He then dispatched six of the opposing coven, and while doing it, saw that eight of Barb’s coven were gone.

He vaguely felt the blast of a spell and knew he was under attack. He slayed the witch who’d spelled him only to feel the blast of another spell. He dealt with her too before he heard something that made his blood turn to ice.

“Yuri, watch out!”

He was hit with another spell that deflected as he turned to see a witch with her hand up, a ball of red and blue fire floating in her palm, her aim: Aurora.

In a flash, the warm gush of blood spraying his torso, the witch’s body was at his feet, but her head was in his hands.

Then Aurora screamed and shoved both hands forward. A shimmering wall of undulating white and glittering vermillion and silver burst forth, moving through him, and Yuri looked over his shoulder to see a ball of deep blue slam against it and ricochet back, hitting the witch who threw it, making her immediately burst into flame.

“Fuck,” he clipped, sprinted to the witch and shoved a hand through the fire and into her chest with such force, she flew backward through a wall and outside, where he heard her short scream as she fell.

He also heard her scream die when she landed.

He raced back, hooked Aurora at the waist, and felt her body move like a ragdoll as he bolted through the house, locating the last of the enemy coven and eliminating them, all with Aurora held close to his side, her arms locked around him.

He stopped, dragged in a deep breath, and opened his senses.

There were humans alive in that house, not many, but they were all from Barb’s coven.

The rest were dead.

He put Aurora to her feet, whispering, “It’s clear.”

“Thank the goddess,” she whispered back.

At the sound of her voice, Yuri let her go and took a step from her as he took in another breath.

A breath that didn’t work.

Therefore, he bent toward her and roared, “Are you out of your mind?”

Her body gave a jerk before her expression turned placating and she said softly, “Yuri, I was just—”

“Living out a death wish?” he finished for her irately.

“No, I wanted to—”

“See the end of your days?”

“Let me—”

His voice turned deathly cold when he informed her, “You’d already earned a spanking, my sweet. This fucking stunt,”—he threw out a hand to indicate the house they were in— “means writhing.”

She blinked and asked, “What?”

He bent closer. “Writhing,” he hissed. “What you’ll be doing, along with begging, before I allow release.”

Her eyes rounded as he heard her pulse spike. “I—”

“Nearly got us both killed.”

She straightened her shoulders. “I saved your life.”

“Something that would not have occurred if I hadn’t first saved yours,” he retorted.