Page 119 of Mortis

I pushed our body upright, and the vessel remained close, watching me as I turned away. I wandered through the stone corridors until cold night air finally touched our skin, and the outside world stretched before us. Graves rose from the earth. The sacrificial altar stood beneath the moon, clean beneath its pale light, but I knew the blood its stone had tasted.

Then I ran.

Past the graves. Past the altar. Past the place that had been our entire world for longer than most mortals were permitted to live. No chain tightened around our throat, and no command dragged us backwards. There was no invisible barrier to stop our escape, and nothing followed us into the night.

I thought of the boy. His mismatched eyes made of ice and honey.

We did the right thing, the vessel whispered as I ran faster.

“I hope you’re right.”

For the first time, we had been given a choice.

And in the end, we had chosen mercy.

19

KAEL

I descended the steps towards the pit where Sebastian was holding Teddy. Arlo stayed close behind. Part of me wished he’d remained on the ledge, away from the danger. But I should’ve known that even a demon-worshipping cult wouldn’t be enough to keep him from rushing towards his best friend.

Reaching the bottom, I took another step forward. Sebastian lowered the dagger until its tip touched Teddy’s shirt. I froze, and Sebastian cackled.

“Well, would you look at that,” he jeered. “The enormous creature who once massacred dozens of people, completely controllable because of one small mortal.”

“Do not hurt him,” I hissed, baring my teeth.

Teddy turned his face towards me and squinted, trying his best to focus without his glasses. His lips curled into a wobbly smile.

“I’m okay,” he mouthed.

Despite the rage burning through me, my chest warmed with affection. Even with a blade poised above his heart, Teddy was still thinking of others. Thinking of me. His life was in danger, and somehow, he was the one trying to offer reassurance.

“Oh my god, Teds,” Arlo whimpered beside me.

Teddy’s head turned towards the sound of his best friend’s voice. His eyes grew glassy, but still, he smiled.

“Love you, Lo,” he said quietly.

Sebastian lifted the dagger from Teddy’s chest. He pinched the fabric of Teddy’s shirt between his fingers and dragged the blade down the middle, slicing it open. The ruined material fell to either side of his torso, exposing his pale chest to the night. I stepped forward again, but the dagger immediately returned to Teddy’s heart, so I stopped.

Sebastian grinned. “Kneel.”

A snarl vibrated through my chest. This mortal didn’t control us, not as his father once had. Not as my master could. Even Teddy didn’t control me. He’d never tried to. Instead, he’d given me something far more precious.

Choice.

The freedom to do as I pleased. To make my own decisions. To learn from them. To decide for myself what kind of creature I wanted to be.

The only thing Teddy held any power over was my heart.

Because I loved him.

Irrevocably.

And he didn’t even know it yet.

Unfortunately, Sebastian was quick to remind me that choice meant very little when the consequences belonged to someone else. He pressed the dagger more firmly against Teddy’s chest. The point pierced his skin, and a single bead of blood welled beneath the blade. Its sweet scent reached me immediately, causing the Beast to slam against the edges of my consciousness.