The Fire of the Fated (The Chosen Series Book 3)

by K. C. Hamby

  A groan pushes from my mouth when she grips my thighs. I roll against her mouth, biting my lip as rapid breaths push between my teeth. Her grip pushes into my skin and my breathing halts until she throws me over the edge, squirming under her hands and tongue.

  My fingers find her face and pull her to me. I devour her lips, tasting myself on her breath.

  I flip her onto her back and bite softly on her neck, causing a gasp from her open mouth. My lips kiss down down down until I am right where I want to be, and Nina is right where I want her.

  “Fal…” she whispers and wraps her fingers in my hair.

  I only answer with my tongue.

  ***

  Nina and I are breathing hard by the time we are done with each other. She’s lying on her back facing the ceiling and I am on my stomach, watching the beauty of her face. Her lips lift into a smile when her eyes cut to me.

  “Well, that was intense,” she says, laughing through her words.

  “That’s good, right?” I can’t help the tiny bit of doubt that bubbles up from the back of my mind. The humanity is cautiously coming out of its hiding place.

  “Uh, duh.” She turns on her side and squints at me. “What is that on your back?”

  I cock my head to the side before sitting up, straining to see what she is talking about.

  “Come here,” she murmurs and gets off the bed, bare, gorgeous, and covered in freckles, before marching to the dresser. The water-colored moon phases down her spine dance with the movement. “Come look.” She grabs a mirror and holds it out in my direction.

  I do as I’m told and walk toward her, very aware of her stare as it travels up and down my naked body. I smirk at the attention and grab the mirror.

  She opens the closet door to expose the long mirror hanging lightly and I stand facing away from it and hold the hand mirror in front of my face.

  “….Oh.”

  It’s a huge new Mark, covering the entirety of my upper back. My assassin Paw is gone, overtaken by a death’s-head hawkmoth spreading across my skin like its wings are my own. There are no colors other than black and gray and in the middle of the Moth’s body is the skull shape the moth is known for. Beneath it is the triple-moon goddess Mark, empty of Hecate’s wheel unlike the Predestined Mark on my side. But the moth’s wings transform into those of a raven with inky, black feathers curling over my shoulders.

  The death’s-head hawkmoth is Atropos’ symbol. She has officially claimed me, then.

  But ravens are Death’s messengers.

  And I am Death.

  Nina’s fingers trace over my back softly, bringing gooseflesh to the surface of my too-sensitive skin. “It’s beautiful, Fal,” she whispers and gently kisses the head of the moth.

  A smile tilts my lips as the small part of humanity in me races to the front of my mind to face her Mate when she finds the coast is clear.

  The darkness isn’t controlling me right now. It’s like the Monster got what she wanted and left for a while.

  For now, I am free.

  I place the hand mirror on the dresser and move back to the bed, but not before noticing my right side is bare in my reflection.

  The Predestined Mark no longer stains my skin.

  Is this because I am, myself, a goddess now?

  I get into bed and pull the blankets to my waist, brows furrowing with the thought. Have I reached my destiny, then?

  Nina stands, still naked as I am, watching me with those wide doe eyes when I peer up from my thoughts.

  “Come here,” I breathe and hold out my arms.

  Her grin is beautiful as she skips to the bed before sliding back under the covers and placing her head on my bare chest. She’s warm and home and I feel more like myself than I have since I Burned.

  “How are you?” Nina whispers. Her lips are soft as they move along my skin.

  “I…” I bite my bottom lip, unsure of how to answer. “I don’t know.”

  “I was so scared. That Burning looked horrible…”

  “It was,” I murmur and swallow hard at the memory of the fire eating me alive. It was the most horrifyingly agonizing experience of my entire life, but I don’t want to scare Nina with details.

  She doesn’t need to know. This is my demon to hold on to.

  “And then you vanished without a word. I didn’t know where you went, and I couldn’t feel you or our bond anymore.”

  I sit still, reaching inside me for our Mate bond. It is there right now, the only light left in my soul.

