Danni’s eyes change; gone is the lustful stare, and in place sits fear and uncertainty. Her consciousness has finally broken through. The water begins to fade. The ring returns to normal, but I don’t let her go. Instead, I pour all of my emotions into her with a single desperate expression, begging for her to see me as she did before.
I’m not a monster; I’m trying to keep you safe. This is killing me—you’re killing me. Don’t look at me like I’m a monster. If you must, then kill me. Deliver your sweet kiss of death. I’ll take it if it’s what you want. I’ll take anything you give me just for a scrap of your attention.
She frowns, then faints against my chest.
“Well, well, well. The crowd is practically vibrating from your performance, Knox.” Tension ripples through me as Damon approaches behind us.
I lift Danni into my arms, suppressing a growl as I settle her against my chest before turning to face him.
“Who knew you were an old romantic?” he jokes.
Egor smirks as he approaches. “I agree, your infatuation with the girl is… surprising, after all of those years you spent punishing us for the misgivings of your last Familiar.”
My jaw ticks. Still, after all of these years, Celeste is a touchy subject. While she made an obedient servant, the way in which she gained immortality still burns a hole deep in my chest. A short time ago, that burn would have triggered a fit of rage from me. But now, all I can think about is getting Danni safely off this stage.
“What can I say? I’m a sucker for green eyes.” My face and tone are deadpan; I’m not giving Egor or Damon any excuse to digfurther into this. My mate is stuck with me in this hellish place, and I can’t get her out until we’re back in our realm below.
Damon gives me a deadly smile that says, ‘I know who she is, and I know what you’re hiding.’ I sense the shift in the crowd’s blood: their happiness is fading. Damon notices, too, as his head snaps towards them as they start to file out of the tent towards their accommodations. The blood won’t be good to them if it’s spoiled. I hate that violent part of me. The part that knows when to strike, to feed. It’s a dangerous edge to balance on for centuries. I’ve seen far too many vampires snap from the pressure of it all.
“Come, Egor. Let us enjoy the crowd now that they’re all riled up.” Damon gives me one last wicked grin before leading Egor away. My fingers dig deeper into the rubber of Danni’s suit, holding onto her as if—What is it I feel? Fear, I think. Fear of losing her. Fear of The Five discovering our connection. Fear of having just met her and then needing to set her free. Fear of trapping her here with me and condemning her to a lifetime of darkness for my own selfish reasons.
16
Danni
I wake up toan empty room that isn’t my own. Instead of the cream and soft blue color scheme I’ve grown accustomed to, I find myself surrounded by all black everything. Curtains, bedsheets, rugs, furniture, but it isn’t cold or gloomy. It has more of a luxurious feel to it.
The room is smaller than mine. The lit fire sits in an identical spot, making it feel cozy. Books stacked neatly on floor-to-ceiling shelves line the walls. I wrap myself deeper within the sheets. I can’t help but bunch the silk in my fists and take a deep inhale.
The entire room smells like Knox. Intoxicating. He smells like an old oak tree mixed with exotic spices that I would never be able to identify. Otherworldly, just like him.
I savor the moment of stillness before the memories of the first training come flooding back. My chest tightens and I become acutely aware of how badly my body aches.
Was any of it real?
Soft footsteps from my left spur my heart into a gallop. I whip around, pulling the sheets closer to cover more of me.
“It’s okay. It’s just me.”
My eyes widen as I take Knox in. Although I don’t know him that well, I can tell he isn’t himself. His hair is messy, like he’s continuously run his hands through it the last few hours. He’s still wearing yesterday’s clothes, but his jacket and pants are now wrinkled. My eyes linger on the narrow slice of pale, exposed skin beneath the unbuttoned black shirt and the silver chain hanging around his neck.
Why does he look like he hasn’t slept?
The corner of a couch peeks out from beside him. My heart squeezes at the thought of him sleeping there.
“What happened? How long have I been out?” My eyes collide with his crimson ones, the bags beneath them visible even in the dim light from the flickering fire.
He smirks, catching me off guard.
“You passed your first training session with flying colors. How long did it take you to figure out they were your own nightmares?” He takes a seat at the foot of the bed; the bond between us springs to life, and thoughts of everything we could be doing in these silk sheets ignite a fire underneath my skin.
“When I was on fire.”
The smell of my burning skin. The unrelenting heat. A silver branch with spiky thorns wrapping itself around the podium beneath me. It all rushes back.
“Your performance was very impressive, even if the crops didn’t want you to succeed.”
“Crops?” I frown as he casually brushes a hand over his jacket. Please don’t tell me that term is used for what I think it is…
