I only release him once I know we're far enough that he won't be a threat to the others.
But when we emerge from Limbo, the beast flops onto its massive, scaly side. It's breathing heavily, smoke rising from its nostrils.
“Fucking dragon,” I mutter.
It's good I fed on Maven's dreams before getting to the fun part last night. It means my skin heals from the burns as I wait, watching the idiot dragon to make sure he recovers.
Minutes pass.
He doesn't get up.
Godsdamn it. If I just destroyed Decimus’s mind by mistake, I'm not sure Maven will ever forgive me.
32
MAVEN
“Don’t eat the meat, Gideon.”
Eyes are on us. Slick, inhuman, carnivorous leers fill the colorless stone dining hall, which is littered with bones.
I can feelhimwatching us.
He’s here, in this foggy, horrible recollection—I can feel the coldness spreading in my chest. His presence draws me deeper, clinging to my soul like oil, twisting and smothering what little remains of me.
“Why not? I’m so hungry. They never feed us enough.”
Young Gideon reaches for the heaping platter just as the other remaining contenders have. They’re lifting their knives and forks, licking their lips.
Why is Gideon reaching for it? Doesn’t he see what’s going on?
I can’t move. Shadows flood my chest, suffocating me as I fight for clarity. Iknowwhat they’re doing to us, just like I know now why Olivia didn’t meet me after training yesterday, as she’s done for months.
She got caught.
“Stop,”I try to warn again, sickness crawling up my throat as I watch his fingers close around a thick cut. “You can’t. It’s not an animal, it’s?—”
A cool hand brushes against my face. My eyes fly open as I jolt, gasping for air.
Blinking away the lingering nightmare takes a moment, and my stomach is still churning when I realize Silas, Everett, and Crypt are all gathered around me on the bed. In the dimness of the room, I can make out that they all look horrified and angry.
Possibly because moisture is trickling over my cheeks.
Damn it. Now I’m even more sick to my stomach. I fuckinghatecrying in front of anyone.
I sit up, quickly swiping at my face.
Crypt swears, his voice a frustrated rasp. “I was forcefully removed from your subconscious again, love. Forgive me, I couldn’t?—”
“It's fine. I’m good.” I breathe out slowly to dispel the lingering nausea.
“You were whisperingdon’t eat the meatover and over,” Everett says quietly, his soothingly cold hands brushing hair out of my face. “What were you dreaming about?”
I mean to tell them it’s nothing, but words pour out before I can stop them. “When I was twelve, Amadeus learned one of the human girls in the citadel was trying to befriend me. She’s the one who stole Pierce and gifted it to me. As punishment, he…”
Nope. Turns out, I still can’t talk about that incident.
Instead, I take another deep breath, clearing my throat. “The Undead feel a limited spectrum of emotions, but one of their greatest amusements is seeing the living unwittingly eat their own. I could never be sure where meat came from. That’s why I still can’t stomach it.”
