My breath caught, and my body—well, it had a completely inappropriate response to the sound of his voice and the growing flecks of crimson. It was smoky, cold, and full of power. Neither of those things should be arousing.
A low sound rumbled from his chest as he ran his teeth over his lower lip. “Get your mind out of the gutter, my Queen.” He paused. “Or should I say get your mind out of Miss Willa’s journal?”
The flush that hit my cheeks was immediate and spread down my throat. I lifted my chin and breathed in deeply, regretting it as I took in his scent. “I’m going to choose to ignore that.”
“You do that.”
“Anyway,” I said, “has this Revenant…pieced himself back together?”
“No. He’s dead,” Casteel shared, and my lips parted. “And, no, it wasn’t a draken. Either tearing a Rev to pieces prevents them from regenerating, or something else was at play.”
“That should be impossible, though.” I eyed him, feeling a crease forming between my brows. Casteel shouldn’t be able to kill a Revenant, but… A faint tingling erupted along the base of my neck. “Maybe it has to do with…what you’ve become. I mean, with the essence that was transferred to you.”
“Maybe so,” he said after a moment. “I wonder if that means you’ll be able to kill them, too.”
“I couldn’t before.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “But I…I think so.” I lowered my hand, unsure of why I thought that. “Do we know how many Revenants are still out there?”
“Millicent and Malik hunted down all they could locate in the city,” he said. “But we don’t know how many are still out there or in cities ruled by the Blood Crown.”
“Cities like Masadonia and Pensdurth,” I said under my breath, my thoughts racing. “Not to mention the smaller towns scattered between the capital and the north, ones isolated by the Blood Forest.”
Casteel nodded and then drew in a deep breath, taking my hands. “There’s something we need to talk about before we get too deep into the shit with the Ascended and the kingdom.”
I tipped my head back, unease immediately springing to life. “Well, that sounded…foreboding.”
I’d expected him to say something teasing, but he didn’t. “Remember how I told you that you’d woken up briefly?”
The unease grew. “After the Revenant attack.”
He swallowed. “When you lent your power to me, it interfered with your Culling—the Ascension itself.”
I stiffened. “Casteel—”
“I’m not saying this as an expression of my guilt,” he quickly said. “It’s just a fact.”
The essence pulsed through me, my frustration rising. “And how do you know it’s a fact?”
“Because it made you vulnerable.”
“To what?” I demanded.
He smoothed a thumb over the top of my hand. “You woke up a second time, Poppy.” He watched me closely. “You don’t remember that at all, do you?”
“I don’t…” My brows drew together. “Was it for a couple of moments like before?”
“No.” He squeezed my hand. “You were awake for about two days.”
“What?” I inhaled sharply as I jerked back. “I was awake for two whole days?” My voice rose as the eather stirred within me. “And I don’t remember it?”
“It appears you don’t,” he said, holding my hand. “I know you probably have many questions.”
I let out a short laugh. “Yeah. Starting with what in all the realms was I doing?” A jolt ran through me. “Oh, gods, please tell me I didn’t embarrass myself by, like, running around nude.”
Casteel blinked. “What?”
“Or try to eat Kieran again,” I continued. “Oh, my gods.” My gaze darted to the door. “Is that why he’s not here? Did I try to eat him?”
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “You didn’t try tobitehim.”
