precarious drop straight down the sea cliff.
I held my breath and tried not to fidget as Dimitri drew closer. Oh yes. My demon slayer senses clanged in my head. Ever since I’d come into my powers, I was insanely attracted to anything that could chop me in half or send me falling to my death.
This place was perfect.
I wanted to unwind my legs from Dimitri’s back and cling to the black rock cliff. Instead I forced myself to take it slow. I reached out and touched the sharp, pockmarked volcanic rock. Power simmered under my fingertips, and I groaned at the pleasure of it. It felt so good and so wrong at the same time.
I licked my lips. “This is it.” I could feel the danger lurking underneath the stone.
But how would that piece of me—or our enemies—have found a way inside?
I pushed harder. Whatever lurked there wanted to come out. I could feel it. All I had to do was move a mountain.
The rock bit into my skin.
Dimitri nudged his head underneath my hand. “No,” I told him. “Please.” I didn’t know what could happen to me, much less him. If my powers had led us here, I hoped I could handle what we found. Besides, a griffin might be able to survive a fall to the rocks below. I wouldn’t bet on a demon slayer.
Blood trickled down my hand and over my wrist. The stone jiggled and I realized I was only trying to move part of a cliff. The rocks had caved in on something. I focused all my energy on the stone under my hand, willing it to give. It was close. “Almost”—I cringed—“there!”
The rock gave way, plummeting into the ocean below. Inside, a strange piece of marble lay in a tangle of woven straw. The rock itself was pitted, roundish and yellow as an Easter egg.
“Dimitri?” I didn’t want to invite trouble, but something had led us to this artifact.
He nodded his mammoth head as I eased my fingers around the rock. When it didn’t burn, I slipped it, along with most of the grassy covering, into the pocket of my demon slayer utility belt. Perhaps he could tell me more, once he’d shifted back. At any rate, I wasn’t going to risk our find plummeting off the cliff into the ocean.
We continued our sweep of the grounds, flying lowalong the cliffs and then out over the shallow waters of the ocean. It would have been hard to detect a boat if they didn’t shine their lights, but like I said, we didn’t need our eyes as much as our senses. We circled above the house again, then past the lawn and over dark forest beyond. I could feel tinges of danger. Still, I couldn’t locate the source.
It was everywhere.
Chapter Nine
You’d think the hardest part of riding a griffin would be launching from zero to three hundred feet in a split second, or holding on during a dive. Nope. It’s actually the first few minutes after dismount, when your legs are jelly and your entire body feels like you just stepped off a roller coaster.
It was in this slightly woozy state that I leaned against the wall in Dimitri’s foyer and eased the yellow stone out of my utility belt. In the light, it looked like a rough piece of marble. I couldn’t even explain what had led us to the collapsed rock face or why I’d felt the need to excavate it.
Dyonne had greeted us at the door. Now she stared at the stone with as much confusion as me.
“It didn’t belong there,” I told her, although that didn’t really explain why I’d decided to keep it.
“It will be trouble for you,” Amara said, the corners of her mouth turning upward.
Oh please. “Will you finish getting dressed?” She still hadn’t zipped up the side of her dress or found her bra.
Dimitri had gone straight to his quarters for a new pair of shorts. If she thought she could hold out until he returned, she was nuts.
“Let’s just get to work in the morning,” said Dyonne, as she ushered us toward the stairs. “I don’t know if it was the imp attack or the fact that the Skye magic is a bitmore than we can handle right now, but”—she
I held my breath and tried not to fidget as Dimitri drew closer. Oh yes. My demon slayer senses clanged in my head. Ever since I’d come into my powers, I was insanely attracted to anything that could chop me in half or send me falling to my death.
This place was perfect.
I wanted to unwind my legs from Dimitri’s back and cling to the black rock cliff. Instead I forced myself to take it slow. I reached out and touched the sharp, pockmarked volcanic rock. Power simmered under my fingertips, and I groaned at the pleasure of it. It felt so good and so wrong at the same time.
I licked my lips. “This is it.” I could feel the danger lurking underneath the stone.
But how would that piece of me—or our enemies—have found a way inside?
I pushed harder. Whatever lurked there wanted to come out. I could feel it. All I had to do was move a mountain.
The rock bit into my skin.
Dimitri nudged his head underneath my hand. “No,” I told him. “Please.” I didn’t know what could happen to me, much less him. If my powers had led us here, I hoped I could handle what we found. Besides, a griffin might be able to survive a fall to the rocks below. I wouldn’t bet on a demon slayer.
Blood trickled down my hand and over my wrist. The stone jiggled and I realized I was only trying to move part of a cliff. The rocks had caved in on something. I focused all my energy on the stone under my hand, willing it to give. It was close. “Almost”—I cringed—“there!”
The rock gave way, plummeting into the ocean below. Inside, a strange piece of marble lay in a tangle of woven straw. The rock itself was pitted, roundish and yellow as an Easter egg.
“Dimitri?” I didn’t want to invite trouble, but something had led us to this artifact.
He nodded his mammoth head as I eased my fingers around the rock. When it didn’t burn, I slipped it, along with most of the grassy covering, into the pocket of my demon slayer utility belt. Perhaps he could tell me more, once he’d shifted back. At any rate, I wasn’t going to risk our find plummeting off the cliff into the ocean.
We continued our sweep of the grounds, flying lowalong the cliffs and then out over the shallow waters of the ocean. It would have been hard to detect a boat if they didn’t shine their lights, but like I said, we didn’t need our eyes as much as our senses. We circled above the house again, then past the lawn and over dark forest beyond. I could feel tinges of danger. Still, I couldn’t locate the source.
It was everywhere.
Chapter Nine
You’d think the hardest part of riding a griffin would be launching from zero to three hundred feet in a split second, or holding on during a dive. Nope. It’s actually the first few minutes after dismount, when your legs are jelly and your entire body feels like you just stepped off a roller coaster.
It was in this slightly woozy state that I leaned against the wall in Dimitri’s foyer and eased the yellow stone out of my utility belt. In the light, it looked like a rough piece of marble. I couldn’t even explain what had led us to the collapsed rock face or why I’d felt the need to excavate it.
Dyonne had greeted us at the door. Now she stared at the stone with as much confusion as me.
“It didn’t belong there,” I told her, although that didn’t really explain why I’d decided to keep it.
“It will be trouble for you,” Amara said, the corners of her mouth turning upward.
Oh please. “Will you finish getting dressed?” She still hadn’t zipped up the side of her dress or found her bra.
Dimitri had gone straight to his quarters for a new pair of shorts. If she thought she could hold out until he returned, she was nuts.
“Let’s just get to work in the morning,” said Dyonne, as she ushered us toward the stairs. “I don’t know if it was the imp attack or the fact that the Skye magic is a bitmore than we can handle right now, but”—she
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