  Interesting. I don’t remember feeling it at all when I was chasing that guy.

  I…don’t remember caring.

  As if the thought sent out a calling card, something moves by the door and I look up.

  She’s here. The Monster is staring at me with dark humor in her piercing gaze.

  “And here I thought we were going to be forever friends,” she drawls, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest.

  Does she come out to haunt me when I push my humanity forward? It can’t be a coincidence.

  “Oh, that little piece of humanity you managed to squirrel away? I’m here to remind you that you are the Monster now. You belong to me. That insignificant little sliver of weakness will keep fading until you are nothing but what I want you to be.”

  I clench my jaw and sink further under the covers with Nina, closing my eyes to keep my mind focused on being here with my Mate; I am safe held in her warm arms.

  “I love you, Nina.”

  “I love you, Fal.”

  All I hear is a laugh at our exchange, cynical and terrifying, before I pull Nina closer, hoping her presence can protect me for a little while.

  After I Burned, I thought my fight with the Monster would be over.

  It seems like it’s only beginning.

  Chapter 43

  Edelina

  “Babe, Nina can take care of herself.”

  I pace through our apartment, still, even though I know Ash is right. Nina isn’t helpless.

  “Ashy, you dinnae see the darkness in Falen’s gaze when she was lookin’ at Nina. It was like an animal hunger, tryin’ to decide if it wanted to kill its prey now or later.”

  I haven’t been able to sleep. Falen definitely lost her humanity in the Burning. That much can be seen in her eyes. I felt it in the air around her.

  “Eddie, she’ll be okay. I know Fal Pal. She’s fine and she wouldn’t hurt Nina. You’ve been pacing for hours. It’s almost the time you usually get up. You need sleep,” he yawns like a bear. He is groggy from trying to stay awake with me.

  I stop in front of the bed and stare at my Mannie, bare-chested and leaning back on his arms atop the comforter. He’s not worried in the slightest and I want to slap some sense into his napper.

  Nina and Ash are both biased when it comes to Falen. They don’t see what I see when I look at her. Falen, the one we all know, isn’t there anymore. This is all the darkness in her built up into one giant monster of death.

  I must do something.

  I throw on all my clothes and grab my machete before flinging out the door. I hear Ashy yell after me, but I can’t stop.

  I must check on Nina.

  I march down the hall toward their apartment, my jaw clenching. I don’t need to be angry. I’m not even sure if anything has happened. I’m almost positive nothing has happened.

  I stand in front of their door and raise my fist to knock.

  Falen appears right in front of me from a cloud of smoke, perfectly put together and not a hair out of place. My hand immediately finds the worn hilt of my machete.

  “Ah, tsk tsk.” She clicks her tongue at me while raising a brow. “Care to tell me why you are about to knock on my door at five in the morning?” Her smirk is enough to make me snap.

  “I needtae see Nina.”

  Falen chuckles under her breath. Those matching eyes blink once, black as sin lashes brushing against her tan cheeks. “No.”

  “I wasnae askin�
��, Reaper.” I shift into my Fury form and push myself in her face.

  This pisses her off.

  “Get off me, you fucking fire twat.” She pushes me back with flash of her sharp teeth. The power in the action is dark and disturbing, just as the touch of Death should be. “I wouldn’t hurt Nina. She’s just sleeping.”

  My head jerks back as Falen’s right eye clouds grey for a moment. In the shock, I shift back to my regular person and take a step back.

  Is the old Falen still in there somewhere?

  “Let me see her, Falen. I willnae wake her. I just needtae see for myself.”

  She growls, jaw clenching as if she’s holding herself back from ripping out my throat with her teeth.

  The scars on my neck throb.

  “Please.”

  “Oh, what? You don’t trust me?” She’s back to smirking again, but it doesn’t meet her eyes. She sighs deeply when I refuse to back down and leans against the door. “Fine, but I’ll maim you if you wake her up.”

  She disappears in a puff of smoke before the door opens without a sound. She bows dramatically, allowing me passage into the apartment. I roll my eyes and push my way in, making sure not to make any noise.

