The Darkest Night

She gasped out a raspy “Please,” and he released her completely.

Ashlyn blinked in surprise. Without his touch, she felt…bereft?

“Dangerous,” he said, this time in Hungarian.

She wasn’t sure if he meant himself—or her. “Are you one of them?” she asked softly, not switching languages herself. No reason to let him know she spoke them both.

Astonishment darkened his gaze, and a muscle ticked in his jaw. “What do you mean? One of them?” English this time.

“I—I—” The words refused to form. Fury was blanketing his features, more fury than she’d ever seen another person project. It radiated from every contour of his hard body. She drew her arms around her middle. No, not a prince after all. A dragon, definitely, as she’d first assumed.

Remaining on his knees, he inched away from her. He drew in a measured breath and slowly released it, the air misting around his face. His hand hovered over the opening of his boot, as if he couldn’t decide whether to reach inside or not. Finally, he said, “What are you doing in these woods, woman? And do not lie to me. I’ll know it, and you will not like my response.”

Ashlyn somehow found her voice. “I’m looking for the men who live at the top of this hill.”

“Why?” The single word was spat.

How much should she reveal? He was one of the men with strange abilities, had to be. He was too vibrant, too powerful to be solely human. But more than that, his mere presence had somehow chased the voices away, something that had never happened to her before. “I need help,” she admitted.

“Do you?” There was a conflicting mix of suspicion and indulgence in his expression. “With what?”

She opened her mouth to say…what? She didn’t know. In the end, it didn’t matter. He stopped her with a quick shake of his head. “Never mind. You aren’t welcome here, so your explanation is moot. Return to the city. Whatever you came here for, you will not receive.”

“But—but…” She couldn’t allow him to send her away. She needed him. Yes, she’d only just met him. Yes, the only things she knew about him were his name and the fact that he threw daggers with expert precision. But she was already horrified at the thought of losing the silence. “I want to stay with you.” She knew desperation seeped from her, but she didn’t care. “Please. Just for a little while. Until I learn how to control the voices myself.”

Instead of softening, he seemed infuriated by her plea. His nostrils flared and a muscle ticked in his jaw. “Your babbling will not distract me. You’re Bait. You have to be. Otherwise you would be running from me in fear.”

“I’m not bait.” Whatever bait was. “Swear to God.” She reached out and gripped his forearms, the flesh firm and solid, unbelievably hot and utterly electrifying underneath her hand. Tingles speared her arm. “I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”

Quick as a snap, he slashed out a hand and caught the base of her skull, jerking her forward into a beam of moonlight. The action didn’t hurt her. On the contrary, she experienced another electrical jolt. Her stomach quivered.

He didn’t speak, just studied her with an intensity that bordered on cruelty. She studied him, too, shocked as something began to flash…swirl…materialize under his skin. A face, she realized with macabre awe. Another face. Her heart skipped a beat. Can’t be a demon, can’t be ademon. He made the voices stop. He and the others havedone wonderful things for this city. It’s just a trick of thelight.

While she could still see Maddox’s features, she could also see that shadow of someone—something—else. Red, glowing eyes. Skeletal cheekbones. Sharp-as-daggers teeth.

Please be a trick of the light.

But the more that skeletal countenance stared at her, the less she could pretend it was an illusion.

“Do you want to die?” Maddox—or the skeleton?—demanded, the words so guttural they were barely more than an animalistic growl.

“No.” He could kill her, but she’d die with a smile. Two minutes of silence were worth more to her than a lifetime of noise. Scared but determined, and still tingling because of his fever-touch, she raised her chin. “I need your help. Tell me how to control my power and I’ll leave here and now. Or let me stay with you and learn how it’s done.”

He released her, then reached for her again, then stopped and fisted his hand. “I do not know why I am hesitating,” he said, even as he eyed her mouth with what might have been longing. “Midnight is closing in, and you need to be as far away from me as possible.”

The moment the last word left him, he frowned. A second later, he barked, “Too late! Pain is searching for me.” He inched away from her, that skeletal mask still flashing behind his skin. “Run. Go back to the city. Now!”

“No,” she said with only the slightest tremble. Only a fool ran from heaven—even if that piece of heaven possessed a transparent face straight from hell.

Cursing under his breath, Maddox jerked the two blades from the tree and pushed to his feet. His gaze lifted skyward, past snow and treetops to the half moon. His frown became fierce, angry. One step, two, he backed away.

Ashlyn used the tree as leverage and stood. Her knees knocked together, nearly collapsing under her weight. Suddenly she could feel the icy wind again, could hear the whisper of chatter closing in on her. A cry of despair rose inside her.

Three steps, four.

“Where are you going?” she asked. “Don’t leave me here.”

“No time to take you to shelter. You’ll have to find it on your own.” He wheeled around, giving her a view of his wide shoulders and stiff, retreating back, before throwing over his shoulder, “Do not return to this hill, woman. Next time, you will not find me so generous.”

“I’m not going back. Wherever you go, I’ll follow.” A threat, yes, but one she intended to uphold.

Maddox stopped and whipped to face her, baring his teeth in another fearsome scowl. “I could kill you here and now, Bait, as I know I should. How would you follow me then?”

Bait again. Her heart drummed erratically in her chest, but she met his stare dead on, hoping she appeared stubborn and determined rather than simply petrified. “Believe me, I’d rather you do so than leave me alone with the voices.”

A curse, a hiss of pain. He doubled over.

Losing her bravado in the face of concern, Ashlyn raced to him. She splayed her fingers over his back and searched for injury. Anything that crumpled this hulking beast had to be excruciating. He shoved her away, however, and she stumbled from the unexpected force.

“No,” he said, and she would have sworn he spoke with two separate voices. One a man’s. The second…something so much more powerful. It boomed like a thunderstorm, echoing in the night. “No touching.”

“Are you hurt?” She righted herself, trying not to reveal just how badly his actions cut. “Maybe I can help. I—”

“Leave or die.” He spun and leapt forward, disappearing into the night.

Chatter crashed into her mind, as if it had merely been awaiting his departure. Now it seemed louder than ever before, blaring after the precious silence.

Langnak ithon kel moradni.

Stumbling in the same direction Maddox had taken, Ashlyn covered her ears. “Wait.” She moaned. Shut up, shut up, shut up. “Wait. Please.”

Her foot tangled with a broken limb and she toppled again to the ground. A sharp ache tore through her ankle. Whimpering, she dragged herself to her hands and knees and crawled.

Ate ìtéleted let minket veszejbe.

Couldn’t stop. Had to reach him. Wind beat against her, as sharp as the daggers Maddox carried.

On and on the voices clamored.

“Please,” she cried. “Please.”

A fierce roar split the night, shaking the ground, rattling the trees.

Suddenly Maddox was beside her again, drowning out the voices. “Foolish Bait,” he spat. More to himself, he added, “Foolish warrior.”

Crying out in relief, she threw her arms around him. Holding tight. Never wanting to let go—even if he did still wear that eerie skeletal mask. Tears streamed down her cheeks, crystallizing on her skin. “Thank you. Thank you for coming back. Thank you.” She buried her head in the hollow of his neck, exactly as she’d wanted to do earlier. When her cheek brushed his bare skin, she shivered, those warm tingles rushing through her once more.

“You’ll come to regret this,” he said, sweeping her up and over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.