Chosen by Kristen Day Read Free Book Online

agony I deserved to feel again and again.
                  The dampness of the underground room chilled me to the bone, but Nadia had ensured there were no comforts of home inside her ‘hiding place’.  That only left me with the vines, the river, and a curious wooden trunk on the other side of the room.  I was considering whether or not the vines that bound me were edible when I heard the sound of footsteps on the other side of the wall. 
                  “Rise and shine, Love!”  Nadia appeared before me and my blood instantly bubbled with overwhelming hatred.  “We have much to do!”
                  “I’m not playing your bullshit games, Nadia,” I growled.
                  “Games?” She snorted, cracking a dry smile and coming to a stop in front of me.  Her features hardened and her golden eyes flashed, “This is no game, Love.  But believe me - I’ll be enjoying every minute.”  She noticed the small puddle of blood collecting below my right knee and smirked.
                  “Why Finn, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you look so dreadful.  It’s a shame your essence and abilities have no effect down here.  That looks horrific.”
                  “You’re playing with fire, Nadia,” I accused her in a low voice.  She should know the consequences of her actions.
                  “I happen to like fire.  It’s powerful and tantalizing.  Just like me.”  She twisted on her heel, kicked off her shoes and made her way to the trunk.  She visibly shivered in her thin tank top and jeans.  With a snap of her fingers, the room warmed to a comfortable temperature.
                  “I don’t know how you stand it down here!  It’s absolutely frigid!”  She chuckled to herself when I cursed her through gritted teeth.  She whistled happily as she opened the trunk and began rifling through it; searching for something in particular.
                  “Now where did I put it…Aha! Found it!” she squealed with delight.  Then she snapped her head around and grinned at me like she was two personalities away from a straight jacket and a padded room. “Enjoying the view?”
                  “Don’t flatter yourself.”
                  “Oh come on Finn,” she purred. “You know you want this .” She spun around in a circle and raised a golden, sly eyebrow at me. “But unfortunately for you, I don’t screw pieces of shit.”
                  “I’m crushed.”
                  She looked me up and down, tapped her chin, and smiled, “Not yet.” With a flick of her finger the white vines pinned me against the wall; slicing new wounds on my arms and legs. “I’ll save that for later.  Right now, we have other things to take care of.  And I must say, I’m so glad you came to your senses and chose me.  I was beginning to lose hope,” she joked.  She twitched over to where I was shackled to the wall and let out what sounded like something close to a cackle. 
                  “Yea, I’ve really been looking forward to having my soul wrenched out of my body and starving to death in this god forsaken hole in the ground,” I spit at her with venom. 
                  “I might not be as transparent as that little tramp of yours, Stasia, but-“
                  “Leave her out of this! You don’t even deserve to speak her name,” I growled.  The familiar rush of power and adrenaline that usually accompanied my anger didn’t come, and I started to realize the gravity of the situation I was in.  Not that I was going to let Princess Psycho know that. 
                  “Oh, please…she’s nothing but an Achilles heel.” She collapsed into a fit of giggles, “Get it - cause her brother was Achilles..?” I ignored her failed attempt at irony.