I walk away, leaving my blades behind. He can manage.
Back at the coven, I oversaw the instruction of many witches. This feels familiar, fulfilling, even if the student is mortal. Fulfillment from mortals has only come when it was time to try to become pregnant or when their blood satisfied a sacrifice. Having them fulfill me in this new way is foreign, but the feeling is not.
Kalix meets me at the door, arms folded. “Great work, little tyrant,” he teases. “Luca is our youngest. Barely twenty-one. Smart kid. Smaller than the rest, but he’s sharp. Try not to kill him, yeah?”
I give a half shrug, but his words linger.
He is a good kid.
“I will only gravely injure him,” I say sweetly, flashing a too wide smile, just to be an ass.
Kalix rolls his eyes, unamused by the comment. “Wouldn’t expect anything less.”
He shifts back to business. “Tomorrow evening is the ball, but we’ll need to head there earlier. The lord’s estate is across town.”
“Can we go alone?”
“Felix and Iris aren’t coming. It’s too risky if there’s an infected. Cage will need to join us, especially if we plan to contain it.”
My fingers drift over the coolness of my collar, tracing the carved runes on its surface.
He’s right. We’ll need Cage’s magic.
The petty, stubborn part of me still wants to argue. Wants to prove we can do itwithouthim. Cage is at least becoming slightly more tolerable—slightly.
And I can’t help but wonder if that thought is mine—or if it’s the bloodlust telling me to sink my teeth into him. The part of me that tasted him now wants more.
A crash behind us. Steel on wood. Behind us, two guards tumble into a full-blown brawl.
Kalix jogs back into the room, dragging them apart with a snarl. His shouting echoes like thunder, rattling my ears.
I leave before it gets worse. No thanks.
Chapter 41
Millicent
LUCA MANAGES TO KEEP UP during our run—barely. He sounds like one of those smooshed-faced dogs who struggle to breathe.
“Breathe through your nose and mouth. Time it. Deeper. Be more controlled. With me.” I inhale slowly and hiss out air through my teeth. Our steps begin to sync up, and he adjusts to match my rhythm.
“How is this?” He pants heavily, his words ragged but steadying.
“Much better. Less piggish. Now pick those feet up, and no heel striking.” I grab the back of his shirt and pull, forcing him to match my pace. He follows well. Once his form smooths out, I release him.
We run four miles around the castle grounds, past open fields and the edges of the forest. I breathe deep, welcoming the fire in my lungs and the burn in my legs.
In the center of the field, I slow to a stop to watch the sun rise. An array of hues of orange, pink, and violet. The sight is both soft and violent, all at once. It’s breathtaking.
Luca stops beside me, hunching over, trying to catch his breath. “It’s beautiful,” he says between his gulps of air. “My little sister loves watching the sunrise.”
“My best friend loves them, too.” I smile. The warmth touches my face, casting my pale skin in gold. “We used to watch them all the time growing up.”
Iusedto love this. Sunrises. Soft mornings. That changed when my lessons did. I am a creature born of shadows now. And to the darkness I must return. This light, this beauty—it’s temporary. A dream. And I am the thing that ruins dreams.
“Why did you stop?” Luca asks.
“Why does the sun set and let the moon rise? Why are life and death lovers doomed to long for each other, never able to touch?”
