Page 26 of A Kiss From a Revenant
“These are all of their wives who attest they are each as cruel as my husband was—and would be happy to see them meet a fate similar to his.”
That’s what this is—a warning and a solution. These women want me to liberate them the same way I had Isabelle and Kindell. This is also their way of telling me that if I don’t take care of these men, they will eventually uncover my crimes and come after me.
If I were smart, I’d leave today. I have enough money to travel—Eryx could guide me at least to a nearby port and startover somewhere far away. If the men of this village are already onto me, killing any more would be foolish.
Kindell must sense my hesitation. Her eyes grow serious as the silence stretches.
“Please, Nory, help them like you helped me. They have plenty of money to pay you,” she urges. “With fewer men around to ask questions, there is less of a chance you will ever be discovered for helping us. All these women will keep your secret.”
I bite my lip, conflicting feelings warring inside me.
The farmer’s wife looks at me—her voice is meek and unassuming.
“Help us, please. These men are loyal to each other—they’ll pay someone to hunt you down if you try to flee. You’ll never be safe from them unless you kill them.”
I sigh. As much as I hate to admit it, she’s right. These men combined have enough coin to pay one of the sell-swords that frequent the tavern to track me for the rest of my days. I won’t live in constant fear—checking over my shoulder, waiting to be found out.
While I have Eryx now, will he always be there for me? A part of me still can’t shake that he’s keeping something from me and that our time together is coming to an end. Without him, I would have no protection should anyone come seeking retribution.
However, more than that, as I stare into the haunted faces of the women around me, I know I have to aid them. I’m the only hope they’ve got.
“Fine. I’ll help you all.”
A soft cheer goes up as the women around me visibly relax. One by one, they each hand over heavy sacks of gold coins—the farmer’s wife extends a bag of grain and a few copper pieces, and I take them along with the other payments, easing her worry over the meager sum. After collecting theirpayments, each one provides me with a description of their husbands and where they typically frequent.
Once the last woman leaves with her thanks still echoing in the air, I rise from my work table. I don’t need to confirm with Eryx that he will help me. He offered to slaughter all the men in this town this morning, and the more I think about it, the more I realize that won’t be too far off from what we are doing.
This will be quite the undertaking. Excitement pulses in my veins, and even though it is wrong, I can’t help but be eager to see Eryx in action again. Who knew I had such bloodlust of my own? He and I truly make the perfect team.
Tonight, we will be unleashed on the Snowlands again. I can hardly wait. Throughout the morning, I find myself counting down the minutes until the sun finally sets.
10
ERYX
These past days have left me on the edge between agony and bliss.
Each day, I am in pain, forcing myself to keep away from Nory so that she can get her work done. However, a male like me can only hold off for so long. After only a handful of hours spent prowling the shadows of her home or the surrounding forest, I slink back into her house and take her atop whatever clothing she’s mending. Her fingernails bite into my back as I swallow her high-pitched moans.
Each time I feel her come around my cock and I fill her with my seed, the madness inside of me intensifies. Once we have come down from our shaking climaxes, it’s not long before she’s forgoing her work in favor of me wringing pleasure from every inch of her body.
Nighttime is when we unleash our full desire.
Once my bloodlust is satisfied by our latest victim, I turn that primal edge on Nory. She meets my depraved lust with her own, allowing me to drink from her before taking her in countless maddening ways. I feast from her neck as well as between her thighs, drinking down hersweet honey from both places. With her blood inside me, our passion reaches new peaks.
The jealousy I feel as I watch her play her role burns hotly. Now, the men she lures don’t even get the chance to touch her before I pounce on them—ripping their throats out before claiming her beside their corpses. I’ve taken her roughly more places than I can count.
We’ve fucked in old barnes where her moans echo through the rafters. I’ve lain atop a fresh pile of snow deep in the graveyard as she looms above me naked. Her breasts bounce as she rides me under the pale moon. Each time we come together, my heart lifts, believing this will be it. The time we finally succumb to the unspoken truth lurking between us and fulfill my maker's demand.
Each time, I am left disappointed by her refusal to confess. However, that feeling of discontentment quickly dissipates as she looks at me with trust and adoration in her eyes. Each time it makes me want to prove myself more—clearly, I am not doing enough to earn the feelings I desire from her.
I am not ignorant of the passing of time. My maker’s deadline looms—I’ve wasted too much time. Before, days passed slowly, agonizingly so. With Nory, time moves in the blink of an eye. I’ll seek her out at noon, and by the time I feel wrung out from pleasure, it’s nearly midnight.
Despite the passage of days, I can feel a difference within me as well. Even gorging myself on those despicable males and Nory’s sweet blood, the hunger inside me never abates. My bones feel brittle, on the verge of breaking. Even my magic has begun to wane, simple tasks require more concentration than I’ve ever used.
Nory has noticed the change in me as well. Her verdant eyes snag on the increasing pallor of my skin. There is concern in her gaze and a trepidation in her touch as if she knows—even though it is impossible. I will not tell her and risk my maker’swrath. All I can hope is that today will be the day she fully submits to me, and my maker’s bargain will be fulfilled.
My maker’s demands plague my every thought—only silenced when I am deep inside Nory, just like I am now.
