar wrapped her in his wings.“You’re not going anywhere, woman.”He peered down at her with fiery promise.“Not now. Not in any life after this.”He repeated what his Sigdir side had said to her softer half time and time again.“You stay close. You don’t go.”
“Don’t tell me what to do,”she growled, caught between being mad at him for not letting her go so he survived and being turned on by his dominance. How strong he appeared taking the pain Violence inflicted.“If I want to be with someone else after this life, I will be.”
“Then so will I,”he vowed.
She didn’t much like that. “No, you won’t. Not after having me and me alone in this life.”
“What makes you think I want you alone?”
“Because you’ll never get any better.”
“No,”he agreed.“I won’t.”He narrowed an eye.“Nor will you.”
“No,”she conceded, more aroused by the moment at how well he withstood Violence. How hot he looked doing it.“So we’ll commit for this life.”
“And the next,”he reminded, amused now despite the beating he was taking.
“We’ll see,”she allowed.“It depends on how well you service me in this life.”
“Enough to make you addicted.”Smoke puffed out of his nostrils, giving away the tremendous amount of pain he was under. Yet still, impressively enough, he managed a hefty erection. But then, pain was kind of their thing.“I’ll service you enough, so you never crave another.”
“I better not,”she warned.
“So you will relent?”
While she never thought she’d make such a promise to any man, at that moment, looking into eyes she had known since before she was born, she knew she would. If she were honest, some small part of her had always hoped it would happen, whether she usurped him or not.
