Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 121324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121324 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
The Aeons had no such ability. The two camps of immortals were similar in several ways, though. They all lived underground, boasted impressive abilities, could Rest for centuries at a time, rarely ventured out during daylight, and had somehow lost the ability to procreate.
Did it bug Wynter that she was sleeping with a guy who might well have struck a deal with Satan? Maybe it should, but she wasn’t really in a position to judge. She’d made a bargain with a deity in a moment of rage and desperation. Kali wasn’t the ruler of hell, true, but She was no innocent either. Wynter hadn’t cared. She hadn’t cared how much destruction the monster would cause. She’d just wanted vengeance.
A taunting smirk curved Saul’s mouth. “You have no clue what you let fuck you.”
“Maybe I do.”
Saul shook his head, snorting. “If you knew what Cain was, you would never have let him touch you. You certainly would not have run to him for protection. And if you had not done such a thing, my sister would still be alive.”
Back to that again, were they? “I warned her that there would be consequences if she exiled me. She didn’t listen. That’s hardly my fault.”
Saul fisted his hands in anger, and the flickering ball in his hand fizzled out.
Finally.
He growled. “Do not try pinning the blame on her. It belongs to you and Cain. He will pay, but you will pay first. I am going to enjoy hurting you. I am going to enjoy butchering your body. And when I am done, I will . . .” He trailed off, frowning. Most likely because he’d noticed the black liquid ribbons wiggling across her eyeballs, signaling that her monster was ready to surface. His lips parted in surprise. “Not possible.”
“You sure about that?” she asked as yet more black tapers distorted her vision.
He was silent for a long moment. “Well, well, well.” He shrugged, unbothered. “Let it take over if you wish. I do not fear it. Kali’s little pets are bestial, feral entities who can kill with little to no effort, yes, but they would never escape such a net.”
Wynter smiled. “Who says I host one of her pets?”
Her world went black as her monster lunged.
Wynter’s body jolted as she came back to herself. She was still in the woods, but she was now alone. Saul was gone.
She glanced around, taking in the blood spatter on the soil and the bits of flesh here and there. Her monster tended to make a mess. Crimson stains also dotted her skin, hair, and clothes. Awesome.
She had no open seeping wounds, so the blood evidently wasn’t hers. She did sport a few scorch marks, making her think of the flaming hot orb that Saul had conjured. Although her monster had its own form, its injuries became hers when she resurfaced after a shift. Unfortunately.
There was nothing to indicate that her monster had dined on Saul, or that he was dead. No dismembered body parts or pools of blood were anywhere to be seen. He was injured for sure, though. Her guess? He’d escaped through a whirlwind thingy. Shame.
She’d thought that he’d stand his ground and fight, being a powerful Aeon and all. Maybe it was sheer surprise that made him flee. Her monster had that effect on people.
Her coven members hadn’t run from it, but they all had a mile-wide streak of crazy, so she figured they didn’t count. They were careful never to get close to it, though. One, because the monster had no loyalties. Two, because the shift back to Wynter’s usual form was so explosive that every bit of gore from the monster’s body exploded outward . . . drenching the people closest, and then rebounded back onto Wynter. Hence the current state she was in.
Blowing out a breath, Wynter began traipsing through the woods. As she’d made a point of learning every inch of the land, she knew her way around well enough, so the hazy shadows weren’t an impediment.
She stayed on high alert as she walked, conscious that Saul could return to her and that there might be more Aeons lingering about the town. The latter seemed unlikely, since he’d attacked her alone, but still.
Hearing a squawk, she looked up to see a familiar crow flying among the treetops. Hattie was a member of Wynter’s coven who possessed the ability to take on the form of a crow.
Hovering high above Wynter, the bird squawked loudly, as if straining to get somebody’s attention. And then Cain was there in a blur of movement. Jesus, Wynter hadn’t known he could move that fast.
He towered over her, tall and lean and so very, very male. Like a supreme athlete at the top of his prime. Her hormones tended to get dizzy around him. He was just so cool and dauntless and incredibly self-possessed. Then there was that sexy apex-predator-rawness he boasted.