Kai opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
His throat had tightened somewhere along the way.
A faint smile touched the corner of her mouth.
Then her jaw opened.
His body locked instantly.
Further.
Further.
The hinge kept going.
Somewhere halfway through, human anatomy stopped applying.
Darkness spilled from between her teeth in slow ribbons.
Her red eyes glowed steadily beneath the curtain of silver hair hanging around them while she lowered herself toward him one inch at a time.
Not sudden.
Slow enough that he could do nothing except watch it happen.
"I said," she whispered warmly, voice still perfectly gentle through that impossible mouth, "that I would not kill you."
Closer.
The pressure around his body grew heavier. His spiritual armor flickered violently against it, thin light cracking across his skin.
"I did not promise anything else."
His brain said bluff.
His body believed her completely.
She leaned lower.
