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11
Raven
Everything was dark.Dripping sounded nearby and I turned toward it, trying to find the source of the sound. Or some light. Any light.
I worked to steady my breathing, forcing myself to stay calm. It wasn’t easy. I could feel a clammy sweat on my palms.
This has to be a dream. It’s only a dream.
It was a dream, wasn’t it? I spun in a slow circle, afraid to move too far just in case I really was in a black room. What if there was furniture around me. Or something worse?
Was I unconscious? Was this what that felt like? I’d never been punched before. Maybe I blacked out. Maybe this was why they called it blacking out.
Footsteps sounded and my heart raced. “Who’s there?”
“Raven?” Luka’s voice called into the blackness.
My shoulders dropped as relief rolled over me. If Luka was here, this had to be a dream. “I’m here. Luka, can you turn on some lights?”
A shimmer of light sparkled overhead as if the room had been painted in stardust. I held my hand up, my fingers brushing against some of the flickering lights. They seemed to move and shimmer like fireflies, not staying put in one place for long.
The dark space was illuminated now and I could see Luka walking toward me. I was happy to see him, but disappointed at the circumstances. Once again, I was in the dungeon. The same room I’d been going to in my nightmares since I was a child. Why was I always drawn to this place? And why wasn’t it lit today? That was new.
Luka’s fingers gently touched my arm and I smiled at him. “Thanks for coming.”
“Of course,” he said. “How are you doing? What did the nurse say?”
“Concussion,” I said, recalling the throbbing pain in my head. “Fractured cheek. That hurt like a mother.”
“I bet,” Luka said. “I broke my nose once. Well, I didn’t, my cousin popped me in the nose.”
“Ouch,” I said, reaching up to touch my own nose, then I reached for Luka’s. Now that he mentioned it, I could see the slight bump on an otherwise perfect profile. I slid my fingertip over it, surprised I never noticed it before. If anything, the minor imperfection made him even more handsome.
“They told me it would make me look tough but it healed so well most people can’t tell.” He shrugged. “It was a long time ago. I’m worried about you right now. Not me.”
“I’ll be fine,” I said. “At least that’s what the nurse said.”
“Did she use magic to heal you?” He slid his fingers through my hair, cradling the side of my head as if checking for injury.
“Yes,” I said. “Don’t worry so much.”
He scowled for a brief second, his eyes flashing red before returning to blue. “She shouldn’t have hurt you. Why did she do that?”
“Um,” I fidgeted, then stepped away from his touch. “I was with someone else over the weekend.”
“I know,” he said.
“You know?” I asked.
He frowned. “I could smell him on you.”
My cheeks heated. “Why didn’t you say anything? Don’t get me wrong, I’m kind of glad you didn’t, but still.”
“Cause I don’t own you, Raven,” he said. “You’re my mate and I’d do anything for you, but I need you to be happy.”
“Wow,” I said, blinking up at him. That wasn’t what I expected.
“So she hit you because you fucked her boyfriend?”