  The apartment smells of lavender and cinnamon, an always strange combination that mixes well together.

  I hear her soft breathing before I creep to the door of their room, but I must make sure. The blankets on the bed move up and down with the breathing of the person beneath. She tosses once in her sleep, and I can see the wild, white hair and peacefully sleeping face of Nina.

  I sigh and walk out, closing the bedroom door quietly behind me. Falen’s amber eyes gleam with all the ‘I told you so’ I need. She nods toward the door and I follow her out.

  “Now,” she growls with slight seduction as she closes the door behind us. “Anything else you need, Erinys?”

  “I’ve a name, Falen. Best use it.”

  I don’t mean to snap at the lass, but I don’t like her new attitude.

  Her brows raise, amused she’s gotten under my skin.

  “No, I’m quite a’rite. Do you need anythin’?”

  The delight in her eyes almost makes me want to take back the question.

  “Actually, I’m in need of a good sparring session. Up for the challenge?” She tilts her head in a taunt.

  “Always, Reaper.”

  She leans back like she’s about to dissolve into smoke and Move over to the Pit.

  “But let’s walk, aye?”

  She deflates but recovers quickly and roughly flicks her hair over her shoulder. “Fine. After you, Eddie.”

  We walk in silence until we are outside in the cool morning air.

  “So, how is it? Bein’ the Death goddess and all that?”

  “It is what it is, I suppose.” She shrugs, not bothered in the least. “I have to say, it feels a bit strange in comparison to before the Burning.”

  “Strange how?”

  She waves her hands in a dismissive way. “Things that used to mean so much seem so insignificant now.”

  “Explain,” I reply, waiting to see what other valuable information may slip from her mouth. I can’t tell yet if her humanity is completely gone, so I need to investigate.

  “Well, my mom’s death doesn’t seem so tragic anymore.” She blinks and tilts her head. “I don’t really have any feelings on the matter in general, really. Not about Nathan’s death either.”

  I raise my brows. Ashy told me she loved that kid, and she was devastated when he was killed.

  “And Nina…”

  “What about Nina?” I snarl. I can’t help but be protective of the lass. She’s my best pal. She never doubted me even when Ash and Falen were both thinking I was a devil.

  Falen looks over like she may slap me.

  “She’s your Mannie.”

  “I know that,” she snaps, fingers curling into claws at her sides. But they quickly relax. “I don’t feel the connection anymore unless I’m with her or I think really really hard about it. She belongs with me, I know that. And I would gladly slit the throat of anyone who wanted to hurt or even touch her, but...unless I think of her, there are no...” Her hands wave in the air as if she is at a loss. “Romantic feelings lingering like they used to. I don’t feel the bond.”

  Ach, poor Nina.

  “But there’s still a part of you in there,” I poke her chest and move my hand before she cuts it off, “that loves her. The person who would do anythin’ for the lass. Like kill me, for example.”

  She snorts, her face twisted in disgust. “The weak part of me, you mean. The killing you part is still here, though. I could do that right now.”

  “Ach, you could try, you arrogant dobber. But lovin’ someone doesnae make you weak, Falen.” I bristle.

  It’s something I had to teach myself. And now I believe it with everything in my soul.

  The cool, morning air brushes hair across Falen’s face and there is a slight tick of emotion flashing in her eyes but gone too quickly for me to decipher.

  “I’m not in the mood for debate,” she sighs as we walk down the steps to the Pit, dismissing my annoyance with a roll of her eyes. “I’m in the mood for ass kicking. Yours, if you would like me to be exact.” She cracks her knuckles and glances at me with a baiting grin.

  “Well, the Burnin’ dinnae take away your sense of humor.”

  She breathes out a laugh and hops down into the Pit, pulling that blue-stoned dagger from inside her jacket and twirling it between her hands. The four marks tattooed on her left trigger finger—apparently an ode to the Nathan lad—flash for a moment.

  Didn’t it used to be three marks?

  “Rules,” I state when my feet hit the dirt ground of the Pit.

