Chapter 10

Descaris

T he moment she had said it, my mind had gone blank. The last person who had told me they loved me was my father. And that was right before I'd wrapped my hands around his neck and held him until he couldn't hurt anyone ever again. I'd never known for sure if he'd meant it, if he knew this was the end and his last chance to say it. Or if it was another manipulation to save his sorry ass.

Just as I'd tried to tell her something, anything, in response, another vision of her dying had hit me. Painfully. I was running out of time for something. I let myself fall into it and ended up here. My cock still ached for her touch, but this had to be done.

A troll stood gathering others for something. Nothing good. A silver thread of fate wound around him. I wandered over. It was now. I stared at the orc. He took the hint and wandered over.

"I'm going to take down that minotaur. Are you with me?"

The orc took a pathetic-looking prison shank and snorted at it. The troll handed me a blade. I resisted pointing out that I was a shadow demon and could rip most creatures apart with my bare hands. The small crew of monsters made their way over to the minotaur's cell. I had no idea how this was going to turn out. But I didn't mind watching a fight. I could use the distraction from my own thoughts.

The orc sent a small bird flying across the prison out of the way. I didn't have time to wonder why an orc had a pet bird, before the feisty little thing glared at me as it whisked annoyingly close to my face.

"We don't like your sort," the troll wheezed.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Oh yeah, we are."

The troll was going to be obliterated. Not only was the minotaur huge, but I'd seen him in my visions raging. The troll would be lucky if there was anything left of him. I wondered if Ella would disapprove of me watching a troll get murdered, even if it was to save her. Luckily, the troll was flattened quickly and left alive on the floor. This minotaur had morals. The orc dived in next. Fists swung and anger poured out of both of them. The orc's nose collapsed into his face with a crunch. They were both magnificent monsters. Brilliant fighters. The orc was a brute, but he moved with a lethal elegance I didn't see often.

The fight ended unexpectedly. The minotaur picked the orc clear up off the ground and dropped him on his head. I winced. I was going soft. The minotaur turned those dark eyes to me. There was a calmness that almost bordered on resignation there.

"Well?"

I couldn't tell him the truth right now. He didn't seem the sort to sit back and wait for fate to turn.

"Oh, I have no problem with you. I just wanted to see the troll get knocked on his ass."

"You're carrying a blade."

"The troll handed it to me. Such a primitive and clumsy tool."

I glanced down, and it shone with fate. A thread pulling at it. Another vision shot through my head. Quick and insistent. His mate, looking for any sort of weapon to defend herself with. Eyes shining with fear. I threw the blade to the corner nearest to where she would end up fighting for her life. A part of me, a part I'd long thought dead, hoped she would be ok. That part of me couldn't quite keep quiet. I'd seen the vision of the guards dragging her here. Using him as their weapon.

"Thank you for the entertainment, though. Oh, have you noticed?"

"Noticed what?"

"Your connection with the little human is attracting the wrong sort of attention."

His eyes widened with surprise and fear. Perhaps that sliver of knowledge would help him to react more quickly, unburdened by surprise, when the time came. I couldn't give him any more, though. Everything was so tenuous. I blipped away from the cell block.

I landed back in Ella's room. She wasn't there. I sat on the bed feeling like there was a rock in my stomach. It wouldn't go away until I'd spoken to her. Until I overcame what was apparently the one fear I'd had in centuries. Telling her that I loved her.

I waited and waited. Fidgeting and uncomfortable before, I knew I couldn't wait any longer. There was one other thing on my mind that needed to be sorted. My heart. I blipped back to the cellblock. No sign of the minotaur and orc. But sat there was the lich. He had a pack of cards in his hands. I sat down and let my mind open.

"Game?" I said, pointing at the cards.

He looked at me, narrowing his eyes for a moment. Every interaction in prison had the potential to turn nasty. You had to stay on your guard. I could see that this creature was dangerous. Maybe even to me if I wasn't careful. There was no point in trying to manipulate him. He'd be able to tell. Liches have strange magic. I was going to have to do another thing I was uncomfortable with for my mate. Be honest.

"Okay. What did you have in mind?"

"Heads up poker."

"What are we playing for?"

"A favor. One hand, all or nothing."

He laughed, but dealt the cards. A vision flashed in my mind of the cards in his hand.

"How very apt," I said.

"Is it?"

"You've recently found the queen of your heart, haven't you?"

His whole body tensed. This protective creature would try to rip me apart if he thought I was a threat to his mate. I knew the feeling. Except I couldn't. I had to be honest, I reminded myself. Open and honest. I laid it all out for him. What I needed and wanted. My heart, the axe. We prodded at each other a bit, postured to see if one of us would successfully intimidate the other. We didn't. In the end, it came down to one thing. The same thing that it would come down to for all of us.

"Can you see if she will be safe? My mate?"

I focused on his and her thread and moved around the vision. Making decisions about what to tell him and seeing how it changed. Manipulating the visions in this way was tiring, and it was starting to wear me down.

"Direct her to the window. It will be safe for the first 10 minutes or so."

"Which window?"

"Next to the infirmary."

I stood and left, feeling exhausted. I'd done what I needed to here. Back in my cell I collapsed on the bed, passing out nearly instantly.