A Fire in the Flesh (Flesh and Fire, #3)

His brows knitted. “I was going to—”

“Please, do not say you were going to carry me.”

“I want you to conserve your energy.”

“Walking doesn’t take any energy.”

The scowl deepened. “Along with not understanding what arguing is, I don’t think you get how the body works.”

My eyes narrowed. “I can walk, Ash. I’m dying,” I said, forcing my tone to be light as I swatted his chest, “but I’m not dead.”

The eather went unearthly still in his eyes. “That is not something to joke about.”

I sighed. He was right. “Which direction?”

“West.”

“West?” I looked left and then right before turning my stare to him. “Do I look like a compass?”

His lips twitched. “This way, liessa.”

With my hand held firmly in his, he started to our left. “We don’t have to walk far,” he said, his voice a little rougher than usual, drawing my gaze to his face. He stared ahead, his features impossible to read.

I squeezed his hand.

He gave me a faint smile, one that didn’t reach his eyes. “Careful,” he instructed. “There are a lot of small rocks and branches. I don’t want you tearing up your feet.”

That made me smile, and also made my heart hurt a little because he was worried about me hurting my feet. My feet. They could be chopped off, and it wouldn’t really matter.

Okay, it would probably hasten the inevitable, but his concern was sweet and…and it felt loving.

With the diamond in my hand, I walked with Ash for a few minutes, him leading me around fallen branches and scattered pebbles that wouldn’t pierce my skin even if I jumped on them. Eventually, slivers of white—dull white marble or limestone pillars—appeared through the trees.

“Is that a Temple?” I squinted.

“One of them.” He reached up, holding a branch out of the way. “And before you ask, I’m not sure who it once honored.”

“I wasn’t going to ask.”

A lock of reddish-brown hair fell against his cheek as he sent me a sidelong look.

“Whatever,” I muttered, falling quiet for about two seconds as I eyed a fallen, moss-draped tree. “So, mortals did live east of the Skotos?”

“They did.” Letting go of my hand, he gripped my hips and lifted me over the fallen tree with such ease that I couldn’t help but feel dainty and delicate. “Used to live right up to the foothills of the Carcers.”

“Wow.” Portions of the flat, square roof of the Temple came into view. “I didn’t think they ever lived that close to Iliseeum.”

“Primals and gods interacted more closely with mortals then, visiting villages and spending time with them,” he explained, taking my hand once more. “That was before the Primals’ abilities matured, and their effects began to influence the mortals.”

Ahead of us, something—no, a tall and lithe someone dressed in black moved between the trees, walking at a fast clip toward us.

“Who is that?” I asked.

“Bele.” His lips thinned. “You don’t—”

“Finally!” Bele yelled. Above us, limbs trembled as the silent birds took flight, scattering into the air. “I was starting to get worried.”

My lips began to curve as Bele came more into view, her skin a light golden brown in the fractured sunlight. She strode toward us, the midnight-hued tail of her shoulder-length braid bouncing as her pace picked up.

As usual, Bele was strapped to the teeth with weapons. Daggers were sheathed at her thighs, the bands on her forearms secured smaller blades, and the hilt of a sword on her back jutted out at her waist. Over her shoulder, I saw the curve of a bow.

Bele was…she had been fierce before she Ascended, confident and sometimes a little scary. But now?

Now, she was drenched in power and strength, moving through the thicket like a predator on the hunt.

My steps slowed. She was now the Goddess of the Hunt. Or rather the Primal Goddess of the Hunt and Divine Justice. The last I’d heard, no one knew if Bele had Ascended into actual Primalhood, but that had been before Hanan’s untimely demise. If she had, though, wouldn’t I have felt her approach?

Bele’s slightly rounded cheeks lifted as a smile spread across her face, and then she was no longer several feet away but right in front of me. I didn’t even have time to gasp. Her arms went around me with such force that I almost dropped The Star, and would’ve toppled over backward before she steadied me if not for Ash’s hold on my hand.

Bele…was hugging me. Like really embracing me, with both arms and her head buried against my shoulder.

Shock rippled through me as my gaze darted to Ash. He raised a brow. Bele wasn’t the hugging type. Or really that emotional at all. She was more like the compliment-whilst-insulting-you-at-the-same-time type, which was probably why we got along. Somewhat. Both of us also seemed to thrive on irritating others.

I folded one arm around her and then my other once Ash slowly and reluctantly let go of my hand.

But he hovered close. “Take it easy on her, Bele.”

Her hold on me loosened a little. I felt her chest rise. “Thank you.”

“For what?” I murmured into her braid, patting her back awkwardly because I officially gave the worst hugs.

“For Aios,” she whispered hoarsely, reaching between us to touch the necklace. “If I’d lost her…” A tremor went through her.

I squeezed my eyes shut, having forgotten there was the hint of something intimate between the two, something more than just friendship. “You don’t have to thank me for that.”

“I just did. I’m not taking it back.” Her voice strengthened. “And you can’t reject it.”

My lips quirked. “Okay.”

“Glad we’re on the same page.” Bele drew back then. “I hate to ruin this reunion but…” She trailed off, inhaling sharply. She dropped her arms as her mouth opened, then closed. Eather lashed across her eyes—irises that had once been a shade of hazel that leaned more toward gold but were now silver. “Please tell me you got at least one good beatdown in on that motherfucker.”

For a moment, I wasn’t sure what had provoked the question, but then I realized she was looking at my neck—the bruises and the wound left by the scrape of Kolis’s fangs.

“She got in more than just one beatdown,” Ash stepped in, taking my hand again.

Bele’s chin lifted. “Really?”

“Yeah.” My normal tendency to be a braggart when it came to gaining the upper hand in any fight wasn’t there, which likely meant I was more tired than I realized. “He’s down for the count right now.”

Approval flashed across her stunning features, along with a savage smile. “I wish I’d been there to see it.”

I started to smile when I realized something about her. Bele had Ascended as the Primal Goddess of the Hunt, but her arms were bare. “You don’t have a cuff like the others?”

“Not yet.” Bele eyed the one around Ash’s biceps. “Apparently, it will appear when I’m ready.” She squinted at Ash. “And exactly when will that be?”