  Falen groans, letting her arms dramatically drop to her sides. She pulls off her nice leather jacket and tosses it effortlessly over the Pit wall.

  “No Movin’, Falen. Play fair.”

  “Playing fair is boring,” she complains, lips turning down as she glares. “Fine. Whatever. No Moving. No fun. Don’t you hate you’re so intimidated, you have to restrict what I can do?”

  “What I hate is your new, doaty attitude,” I snap and pull my machete from my side. I twirl it once before crouching.

  Falen’s lips are once again smug. I’ll admit she’s gotten to me. She’s gotten in my head and pissed me right off with her jabs and blasé attitude.

  We slowly begin circling each other.

  I’ve sparred Falen a lot in the past year and a half, but I’m not sure how to go about it now. She’s different, somehow more lethal. I didn’t think that was possible, for she wielded the soul of Death before she Burned. And now?

  She is Death.

  Her steps are eerily silent as if she walks on darkness. In fact, if I stare hard enough, I can almost see the shadows of night dancing beneath her feet. The infuriating smirk stays on her face while she watches me.

  I blink and she’s right in front of my eyes, fist flying at my face.

  I barely dodge it.

  The knife in her other fist aims at my stomach, but I back out of the way before it cuts into my skin. She slices at my face, my neck, my fucking eyes with deadly, graceful skill.

  She’s playing with me, trying to keep me on the defensive. I hate to admit she could have had a kill shot on me already, but it’s true.

  I go down and sweep my leg toward hers, but she jumps over.

  When I right myself, I’m greeted with a boot to my chest.

  The breath flies out of me in an instant and I hit the wall of the Pit with enough force to crack the hardened dirt.

  My back smarts when I fall to the ground, vibrating my spine like a shaking tree. It takes me a minute to even roll on my stomach and get on all fours because I’m so dazed.

  My breaths are ragged and burn my lungs.

  “Fuck,” I mutter to the ground and the word scrapes up my throat.

  I should have known not to spar Falen now that she is a goddes
s. But I couldn’t say no to the challenge. I’m a prideful fucking fool. And I may die for it.

  I finally stand, leaning against the wall for support. I shake my head and the four Falens laughing at me gradually become one.

  “You okay? That looked like it hurt,” she coos, sarcasm dripping off her tongue.

  When I spy her strong smirk, it enrages me.

  I shift into my Fury form again and—against my better sense—run at her. I swipe with my machete over and over again, not pausing to let Falen breathe.

  Eventually, when I feign going left and instead go right, the blade hits her in the face. Right to the bone if the sudden stop of my forward progress is considered.

  Her screech of pain is from the pits of Tartarus.

  “Ah, shite,” I croak, stopping my advance and pulling back my weapon. I have to yank because it has cut so deep, it could have been embedded in her cheekbone.

  Blood drips from the end of the blade, hot and bright. “I dinnae mean to actually fuckin’ hit you, lass.” Horror sinks into my chest, heavy and suffocating.

  Falen’s left cheek has a deep gash with blood running angry down her face.

  I put another fucking scar on her face. She got rid of the scar through her eye and I fucking gave her another.

  But right before my eyes, it heals almost instantly.

  “What…”

  Her arm snakes out and her swift punch lands her fist against my jaw. It knocks me on the ground, and I hear the crack of the bone grind in my ears. My body tenses.

  “I’m going to make you regret that, you bitch,” she hisses down at me, wiping the blood from her face onto the bottom of her black shirt.

  I’m going to blackout.

  I taste blood on my tongue and am seeing double again as she stands above me with wrath in her smile.

  “A’rite, I deserved that,” I grumble, trying my damndest to stay conscious. I rub my jaw tenderly, my skin sensitive where the scar runs down my lips and chin.

  Ah, for fuck’s sake. My cheekbone is absolutely broken. But I asked for it, I suppose.

  “Is this you yielding?” Falen asks, seeming bored as she stands there smug, waiting for my sorry arse to get off the ground.

  I gather myself, pride building up my resolve more than anything.