Page 22 of Vervain

“They did,” he agrees. “But one got away. After seeing your memories, I have decided I will take my time with him. Change that Blessed of yours into a nightwalker, so I have an eternity of torture to look forward to.”

My heart stutters. A beat that shudders the bones of its cage. Loud enough for Serun to hear it. His ear twitches, his eyes softening, and as we arrive at the corridor to my room, he steps in close.

My stomach twists and spills into confusion. I don’t like it, but I don’t hate it.

I want to understand the Lord of the Undercity, but I also want the freedom to make my own choices. Being his consort is just another label placed on me without my consent. These warmer feelings shouldn’t be stirring. Not with him—the very being who rules over us with power and fear.

Still, for now, I need him. Without him, I won’t ever find where Jax took Cole.

“My brother is all I have left. I don’t want him to become another memory, Serun.”

“He won’t, Saya.” My name rolls so effortlessly from his tongue.

It sounds desired.

Destined to be tasted by that same tongue.

“Can you hold your liar’s tongue and promise me that?”

Silence. Not eerie or uncomfortable. Simply a man weighing whether he can promise me such a thing when we don’t know where Cole is, or how serious his injuries are.

“I promise.” His words are thick with affirmation—enough for me to smile and nod before I enter my room to change.

CHAPTER NINE

MATTER TRANSFER

Serun, Lord of the Undercity

I promise.

Those words had never left Serun’s mouth before. Never emerged from the vibrations of his vocal cords. Never challenged the very air around him. But he craves Saya’s smile.

Not the smile she has shown three times since the red moon. He wants to see the smile that reaches her eyes, and it is more than enough for him to fulfil a vow.

Reyes and Avianna wait for them by the wall. Saya’s steps slow, and Serun’s ear twitches and pricks up.

They step aside and make space for Serun. Facing the wall, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out shadows. Inside the black mass, there’s a shiny, illuminated white orb. He never travels without it. Twisting it around his fingertips, milky light sparkles, glimmering in the air with a powerful aura.

“What’s that?” Saya says, and the curious kamai leans closer, her ears bent back, then pricking, only to pull back and stay there. Confusion glints in her eyes, not knowing if what she sees is friend or foe.

Serun’s chest clenches, but he quickly turns away before she notices. His heart doesn’t beat. Not even the slightest. But he wishes his did when it came to her.

“Something stolen. Before the slayers took light from Port Ru’s Prayer Sanctuary to create an aura around Sylvar, I took this from them and destroyed all information about how to make them.” His voice drops lower, thick with annoyance. “And I killed those responsible.”

A guarded look crosses Saya’s face as she eyes the pearl. “What does it do?”

“Creates an opening. A portal to somewhere else in Naylen—the Undercity, topside, or, in this case, the Darkovish Feeding Ground.” His eyes narrow slightly. “Wherever you desire.”

Serun turns back to face the wall once again, hiding a smirk at catching Saya’s attention.

He rests the pearl against the limestone and pushes it into the wall. Silver light bleeds through growing cracks as they spread out like veins on a butterfly. Light carves an arched doorway into the wall, and Reyes and Avianna step through without hesitation. Once they’re out of sight, Serun turns to his consort and lifts his hand to her in offering.

Saya’s hands curl into loosely clenched fists, and she presses her lips inwards, hiding her fangs. Torment spins webs in her mind: the hesitance of trusting a man who forcibly made her his wife.

Then, she exhales and takes Serun’s hand. She’s soft. Warm. An invitation Serun wants to claim. He’d devour it all over a fucking touch.

Redness tickles her cheeks, and his smile broadens as her poison-dipped, frustrated thoughts slip into his mind. He draws her to him, and as she steps into the light, he keeps his eyes on her the entire time.