Shadowglass

Chris slams Jake’s skull into the concrete one more time. Blood sprays, and at last the stubborn fucker shudders between Chris' clamped thighs and falls limp.

Panting, Chris climbs off and crawls over in a rainbow blood slick to retrieve his cane. He doesn’t bother looking around for the fairies. He knows they’re gone, heard their mincing footsteps pissing off into the dark. The mirror gone with them. Again.

Frustration seethes under his black-mottled skin, and he heaves to his feet with an angry hiss. Pain stabs his injured knee, and he forces the joint to shift, stretching snakethin and back again to shut it the fuck up. Bones click together, and the pressure eases.

Around him in the dark, trapped creatures screech and moan. He should set them free. In the light, Ashley sprawls, bloody, her breath dragging in ragged gasps bereft of music. Smooth pale thigh shows through her ripped leather pants. Her lovely black and magenta hair is ragged, torn by razor copper claws.

Rage thrusts icy needles into his blood. He slithers scales and fins away with a wet squelch and stalks up to her, leaning on his cane to offer her his bloody hand. “Get up.”

Her jeweled eyes shine bloodshot, her face bruised, but her lips spread in a smile and she makes a weak laugh. “You let him take it . . . for me. To save me.”

“Yeah.” The stupidity ripples his skin. But her hand slides warm and delicate in his, her nails jagged. Their blood mingles. She’s so warm. So fragrant. He pulls her to her feet. She winces at torn muscles and stumbles on her heels, but doesn’t recoil.

He steadies her. Her curving waist feels good, the damp leather tasty, a fleeting brush of exposed skin.

“Thank you.” Shyly, she lifts her chin, offers herself, baring a seductive glimpse of throat.
He can’t help it. Another kiss, and this time their lips melt together, gentle and searching, and his cold blood ignites. Her hot candy lips move under his so delicately. Her tongue so soft, her taste so delicate and clean. Her wrist so fine and slender in his palm. Her small breasts perfect against his chest. The fresh feminine smell of her skin. His pulse quickens; he’s dangerously hard. The snake writhes and seethes with venom, only a whisper’s width beneath his skin.

But he can’t. He’ll break her, or himself. He’ll forget what’s important.

The family is everything. Power is everything. His own obsession—call it what it is—is insignificant. Ashley is nothing.

He drifts back, just an inch. Already his lips cool. She whimpers and presses for more, but he grips that fine wrist and forces her away. “Don’t thank me, Ashley. You were careless. I paid for it. Don’t ever put me in that position again.”

And before he can see her expression, he limps away, leaning on his cane. His pulse thudding a warning. His flesh burning to change.

He doesn’t need to listen for her shuffle to know she’ll follow.



• • •



Chris' crippled footsteps fade, and Jake flicks his eyes open.

He giggles, fresh with blood. He’s not so easily dealt with. The little snake man is too confident.
Pain caresses his limbs as he staggers to his feet. He can’t breathe through his mangled nose. A steel pin in his lip dangles loose, and he rips it out and tosses it aside in a scarlet spray. His pretty inked skin oozes with venombright cuts. He wipes the mess away. His left arm bends awkwardly, bones scraping.

He laughs again. Such sweet sensation. He enjoyed the blood rush, the pain, the power. Fighting is fun. He’ll do it more.

He enjoyed that dark blue fairy, too. He’d like those magnets for himself. Soon he’ll get that blue fairy and drink it.

Pure warm covetousness spreads inside him. Yes. This is what earth means. Wanting. Satisfying urges, one after another. He’ll like it here.

More laughter pleasures his bruised lungs, and he reaches inside for his healing energy. His split skin ripples, mending, but inside his shattered arm, it sputters short.

He wobbles the arm. Pain still flares, the bones not knitted. Pity. He likes this body. He enjoyed the yellow girl’s reaction to it. Thinking of her makes him warm inside. Her wonderful spiky magic just beyond reach under his tongue, her spicy kiss, her tough lithe body. If he had the shiny glass, he could find her.

He doesn’t.

“Jake?” Shy footsteps sidle up behind him, honey-sweet.
He sighs, dissatisfied, and turns.

Ella bows her head, hands clasped in front of her, her sly gaze darting upward. “I’ve brought you a gift.”

