Page 15 of The Demon King's Destiny

Her pursed lips demanded his attention as she raised her chin and flipped her dark red hair in a huff. The counterfeit night sky’s soft blue rays fell upon the right side of her face. He jumped to his feet, snarling.

Evelyn recoiled so fast she fell to her bottom. She instinctively threw up her hands, reinforcing the magical barrier between the forest and the clearing.

Though her torso rose and fell with the deep breaths she was sucking in, she did not fear he would truly harm her. He’d surprised her, was all. Evelyn simply hadn’t been prepared for his abrupt change in demeanor. It wasn’t everyday a large demon pounced in her direction.

Marrok’s gaze dropped to her chest, transfixed for a moment before he comprehended what he was doing. He refused to ogle the teenager, and snapped his focus back to her face.

“Who hurt you?” His voice came out far more gravelly than normal, traces of his power escaping without his permission.

All demons spoke in low tones. Severe emotions tightened their bodies to the point even their vocals were affected.

Demons who went rogue, who committed horrific acts in order to gain power, always spoke in this way. It was how his uncle had sounded right before Marrok killed him.

He knew his eyes were black. He was dangerously close to either breaking through the barrier or compelling Evelyn to lower it so he could reach her. He also knew both were terrible ideas.

Marrok couldn’t help that he wanted to comfort her, to assure himself she was alright. Instinct was driving him to protect, to destroy any threat to her. He may not be able to properly claim Evelyn, but he’d be damned if he allowed another to harm his mate and get away with it.

At his sides, his thumbs rubbed against his fingertips. His hands itched to feel her fragile skin, to take away her pain. Maybe if he had the name of her assailant he could focus on him instead. Make a plan. Invade the male’s dreams. Remove his heart.Avenge her, his demon hissed.

He needed a name, and an image of the culprit’s visage. “Answer me, Evelyn.”

“What is wrong with you?”

“Nothing.”Everything.Things in the Southland had only gotten worse. The weight he’d been carrying for decades, the one he used to be able to easily shoulder, was becoming a burden.

Worse, his mate had apparently been attacked and he hadn’t been here to protect her. She was supposed to be safe in Gwydion. Elementals were a peaceful people, not known for attacking innocents.

For the first time in two years, Marrok felt his inner demon push forcefully against his mind, demanding he do his duty to Evelyn. The band of tension, the one pressing in on him since the night he’d chosen to walk away from his mate, tightened.

He hadn’t chosen togandeste, to decisively break into the dream of another. Only the most powerful of demons could manage it. Even then it wasn’t an exact science. There could be both physical and mental tolls to pay for such exertions. Yet, his saatus seemed to have done it with ease, repetitively drawing him to her in sleep.

Marrok knew he’d taken a huge gamble trying to deny the mating bond, or, at the very least, prolong it as long as possible. He should know better than to foolishly believe he could outplay the powers of the universe.

If Evelyn hadn’t been the one who summoned him, then other forces were at work. Fate introduced them over a decade ago. He’d been forced to return just two years past. Ignoring the third calling was asking for trouble from the Goddess.

Marrok was tired. So tired he was close to making a decision he might regret.Was it so bad to want to protect his mate?

As one half of his mind focused on things out of his control, the other half took in the damage done to Evelyn. Now that her face was in full view, he also noticed she was lacking an eyebrow. The skin where it used to be was pink, as though it had been scorched away.

She’d been struckandburned? His hands formed fists, wondering what other injuries she’d endured. What sort of monster put his brutal hands on his female?

“Last chance before I tear through your shield.”

She laughed, the musical notes both attracting and inciting him.The little minx actually had the gall to laugh at The King of Sundari?His carefully constructed control slipped until it was hanging by a thread. He would tend to her whether she wanted it or not.

“Have it your way.” Marrok opened his mental flow of energies and directed them towards the barrier.

Evelyn watched in awe as white and silver threads of light shot out from Marrok’s eyes. They hit her shield with such force, she was sure the light would reflect back to him. Instead, the elements making up her barricade absorbed his energies.

Marrok had expected to tear through the barrier easily, or at the very least, chip it away. Astonished, neither occurred. He marveled at how much stronger her protective magics were than the last time he’d felt them. Not only that, they seemed to grab ahold of his stream of power and siphon it greedily.

His mate’s demon iris glowed, somehow connectingthem without touching. Marrok slowed the flow, afraid cutting it off abruptly would do damage to one of them.

Evelyn gasped as Marrok’s power was channeled into her, spreading through every cell in her body. Euphoria swamped her system. She wasn’t even in direct contact with the wall of mixed magics, yet somehow, she could feel what he was doing.

“Damnit!” he cursed, reining in his assault until it stopped completely. He wouldn’t have attacked the shield if he’d known the power would fuse with his mate.

Evelyn stood on shaky legs, feeling more energized than she had in years. She wiggled her fingers in front of her face. “You should bottle this up and sell it in the market.”

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