Thanatos (Guardians of Hades #8) - Felicity Heaton Page 0,2

stood in her way.

The tendrils of darkness writhed more viciously inside her, tangled around her limbs and made her fingers cold. She pressed them into her bare knees, didn’t flinch when her nails pierced her flesh. Focused on the pain. Sank into that darkness, embracing it. It was a weapon. Her weapon. A living, twisted thing that had kept her company throughout her captivity. Her only friend.

The only thing she trusted in this bleak world.

It spoke to her at times, whispered warnings and urged her to accept it. Acceptance had come readily, because this darkness was her strength. She felt that to the very depth of her soul. This darkness was her power.

She tensed as something struck her cage, jerked her head up and glared at the huge bare-chested warrior who had banged his black spear against it. A consuming desire to flash short fangs at him surged through her, but she denied it. She had to conserve her strength if they were going to move her.

Not because wherever they led her would be far away and she would need it to walk that distance.

But because she intended to escape.

If she threatened the male, he would stab her with the spear—she had learned that long ago. So now she behaved whenever he came to her, merely stared at him in silence most of the times, but this time she couldn’t hold her tongue.

“Water,” she whispered, voice hoarse and scratchy, and swallowed thickly again. She tapped her right index finger against her lower lip. “Water.”

The dark-haired brute merely grinned at her, revealing a missing canine. When he raked his black eyes over her, a shudder wracked her and she barely resisted the urge to ease back in her cage. She wouldn’t show weakness. She wouldn’t show fear. Never.

She silently cursed him. She needed water. It would give her the strength she was going to need to escape once they opened her cage. She wouldn’t have long to manage that feat. They were always quick to attach the metal collar to her neck, one that had two black iron poles fixed to it. Those long poles allowed them to steer her and keep her at a distance, making it impossible for her to attack them.

She couldn’t let them get that collar on her.

So, she would need to be swift to evade it.

“Water.” This time, she bit the word out harder, pressed two fingers to her mouth. “Please?”

She wasn’t above begging if it got her the water, although she despised it. The fiends always found it amusing when she was forced to plead with them. She wasn’t sure why. They seemed to like seeing her humble herself. As expected, his grin widened and he tilted his head back, and she shuddered as he slipped the tip of his spear between the bars and stroked the flat of the black blade down her thigh.

She tried to steel herself, to calm her mind, but the darkness was at the fore and before she could stop herself, she grabbed the spear and yanked it towards her, tugging him with it. He growled, his face twisting, and wrestled with her, was too strong for her to keep hold of the spear.

He pulled it free of her grip and she cried out as the blade cut her palm, slicing deep.

She curled her hand into a fist, gritted her teeth as the cut burned and stung.

His black eyes narrowed on her and he looked as if he was going to stab her as punishment for her actions, but instead, he reached for the pouch hanging from the waist of his black leather pants, uncorked it and held it aloft before her.

The cage rocked as she lunged forwards, stretching both arms between the thick iron bars, reaching for the water.

With a slow, cruel smile he tilted the pouch.

“No.” She stretched harder, pressing her cheek to the bars, fingers clawing at the air as she tried to grab the waterskin before he could go through with it.

She grunted as frustration rolled through her, as she fell just short of being able to touch it, and stilled as he tilted it, pouring the precious liquid all over the ground below her cage. The insects there were quick to rush away from it in a wave.

She stared at the glossy puddle and stilled as it reflected her image. When was the last time she had seen herself? She didn’t remember looking so grown up, or so filthy. The water was quick to soak