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It's ash and glass and yeah, a bit of Legend’s blood too.
I turn my head, spotting the small shards gleaming just before my hairline and rather than look for some tweezers to tug them free, I press my hands down over the spots, rubbing and digging them in further. I rub until they’re imbedded beneath the skin.
Fresh blood leaks into tiny droplets, too small to fall but not too small to see. That's when my eyes snap down, to the spot on my neck.
Teeth marks, deep and proud in the skin.
My fingers brush over the spot and a tingle runs down my arm, through my body until every nerve inside me is alight. My eyes fall to my thighs and I spread them, staring at the mark there as well. It's gleaming, seeming to vibrate beneath my skin, or maybe that’s my chest.
Am I growling?
I grip my throat, feeling the vibrations there and hiding the mark.
My palm shakes and I close my eyes as a shiver races down my spine, but the second I do, I see him.
Dark and deadly. Strong. All-consuming and life altering. Safe.
“No.” I shake my head, forcing my lids open. “Fuck no.”
I saw him in the hall. His shirt was wrinkled and untucked, like he spent the night fucking me from his system with some meaningless bitch and couldn’t be bothered to change. His eyes were black beneath too, likely from lack of sleep and some serious party favors of the royal, magical fucking kind. And again … a sex marathon.
Pressure falls on my chest at the thought, but I bite into my cheek to block it out. Glaring at his mark on my skin. His stamp.
His claiming of his mate before his rejection.
“Fuck you, Knight Deveraux,” I slur. “I’ll cut you from my skin my damn self.”
With that thought, I take the bottle in one hand and a wine corkscrew in the other.
* * *
Knight
Mother prepares to address the masses, the sky lighting as she appears within it as one giant live projection for her protection.
Her announcement is being aired across the realm; an emergency beacon having bloomed through the skies alerting everyone something was to come. The beacon hasn’t been used in centuries, so there’s no doubt our people wait on bated breath to hear what the Dark Queen has to say.Guaran-fucking-tee it’s about to be last thing they expected to hear tonight.
They probably think they’re here because of the continued attacks on the royal properties. The last having killed four Fae who weren’t even supposed to be at work that day but were called in last minute.
My brothers and I sit around the table together, watching through a mirrored monitor Creed conjured. It floats between us, the edges glowing a deep blue that will shift to red when she opens her mouth to speak.
Our people couldn’t be more wrong as to why they were called tonight, and Mother wastes no time. As always, she digs the knife in without hesitation.
“The King is dead.” She speaks with the strength of a Queen, holding it together for her people.
We stare in silence and tension crawls up my spine, knowing every home, layer, and fortress in these lands is just as quiet in this moment, her words no doubt sending a shockwave through the Gifted community.
“In the name of the demons who guard these walls, I promise you this person will be found and their execution a public one for all of us to enjoy.” Mother pauses as if there is a crowd below, and she can hear their cheers.
Sinner scoffs beside me, pouring each of us another round of laced scotch. “She loves this game, don’t she?”
I nod absentmindedly, watching the dark streets of Rathe, hoping the person responsible for our father's death will show himself.
“Let us not forget that our loss is also our gain.” Mother's hand lifts, outstretched to the galaxy above and I feel the frown building over my face.
Throwing his hand out, Creed flicks the screens away, and we watch as they turn into nothing but smoke that fades above us.
“What do you think she’ll say?” Sin wonders.
