Page 32 of Tethered to the World
“Leave him alone.”
“Don’t,” Logan growled at her. If he stiffened any more, he’d shatter.
Ellora turned her brown eyes on her, something vicious sparking in them. “Ah, cute. You brought a little friend out to play.”
When the bitch reached out to pat her on the head, Annora slapped her hand aside. “Try that again, and you’ll regret it.”
Ellora laughed, her troops quickly joining her like a bunch of jackals, and Logan tensed even more, seconds away from exploding. “Leave her alone. She has nothing to do with this.”
“Shut up.” She didn’t even glance at Logan, her smile turning hard. “If the little girl wants to play, I’m more than happy to oblige.”
Annora glanced at Logan, surprised to see him standing aside, avoiding looking at her, his fists clenched at his side, practically shaking as he struggled to hold himself in check.
“Oh, that’s adorable.” Ellora chuckled, then placed her talons on Logan’s shoulders, snuggling close to his side. “You didn’t tell her you’re spoken for? Once you’ve given up this foolishness and come home, we can finally be married the way our families always planned. Our children will rule both our packs.”
Annora waited for him to protest, but the slight tightening of his mouth was his only response. He refused to look at her. And she suddenly realized a person didn’t have to be locked up to be trapped in hell.
She couldn’t just stand by and allow it to happen.
“I told you to leave him alone.” Annora planted her hands on her hips, knowing her defiance would antagonize the bitch. She wanted to practice with her abilities…and what better way than on this she-devil?
Ellora’s fake smile dropped. She leaned into Logan, her nails nicking his neck until he bled, and she lapped up the bead of blood. “Hmmm, you taste so good. I’ve missed you in my bed.”
She stepped away from him and sauntered toward Annora with a sway of hips that made her skirt swish. The second the bitch released Logan, Annora clamped her hand over her arm, then fell back into the darkness, yanking Ellora with her. Particles exploded outward, and the world went dark until it was only the two of them in the afterworld.
It looked like the mall, but all signs of life were gone.
The place looked run-down, most of the ceiling caved in, the walls crumbling, like a rot had taken root and was slowly consuming the place. The escalator looked like it was crawling across the floor, as if searching for prey.
She could see the phantom shapes of the others, but they gradually faded as she pushed them away. Small particles floated around them, and she breathed deeply, relaxing for the first time in ages. Her worries, her aches and pains, all vanished in this world, leaving her feeling weightless. While others shivered at the deathly chill when they were brought here, Annora felt nothing but a soothing warmth.
“What the fuck!” Ellora jerked away, her eyes wide as she glanced around, then whirled and glared at her. “What the fuck did you do?”
Her red hair was a dull gray, her skin totally bleached of color, but beneath it, she could see black veins throb. Her eyes were pitch black, her soul completely tainted.
Annora wasn’t surprised.
“I took you to the afterworld. I mean, you love torturing people so much, I thought I would show you what happens when you take things too far, what price you’ll eventually pay for your cruelty.” Annora shrugged, unable to resist taunting her.
Even as she watched, the particles began to gather on Ellora like insects rushing to feast.
She desperately brushed away the black spots, but it was like a mold that continued to spread. “Fuck, it hurts.”
Annora laughed at the squeal of pain in the fox’s voice. “Well, of course it does. Did you think death feels good?”
“What?!” Ellora stopped trying to scratch off her arms and staggered toward her. “What the fuck is happening?”
“You will leave Logan alone.” Annora hardened her voice. “You will rescind your claim. You will not touch him. You will not speak to him. You will not even look at him, or I will leave you here.”
“Fuck you.” Ellora lunged for her, but Annora easily ghosted herself, and the bitch fell through her to land on her hands and knees. The fox growled as the black spots floating in the air began to build up on her skin, and Annora watched without an ounce of pity as the spots began to swell, feeding off her life force like larvae. They almost looked like insects with small wings growing out of their backs.
She’d never seen them feed from a living person before.
The decay happened twice as fast, as if a physical body was like catnip to the creatures.
Ellora began to scream in earnest as a few of the bugs looked like they were burrowing into her flesh. Rivulets of blood began to leak from her wounds, but the bugs seemed to absorb it, and a thread of a luminous color began to seep into their wings. Each flutter seemed to pump more and more blood.
Ellora tried to stagger to her feet, only to drop back to the ground, barely able to lift her head.
