Page 62 of White Hot Kiss

I’d taken a soul—a pure soul.

My stomach cramped. The soft glow that had surrounded me disappeared and I shivered uncontrollably.

I’d taken a soul.

Roth materialized out of nowhere, the front of his jeans damp and his hands clear of blood. He must’ve washed them in the nearby stream. Without saying a word, he approached me slowly, as if worried about frightening me. He slipped an arm under my knees and lifted me, and it occurred to me that I should probably ask where he was taking me. But I just wanted to be away from here, as far away as possible.

His body changed against mine, hardened much like a Warden’s would. Heat radiated from his skin and there was the familiar sound of skin separating. Wings so dark they almost blended into the night spread out from his body, arcing gracefully. At the tips were horns, curved and sharpened into fine points. The wings had to be at least ten feet wide. The biggest I’d ever seen.

I pulled back a little and sucked in a sharp breath. His skin was the color of polished onyx, more skeletal than skin. Unlike the Wardens, there were no cranial horns. Just smooth black skin. A cold stab of fear pierced my heart. Seeing Roth in his true form was a sharp reminder of what he really was—a demon.

But I was part demon and Petr...Petr had been a Warden, and he’d wanted to kill me. Things were no longer so black-and-white to me.

I lifted my gaze to Roth’s face.

Golden eyes met mine, and it was as if he knew what I was thinking. “Funny how much demons and Wardens look alike, huh?”

I didn’t respond, but one side of his lips tipped up in total Roth fashion. “Close your eyes, Layla. This is going to be fast.”

He didn’t give me much of a chance to protest. With his free hand, he tucked my head into the space between his throat and shoulder. He dropped into a crouch and a powerful tremble rocked his body a moment before he launched into the sky.

Pulse pounding, I squeezed my eyes shut and burrowed in. Only Zayne had ever done this—taken me into the sky. It required a lot of trust on my end. If Roth decided to drop me, it wasn’t like I was going to sprout wings and save myself from going splat. And even though I doubted that was part of his master plan, my anxiety level skyrocketed and pushed my already-thumping heart into overdrive.

Roth tightened his hold and he murmured something that was lost in the wind. The flight to wherever Roth was taking me was a blur, but it did kill the remaining buzz. When he finally landed, my entire body thrummed with pain. I was shaking so badly I didn’t even realize that he’d shifted back into human form until he leaned back and I could see his face.

“You hanging in there?” he asked. The pupils of his honey-colored eyes were still stretched vertically.

I nodded or at least I think I did. Over his shoulder, I could see nothing but apartment buildings, lit up like a chessboard. “Where are...we?” I winced as pain shot through my jaw.

“My place.”

His place? Roth didn’t elaborate as he started forward. It took me a few seconds to realize that we were in a narrow alley behind a rather large building. The door before us swung open, and a man appeared in the darkness.

He looked like he was in his mid-twenties. Icy blond hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, but the finely arched brows were dark. His eyes were like Roth’s, the color of rich honey. He was most definitely a demon, but he held the door open. “This is a surprise,” he said.

“Shut up, Cayman.”

Cayman’s steps matched Roth’s. We were in a stairwell, heading up. “Should I be concerned? Because if that’s who I think it is and she looks like that because of something you did, I really need to know before I have a fleet of Wardens tearing up my building.”

I wondered how bad I looked and how this guy knew who I was. “He didn’t do this.”

“That’s somewhat of a relief, but...”

Roth rounded a level. “The Wardens are of no concern at this moment.”

The other demon arched a brow. “That would be your opinion—and an invalid one. The Wardens—”

“Didn’t I already tell you to shut up?”

Cayman grinned as he slid around us, opening the door to the fifteenth floor. “And since when do I ever listen to you?”

Roth grunted. “Good point.”

He stepped aside, hand on the door. “Can I get you guys anything?”

“Not at the moment.” But Roth stopped and faced the other demon. “I’ll be down to see you later. Don’t worry. I’ll fill you in.”

Humor glimmered in the demon’s eyes. “Great. I’m in need of some good gossip.”