His smug condescension was getting on my nerves. My blood boiled, and my nostrils flared. “Keep your thanks,” I growled, thrashing against the chains again and internally pleading for my magic to return. “Just get on with it.”
El Diablo raised a fiery hand to what I presumed was his chin. “So eager for your own demise. Such a shame for someone so young. Care to reconsider my offer? A painless death in exchange for information?”
I spit in his face, and my saliva sizzled when it hit the fire. “Go to hell.”
El Diablo threw back his head and roared with a laugh that made my skin crawl. “Very fitting given the monster that I am. Very well. If you had been compliant, I would have extinguished the flames and sucked your blood in my vampiric form. But, since you prefer pain . . .”
He drew even closer, the heat from his body burning my skin. Sweat dripped down every inch of me. Soon, he was mere inches from me, a faceless devil that would haunt me forever. Angry red eyes bore into mine. My skin seemed to melt under his glare.
El Diablo lowered his head, and the flames seared my skin. I screamed. The smell of charred flesh stung my nose. Agony—painful, blistering agony—blackened my throat and chin where the fire touched me.
Then his fangs sank into the skin of my throat. Shock numbed my body against the pain as he drew large gulps of blood from my neck. He pulled back and moaned with pleasure. I crammed my eyes shut as revulsion rippled through me in waves of nausea. But then his fangs returned, and with it, the numbness.
The longer he drank, the less I felt, and I had to admit, it wasn’t unpleasant. As the blood left my body, I lost awareness of my limbs and my mind. My head fell back dizzily, and lights danced in front of my eyes. I swayed, and the chains rattled.
The noise startled El Diablo, and he withdrew. An insane part of me wished he hadn’t.
My blood sizzled as it dripped down his fiery chin. As soon as the heat from his body left, pain replaced it. My throat and chin and shoulders screamed in blinding anguish. My breaths came sharp and fast as tears rolled down my face, exacerbating the burns on my body.
“Delicious,” he said huskily. “I almost couldn’t pull away. But it would be too easy to finish you off now.” He swallowed audibly and smacked his lips. “Now, let’s see how powerful you are.”
He stepped away from me and raised a fiery palm toward me.
An invisible grip pressed against my throat. Sharp needles of pain stabbed against my skin where he’d burned and bitten me. I screamed, my eyes filling with tears. My shrieks bounced off the cavern walls, reverberating in my ears over and over again.
The grip released when El Diablo dropped his hand. He flexed his fingers and held his wrist as if assessing this new ability.
Then it dawned on me. He’d just Pushed me. He’d just used my own power against me. Rattled breaths tore through me. Black spots hovered in my vision, and I willed for unconsciousness to take me—to envelop me and hide me from this nightmare.
Something shifted just behind El Diablo. I squinted, trying to see past the throbbing anguish that threatened to consume me. One of the demons behind El Diablo fidgeted. It was a woman. She had long blond hair.
I tilted my head, my eyes widening in shock. It couldn’t be...
She looked just like Kismet. My Kismet. Her face came in and out of focus, but it was definitely her.
El Diablo chuckled and waved his fingers in front of his face. “Incredible,” he breathed. Clearing his throat, he dropped his hand and drew closer to me. He bared his teeth. I was surprised I could make out his fangs amidst the blob of fire surrounding him. “Now tell me—who is the most powerful demon of your time?”
My arms and legs quivered. The pain in my body pulsed like it had its own heartbeat. “Why—why do you care?” I croaked.
“Why do you think I imprisoned that priestess? The same reason I imprisoned you. You both know what is required to cast that spell. So answer my question. What is the name of the demon who reigns in your time?”
I bit my lip to keep from sobbing. Instead, I just shook my head, my shoulders trembling with silent agony.
“Very well,” El Diablo said. “Again.”
He drew closer to me. The burn of his nearness ripped into me, and tears cascaded down my face. A desperate sob broke through my throat. Flames licked my skin, charring my flesh. I screamed as his fangs tore through my neck again.
An explosion shook the cave, rattling my chains and startling El Diablo away from me. Hot blood dripped down my neck, stinging my burns. My head swung to the side as my vision blurred. Light glowed in front of me, but it wasn’t El Diablo. This light was blue.
Chaotic noises erupted around me. Shouts. Screams. Growls. Was I hallucinating?
I blinked incoherently as several figures came into view: Oliver, Alba, Ramón, Elena, and others I didn’t recognize. Among the throng, the woman who looked like Kismet collapsed, and I didn’t see her again.
Kismet, wait, I thought, too weak to call out for her.
Oliver’s eyes found me and he raised a hand toward the wall, bringing down my chains. As the chains crashed to the ground, my body tumbled, and I was too weak to stop it.
Oliver caught me in his arms, and my vision darkened briefly.
“Desi,” Oliver said, his voice laced with urgency. Desperation. There was a plea in his tone. His shaking fingers touched my cheek and chin.
I flinched and moaned in pain from my burns.
Oliver’s eyes were tormented as he watched me. His gaze fell to my neck where El Diablo’s puncture wounds still throbbed. Anger clouded his expression, and his jaw tightened. Eyes blazing, he looked up at
