A Shadow in the Ember (Flesh and Fire 1)

“She’s a fighter,” Taric commented, placing his palm against the side of my head as I went to jab with my elbow. “Stop.”

My elbow connected with the underside of his jaw, snapping his head back. Cressa laughed as Taric grunted. He jerked his head straight, eyes flared wide. “I said stop,” he commanded.

I pulled back, attempting to gain enough space between us so I could use my legs—

The god cursed under his breath and rose, gripping my shoulders and yanking me to my feet. I tore free, backing up. I took a quick look around to make sure the other gods weren’t near. They remained by the pillars.

Taric sighed. “You really want to try this?”

“No,” I admitted, bracing myself. “But I will.”

I struck first, but he caught my wrist and pushed—pushed hard. I flew backward, skidding across the floor. I hit a stone pillar with enough force to knock the air out of me.

“You’re just delaying the inevitable,” Madis commented from the sidelines as Taric stalked toward me.

Pushing off the wall, I spun and kicked out, aiming for his knee, but where he’d been was now nothing but empty space. I stumbled, barely stopping myself from falling.

“You cannot fight me.”

I whirled, finding the god standing behind me. Shooting forward, I swept up with my fist—

He was gone again.

“And this is getting boring already.”

Catching myself, I spun once more. He again stood in the middle of the room, arms folded across his chest. Now I was starting to get angry. Kicking off the wall, I gained speed and pushed into the air—

Arms snagged me from behind, and a frustrated shriek left me. “I am a god.”

“Congratulations,” I snapped, throwing my head back. I connected with his face. The blow sent another pulse of pain through me, and I swung my legs out—

Taric let go.

I fell, twisting at the last second so I landed on my knees. I popped to my feet and turned. The god gripped me by the throat, lifting me. His fingers dug into my skin as I kicked out. He pushed forward, slamming my back into a pillar. I sucked in a breath of pain when he lifted me off the floor and planted his forearm against my chest. He pressed in with his body, pinning me so we were at eye level.

“Look at me,” he demanded, and his voice…gods, there was something about his voice. It crawled over my skin, trying to find a way in. “Look at me.”

I felt his voice digging into me with razor-sharp nails and brushing against my mind, demanding that I obey. That I do whatever he requested. And a part of me wanted to cave to it. But I fought the urge—

“Interesting.” Curiosity filled Taric’s tone as he gripped my chin, forcing my eyes to his. “The compulsion is not working on her.”

“It has to be her,” Cressa exclaimed. “Let’s take her and get the hell out of here—”

“We need to be sure.” Taric’s hand slipped away from my throat and curved around my chin. “And there is one way I can confirm it.”

“You know it’s her,” Cressa argued, coming forward. “You’re just being greedy. Stupid.”

“Possibly.” Taric smiled, baring his fangs. My heart stuttered at the sight of them. “But I always wondered what the graeca would taste like.” He jerked my head to the side roughly. “Seems like someone else already found out.” His laugh hit my throat. “Oh, the King will be so very displeased by that.”

There was no warning, no time to prepare. He struck, sinking his fangs into the same spot Nyktos had. He pierced my skin, and it hurt. The pain was hot, scalding my senses as he drew deeply on my blood, tugging harder than I thought possible. It didn’t ease. It didn’t become something heated and sensual. It was an endless, throbbing pain that sank even deeper with each wave, going past my skin to my blood and bone. Panic exploded in my gut as I struggled against Taric, but the god was too strong. And he was fastened to the side of my neck.

My entire body went stiff against the wall as mental fingers scratched at my mind and then sank deeper, clawing at me—digging into my thoughts, my memories, into the very core of my being. I didn’t know how he was doing it, but he was peeling back layers, seeing what I saw, hearing words I’d spoken and those others had said to me. He was amid my thoughts—

Pain exploded, this time inside my head, deep and throbbing. It felt like my skull was being shattered. A scream tore through me. Starbursts flooded my vision as my throat sealed off, silencing the scream. Agony fired down my spine, burning through my nerve endings. I couldn’t breathe through it, couldn’t think, or hide from it. There was no veil to retreat into, no empty vessel or blank canvas to become. The pain settled deep in me, taking root, and tearing me apart. A metallic taste pooled in the back of my mouth. Pure terror dug in its claws. Nyktos was wrong. I could be terrified. I was right then. I couldn’t take this. My fingers dug into Taric’s skin. I couldn’t take—