Stardust... Like the white-hot glitter on her skin? She did remember reading something about it during her studies. But she couldn’t...she wouldn’t... Argh! What if she was Roc’s gravita? He’d marked her without permission.
The possibility infuriated her...mostly. Had he deduced what she was to him from the first moment? Was that why he’d blurted out you the first time he’d seen her? But why marry her just to kill her? Why—Wait.
“What do you mean I belonged to Roc before I was born?”
Her father stroked the handle of his weapon. “I...see.”
He was an oracle?
Relish in full force, he asked, “Do you think Roc will die in your stead?”
Okay, enough of this. “I do think he’ll die in my stead, yes, because I won’t give him a choice. I won’t back down, I won’t give up, I won’t surrender.” Taliyah Skyhawk fought until the very end.
Blink. Suddenly, Erebus towered in front of her, and the brand on her nape blistered her with cold. Calm. Steady. She remained in place, standing her ground.
“You don’t know how glad I am to hear this.” A creepy smile contorted his face. “You will destroy Roc for me.”
Possessive instincts swamped her. “No, I’ll destroy Roc for me. His death is mine to mete out.”
“Oh, I don’t want him dead, daughter. I want him miserable, and you are my chosen tool. Why do you think I bedded your mother?”
“I’m no one’s tool. And go ahead and mention my mother and threaten Roc again. See what happens.” Like Roc, Erebus was a god with incredible power. But so what? She might not be a General—yet. She might be hungry and a little weak, but she had combat skills and a petty streak no one could guard against.
Erebus canted his head, his gaze twitching. He grinned. “The true fun is starting. Roc knows you’re gone, and he’s far from pleased. Enjoy your evening, daughter. I know I will.”
As she lunged to strike, he dematerialized. She spun, panting, the brand cooling.
Minutes ticked by without incident. Finally, she released the pressure on her limbs and straightened, her mind reeling. What just happened?
Roc couldn’t know she was gone. She currently resided in the Realm of the Forgotten. He didn’t even remember her name. But what if he did know she was gone? What would he do upon her return?
A beat of apprehension left her floundering. The sooner she returned to Harpina to scope out the situation, the better.
She rushed to the dungeon to feed and—“No!” The men were gone, a note from Neeka taped to the cell door.
Cruel to be kind. Sorry not sorry!
“Why, that little...” Though Taliyah’s trust in her friend remained unbroken, she struggled to find a higher purpose in this. Why leave her in a weakened state around the Astra? Especially now?
Mood souring, Taliyah clasped the key to Harpina. Here goes nothing. The fortress vanished, her bedroom appearing.
A battle plan formed. Find Roc. He might be sleeping, allowing her to continue on with her night of hunting and feeding. If he remained awake and impossibly aware, she needed to know it now, now, now.
Wait. Darkness encompassed the room. When she’d left, lights from the chandelier had shone brightly.
Roc’s scent filled her nose. Intense heat caressed her skin from behind, and she froze. He was nearby. And he’d just caught her reappearance. He might not have known she’d left before, but he knew it now.
Heart thudding, she slowly turned...and there he was. Reclining in a chair near the hearth, enveloped by thick, black shadows.
“Would you like to explain yourself, wife?” He switched on a lamp, light chasing the shadows away, revealing harsh and quiet rage.
Going on the defensive, she snapped, “Do I need to explain? We’re at war, and I’m using every weapon at my disposal.”
Her honesty threw him.
When he opened his mouth to respond, she added, “If you complain about this, you’re only admitting you’re afraid I’ll win.”
He regarded her coldly, intently.
“Did you know I’d left the fortress before I appeared or after?” she asked. For that matter, “How did you remember me?” The Realm of the Forgotten should have wiped her from his mind the moment she’d arrived there.
“How could I forget the bane of my existence?” He straightened gradually. A long-sleeved shirt covered his arms and chest, hiding prime real estate. Leather pants hugged his thighs, and metal-tipped boots protected his feet.
“By bane of existence, do you mean fated mate?” He had his complaints, she had hers. “Or does the Black Widower refuse to acknowledge the woman he can’t live without?” Lifting her top, revealing an extra glittery patch of skin, she said, “Of course, I might deny it, too, if the situation were reversed. I’m yours...but you aren’t mine.”
Literal sparks flared in his irises, blazing bright, extinguished only seconds later. “I can live without you,” he told her, his fury barely banked. “I can also guess how you left the palace. The key dangling from your neck. Which I will be taking from you, one way or another.”
* * *
Roc peered at the most defiant, exciting, challenging female to ever walk any planet and wanted only to get inside her. Once again, she made him throb. Even as she taunted him for being a black widower. Even as she eviscerated him with truth.
I’m yours, but you aren’t mine.
“Take the key,” she said with an airy tone. “I don’t care.”
He studied her. When she’d first arrived, she’d been paler than usual, her eye sockets darker than expected. Roc admitted it: he’d feared. Then his heat raised a rosy flush on her skin, and she appeared normal. Which meant she wasn’t a phantom. She couldn’t be. He’d never harden for a phantom.
“I’ll take more than the key. You’ll give me answers.” He flashed to her, latched on to her arms, then flashed again, ending his journey with his bride pressed against the wall. He inserted a knee between her legs, ensuring she straddled him, the metal plate resting upon his thigh. He covered her vulnerable throat with his fingers. With his other hand, he clasped her hip bone, his grip almost...tender. “Where did you go? Tell me!” Who did she meet?
When she said nothing, his control took a substantial hit. He raised his knee, lifting her feet off the floor, forcing her weight to balance on the needy space between her thighs, relying on his body for an anchor.
She dug her claws into the wall and grinned up at him, far from cowed. “Going to try to pleasure the information out of me? Well, go ahead. I’ll enjoy every second, and you’ll end up frustrated, learning only what I want you to know.”