Hell's Throne (The Devil's Assistant Series - 5 ) - Unedited

Hell's Throne - Chapter 8

It felt like all I ever did was wait for something to happen. First, I had waited for news about the search for Lucius, and now I waited for news that he had finally woken up. My insomnia had refused to abate so finally I had allowed the stern healer to provide me a dose of sedative. I had barely strung five words together after the injection had been received before my exhaustion, combined with the drugs, pulled me into a doze.

There was no concept of time passing. One moment I was trying to resist the lure of the sedative and the next I was blinking into the darkness. The stifling heat and my dry mouth told me I was still in that horrid room, the one which felt like it was closing in around me. Smacking my lips together, I rolled over to the side and gave a yelp as I tumbled out of the cot. I hit the floor, pain reverberating up the length of my body from the jarring impact. Groaning loudly, I rolled over on to my back.

The fire in the corner was nothing but embers, glowing softly in the darkness of the room. Even though the heat was already unbearable, I needed Lucius to survive. With a grunt, I pushed up on to my knees and crawled towards the hearth.

Picking up one of the iron tools from the stand, I placed some of the dried wood into the fireplace and prodded at the embers. I had no clue what I was doing but I was rewarded when a flame flickered to life, gently eating at the fresh wood with greed.

Nodding, I replaced the tool and then turned towards the bed. Lucius remained lying in the middle of the bedspread, the duvet pulled up high over his chest. His dark hair was wet and plastered to his head but I couldn't figure out if that was from sweat or from the melting ice.

However his rest was no longer still or peaceful. He was tossing and turning, his head being thrown side to side while he kicked his feet this way and that. And every few seconds he whined from the back of his throat.

"Lucius, can you hear me love?" I questioned softly, perching carefully on the edge of the bed but keeping a safe distance from his flailing limbs.

There was no response. Instead, Lucius just seemed to fight harder against the invisible foe. His face was twisted up in distress and pained sounds wrenched from his lips. My heart ached. Even though something urged me not to do it, I stretched a hand and placed it against his cheek. Warmth greeted me instead of the painful chill. I idly noted that the frost had also vanished from his skin before a hand closed around my wrist like a vice.

My gaze snapped to the offending appendage. I blinked at it in confusion, sleep still addling my mind, and then suddenly I was being thrown through the air. A feral growl reverberated through the air behind me as I bounced across the bed and off of the other side. I had barely time to register the sensation of falling and then, with a thud, I hit the floor.

My hip hit first and a millisecond later my head bounced off of the hard stone, the vibrations radiating through my skull. My vision blurred. I blinked in an effort to clear it but suddenly I was pushed over on to my back. Hands wrapped around my throat as a presence loomed over me.

As my air supply cut off, panic instantly set in as I attempted to draw in my breath. I scratched and clawed at the throat, staring up into the face I knew so well. And yet I didn't know him either.

Lucius eyes were closed, his lips pulled back into a snarl and his hands closed tighter and tighter around my throat. He looked completely feral, lost in his nightmare so deeply I doubted he even knew what was real and what was not.

"Lucius," I gasped desperately, slapping as hands even as I attempted to bring my legs up between us. Sensing my movements, he gave another growl and shifted above me. And then I could not move, pinned in place by his larger and heavier body. "Please Lucius."