Page 309 of The Spider Queen
I wanted for nothing in his arms.
Though he was the Prince of Darkness, he’d made me feel nothing but light.
“You’re his prisoner. His payment.”
“I know.” I sighed. “Part of me is indignant. The other part… The other part of me doesn’t care at all.”
“Ah, crap,” Jax muttered.
“What?” I asked in amusement.
“You’re not going to like what I have to tell you. You’re not going to like it at all.”
I frowned at his cryptic words, but I held my tongue. I’d wait until he told me in his own time.
We descended through the sky—he flew effortlessly through the murky clouds. I nearly stumbled when Jax suddenly let go of me. We were now on solid ground.
My feet sank into the plush grass. I looked around, expecting to find us in the meadow of Eden, the Tree close by. But, we weren’t in a valley. We were on the top of a plateau, and if I looked in the distance, I could see the shadows of the rolling hills and the Tree, which was a silver blur of leaves shaking under the star-lit sky.
“Sit,” Jax said, gesturing to the grass.
“Where are we?” I asked. “Gargoyle terrain?”
He shook his head. “Harpy.”
“Harpy?” I felt my heart trip in fear.
Jax’s stone teeth glimmered in the night as he smiled. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.”
I shoved against his arm. It was cold to the touch. Like the stone he was made from.
“I’m just kidding. Though they’re insane—and loud when stumbled upon—they won’t harm you. Nothing will. Not as long as you have Lucifer’s protection.”
“How do you know I have his protection?”
“You smell of him. Remember?”
“Ugh. He scent marked me?” Suddenly, Jax was pulling me toward him, dipping my head forward. “What are you doing?”
Jax didn’t reply as he pulled the hair off my neck. “Shit on a stick. The bastard Hell marked you..”
“Hell marked me? What does that even mean?”
Jax released me, his tone grim when he answered, “The siren song from the music box broke your concealment spell. But you now carry Lucifer’s physical mark, which means you’re linked. No spell will ever conceal you from him again.” He stood up quickly and reached his hand down. “Come on, we have no time to lose.”
I grasped his hand and hauled myself up. “Where are we going?”
“To see the Smith. He’s your only hope. In the meantime, there’s something I can do to buy us a little time.”
Before I could ask what, Jax grabbed my shoulders, yanked my hair aside, and tore into the flesh at the base of my skull with his stone teeth.
“You asshole,” I howled.
“Ugh, your blood is sweet. It makes me want to vomit.” Jax turned his head and spat. When he looked back at me, a trail of blood ran down his chin.
“I thought only vampires liked blood,” I taunted, forcing myself not to reach behind my neck to feel the gaping wound.
“Lots of creatures like blood,” he said.