Her skin looks flushed, her mouth curling with satisfaction. Curiosity pierces him like a dart. What has she done? “Show me.”

She tugs a gleaming figure into the light. Firefairy, slim and pretty, flame dripping like sunlight off its wings. Baffled glaze in its eyes.

Ella smiles hopefully.

Jake frowns. “I’ve got one. Do better.”

Ella slips her little hand in his, grating his broken arm, stopping him from turning away. “But he showed me. I understand now. I want to please you.” Her faces shines up at him, glowing with hope.

Her lips are bruised and bitten. Her face flushed. Faint teethmarks on her throat. The smell of charcoal spoiling her honey.

Jealousy stabs harder than the pain. She’s touched the thing. Kissed it. Let it touch her. Had it inside her body like a dirty human.

Rich anger spikes Jake’s blood like a drug. She’s ruined. Rotten. Poisoned. Just like everything else in this hellburnt city. He knows what to do with poison. Oh, yes.

Tenderly, he fingers her wounded neck. “Thank you, Ella. Now we must find the yellow girl’s mirror.”

She beams up at him, and nausea slides cold in his stomach. But he knows what must be done.

He kisses her cheek, but her taste is pale, faded. Dirty. Not like home. She tries to kiss him back, but he averts his face. “It’s time for you to go now.”

“Home?” She brightens, pleased.

“Not home.”

Her face drains. “No. Please, Jake, not that.”

“Yes, Ella.” He fondles her hair for a moment. She meant something once. But she’s a resource. He must use her.

Her lips tremble. “Wait, Jake. Let me—”

He wraps his fingers around her throat and squeezes.

She chokes, her eyes goggling, and he slams his mouth onto hers and swallows. Rich, smooth, helpless, the candy taste of blood.

All too soon, it’s done. He lets her lifeless body drop. Her energy flows inside him, sparking his muscles afresh. He flexes, and with an electric snap, his broken arm heals. His nose squelches back into shape. His split lips knit smooth. The scratches on his ink fade and sink back into smooth skin.

He scrapes back bloodstained hair and laughs, rich with flame and warm banshee music.
The firefairy stares, its mouth dropping open. “Holy shit. Whatever she did, it wasn’t with me, okay?”

Jake eyes it, uninterested. He should just crush it. It makes no sense, and it ruined Ella. And he’s already got one, already stolen its flames. But a worm of warm desire coils in his blood. It’s nice to look at. Maybe he could play with it. Fight with it. Maybe it can teach him. He walks up to it. “You’re very pretty.”

“Well, thanks, darlin’. You’re . . . umm . . . kinda interesting yourself.” The thing licks its red-stained lips, a golden flicker of interest over unease in its eyes.

Intriguing.
Jake lifts its chin with a speculative finger, curiosity aching his flesh. “It doesn’t . . . pain you that I drank her?”

A bold black stare, encouraging. “That’s your business. Look, I like your style, Jake. I saw you stirring shit up at the club. I don’t know what you’re up to, but I want in.”

It knows his name. Fascinating. “Why?”

“Damage. Breaking things. Cool stuff like that. What I see, you’re the champion.” Inviting flames finger its pretty hair.

Smug warmth coats Jake’s blood. Flattery. Pleasant. He leans closer, sniffs the thing’s mouth for scent. Fire, ash, a hint of Ella’s lost honey, an earthy taste, not hellish but exciting.
Delicious. His body reacts, stormlike, a careless blood rush. He shouldn’t get distracted like this, but it feels good. “No. It’s not possible.”

It bites its lip, sultry. “You mentioned a yellow girl’s mirror. I can help you, if you’ll let me go.”

Even more interesting. Jake licks its cheek, and sweet cherry blood pleasures his tongue. “How?”

“I know her. I can take you to it. Or bring it to you.”

He brings it nearer, and its body feels tight and feverish, warming his newly healed skin. He wants to play with it, make it talk, learn its secrets. Jake grips its throat, holding it away. “Later. First, show me what you did.”

Notes

so...Jake and Ash. Thats a turn of events huh.
Hope you enjoyed it :p


stay weird my baby bats
- Grimm




ps - there are only ten more chapters to go my beautifuls, that includes the epilogue...
please don't kill me for this...