“Could you love him?” Dimitri asked offhandedly, causing my heart to race with the answer as he scoffed. “You will be nothing more to him than an enemy with flesh in which he finds release, Aria. You deserve better than that,” he growled low, unimpressive to the monster within me.
My beast didn’t even acknowledge Dimitri, other than peeking out, rolling over, before going back to sleep. It terrified me that he was right, but then what did I want from Knox? I liked his dick. I enjoyed his touch and the rawness of him as we went to war with each other’s bodies. Did I see a future for us? No. Ghosts that he couldn’t let go of yet broke and haunted him.
Dimitri bent down as his mouth changed, revealing long canines. He ferociously tore into the throat of the witch on the ground, lifting his glowing, sapphire, alpha eyes toward the other tied to the tree. The potent scent of urine assaulted me, and I grimaced, covering my nose from the offensive stench. Death was messy and disgusting.
“Where is the Keeper of Lightning located?” he asked, creeping toward the witch on the tree as I studied his physique.
Dimitri had thick tribal tattoos on his arms, and wolves and skulls decorated his waist, torso, and back. His thick, dark hair brushed the tops of his broad shoulders, yet unlike Knox’s body, I didn’t itch to touch it or his tattoos. Dimitri was virility and masculinity mixed into how an alpha should act and look. His body promised pleasure while his strength told of security. So why wasn’t I attracted to him? I felt nothing when I looked at Dimitri, other than an appreciation for his masculinity.
Dimitri narrowed his eyes and growled, licking his lips as he stalked closer to the witch who had yet to answer his question.
“I don’t know!” the witch screamed, continuing to lie.
“Cut off her feet,” I ordered, hoisting myself up onto the rock, as Dimitri turned, peering at me from over his shoulder, piercing me with a pointed expression. “You made me cut up the other one, and then you killed her. That one drank hemlock, and I’m not getting close to her in case she pisses herself when she dies, too.”
“Everyone pisses themselves when they die, Aria.” Dimitri placed his hands on his tapered hips, frowning as the witch gasped. Her blackened teeth were rotten from using too much dark magic. “I hate killing women.”
“She’s not worth your pity. She was murdering two men when we caught her, so she is definitely not from the same class of women I’d respect. I don’t identify her as being anything like me, so instead of thinking of her as a woman, just stick with the fact that she’s a murderous witch that isn’t worthy of mercy or pity.”
“That works,” he snorted, grinning wickedly at the witch who had whimpered.
The area surrounding us rippled with magic, and I turned as Luna, Kinvara, and Aine appeared without warning. Smiling at their sudden arrival, I jumped from the rock and moved to hug Kinvara tightly, and Aine smirked, hugging me from behind, sandwiching me between them.
“I have missed you guys so much!” I admitted, pulling back as Kinvara narrowed her eyes and scrunched her nose at me.
“What smells like piss?” she asked, her eyebrows pushing together as she eyed the offending body that lay unmoving in the high grass. “Yuck!”
“Is there a reason your dick is out, Dimitri?” Luna asked, glaring murderously at him before she let her scathing gaze slide down his body.
Luna had been moodier than usual. Everyone was walking on eggshells or avoiding her as the moon got fuller within the Nine Realms. Dimitri spent his nights with Luna, but still pursued other females willing to soothe his need to mate. He was the basic man-whore of the group, the only man actually, and I still didn’t care or feel an attraction to him.
A scream pulled me from my thoughts, and I looked to see Luna slicing her claws through the throat of the witch tied to the tree, removing her head from her torso. Hissing vehemently, Luna cradled her hand, burning from the hemlock in the witches system. Moving into motion, I grabbed Luna, pulling her with me into the water while avoiding her hand.
“She drank hemlock, dammit,” I groaned, carefully helping Luna wash her blistering arm. “Are you okay?” Luna lifted her haunted eyes as she nodded.
“I don’t know why I did that,” she whispered, shaking her head. “I’m going back.”
“I think its best you go back to the tomb,” I mumbled, lifting my eyes to the headless witch who had the answers we’d needed.
“To Haven Falls,” she returned. My eyes widened before I could prevent the shock from showing on my face.
“Luna, Haven Falls is gone. There’s no way for us to return there,” Aine stated gently, settling in the shallow water with us. Her eyes held mine as she hugged Luna, comforting her twin. “I’m going to take her back to the tomb.”
“You should all go back.” I stood, drying my hands on my shirt before turning to frown at the two dead, dark witches. “I’m done here. Thanks to these two, the town is vacant of life. I’ll still go back to see what I can find. Hopefully, there will be something there that will point to who is responsible for all these deaths.”
I offered quick hugs while a flirting Dimitri stopped in front of the portal to escort Luna away. Glancing at me from over his shoulder, he turned and entered the portal after my sisters, before it closed behind him.
The town, if you could call it that, was empty. No animals moved through the litter and debris. There were no villagers other than the two men that the witches had been feeding on, literally. Dimitri buried them both, offering them what solace we could in death. I erected a crude grave of rocks, placing them over the ground where we’d laid the men’s bodies to rest.
It scared me that I was growing numb to death and murdering monsters. I didn’t kid myself or give in to the illusion that these witches were anything but monsters. They killed without reason, letting their other half grow rabid and poisonous. The two we’d killed were like Luna and Aine, witch and wolf, and yet they’d been more rabid witch than anything else.
Frowning, I stopped in front of a well full of water; the bucket floating on top. I kneeled, peering into the green, murky water to figure out why the rope had so much slack. Something moved just below the surface, and I leaned in to get a closer look, jumping backward as a scream bubbled up my throat. Stepping to the well again, I looked down, past the hair flowing underwater, into the eyes of the villagers’ dead bloated faces. The witches placed them here for safekeeping, no doubt for one of the power grids I’ve seen all over this realm.
They had secured ropes to their waists, and something heavy on the other end, allowing their bodies to float closer to the top of the well. I glared at the dead, offended that they had sunk where wishes should be made, instead of bodies being laid. Not that I thought the creatures of the Nine Realms believed in wishes. If they had, those days were long gone.
A scent wafted through the air, causing my skin to prickle with awareness. Stifling a groan, I turned, staring over my shoulder into the shadows, searching for the male hunting me. I lifted my skirt, exposing my bare feet as I hurried over the old cobblestone street, slipping into one of the thatched-roof cottages.
I placed a few pieces of spelled, smoky quartz at the doorway to hide my scent, protecting me from others sensing my presence. Slowly, I walked down the stairs that led to a large room filled with journals. Picking one up, I noticed they belonged to the Keeper of Notes, long since forgotten, along with his king, after Hecate banished their entire race for overstepping and going mad.