And there, in the center of it, were two monstrous figures. One, she didn’t know at all. He was shirtless from the waist up, two large, deep blue bat wings spread from his back. A crownof silver, the metallic leafing tarnished over time, sat upon his head. In each hand he carried weapons, and down his arm were twisting, dark blue tattoos.
The fiendish smile on his face was one of pure delight and sadistic glee.
Standing opposite him was…Serrik.
Kind of.
From the waist up.
A cold shudder went down her back.
From the waist down, his body was transformed into that of an enormousspider.Dark green patterns twisted up with bright green ones along fur that covered his inhuman body. Golden chains and strings delicately draped between the arches of his pointed limbs. Of which he only seemed to have seven.
Ah. Yeah.
That made sense.
The tips of his legs, from each of the last joints down, were gold foil. His expression was passive, a sharp contrast to the pure demonic joy of his opponent. In his hand was a grimoire.
Hergrimoire.
The one she was reading.
Because at his inhuman feet was a figure bound in golden chains, a collar around her neck that kept her tethered to the monster.
It washer.
Oh.Oh, goddamnit. It all clicked into place. He didn’t just want her to be bound to him so she could use his power to free him.
He wanted her bound to him so he could use the damn book.
One that, if the iron straps on it were any hint and her memory of fae lore was accurate, she’d bet dollars to donuts he had no other way of accessing.
Well, time to state the obvious. “I…seriously fucked up.”
First she talked to a tree. Then, to herself. Now, to Book. But at least it seemed Book was sentient. Ish. It responded, at any rate. “How do I fix this? Give me a course of action. You wouldn’t have shown me this just to ruin my day. Or. Maybe you did. I don’t know. But help me out here.”
More rapid-fire flipping of pages.
It settled on another illustration.
Of her and Serrik. This time, he was in his human form. Were those terms she was going to have to start thinking in? Human and monster form? She wanted off the crazy train.
Focus.
It was an illustration of her and Serrik. He was on his knees before her. A look of betrayal was on his features as he gazed up at her, his hand reaching up to her face as if to sayhow could you?He was clutching a gaping wound in his chest, blood pouring down to his knees.
And she was holding the book aloft in her hands. And in her hand was a heart.Hisheart.
Ava stared at the image. “Well, screw me for asking, I guess. But I guess I didask.”
The instructions couldn’t be more clear.
If she wanted out of this mess?
She was going to have to murder Serrik.
Now? She just had to figure out how.
