Chapter 24 · The Devil's Deal

"Don't move. Not a muscle," Sela hissed, her voice a low vibration against the shell of my ear.

She had me pinned against the cold stone wall of the corridor, her forearm pressing hard into my throat. I could smell the metallic tang of blood and the sharp, expensive scent of her perfume. The power dynamic had shifted the second we left the arena, but she was fighting to get it back.

"You're shaking," she whispered, her lips barely brushing my skin. "Is it fear, Cain? Or is that monster inside you still hungry?"

I didn't blink. I let my head lean back against the wall, exposing my neck—a move that looked like surrender but felt like a dare. "Maybe I'm just wondering why a General is so obsessed with a piece of trash."

Sela's grip tightened. I felt the heat of her body through the thin fabric of my tunic, a suffocating, electric pressure. Her eyes searched mine, looking for the crack, the flinch, the moment I'd break. But the Devouring Bone in my chest was humming, feeding on the tension, turning her aggression into a strange, dark fuel.

"You aren't trash," she said, her voice dropping an octave.