I watched as Daryl’s head tilted, and a faint, ethereal light began to emanate from Dex’s chest, his soul. Thin tendrils of his soul essence drew out, coiling like Skel’s smoke into Daryl’s body. It wasn't a violent move; it was precise, almosttender.
The light flickered, dimmed within Dex’s chest, but it didn’t fade away. Dex’s kneesbuckled slightly, but he remained standing, his chest vibrating with a chuckle.
“Holy Fates, that was weird.” He reached up and ran a hand through his hair, stumbling back a few steps. “Shit.”
Daryl turned to me, a ghost of a smile touching his lips. “Your turn,” he said simply.
My heart hammered against my ribs as I stepped forward to face Dex. “Um, is it okay for me to feed on his soul after you already did?”
“I only took the smallest fragment,” Daryl drawled, shrugging. “He’ll be fine. Won’t you, Shadowheart?”
Sweat rolled down his temple, and his white blond hair stuck to his forehead as he shot me a grin. “I’m fine, trouble. Show me what you can do.”
My hand trembled slightly as I mirrored my father's earlier gesture, my palm hovering over where Dex stood. My eyelids fluttered shut, but the magic didn’t resonate in my palm like Dary’s did. It emanated from my gut, and I moved my palm away from Dex, resting it on my stomach.
Soul magic swirled deep down inside of me, and I focused on it, willing it to only pull a fragment that would sate my hunger without devouring his soul altogether.
Magic slipped from my lips as I opened my eyes and watched the smallest wisp of smokeleave me and enter through Dex’s nostril. It found a fragment and covered it, gently drawing it up before the magic escaped his body and bottomed out in my stomach again.
I felt Dex’s soul fragment inside of me. The heat of his essence flowed into my reserves, filling it a quarter of the way up. It was intoxicating, the rush of power, the filling of my magic reserves without snuffing out a life.
“That’s it, exactly,” Daryl said, his voice soft enough that only I could hear. “You did it without failing.”
Excitement and a sense of belonging that I had never known before flooded me. “I did it!”
“Good job, trouble.” Dex smirked before crashing to his ass on the mat and giving me a thumbs up. “Shit, I’m tired.”
“I’ve got some council matters to talk to Blackthistle about, but you did great.” Daryl reached out and patted my head with a loving look in his eyes.
I blushed and nodded. “Thanks, Daryl. Good luck with the investigations.”
He nodded at me before ruffling my hair a bit and turned to leave.
Reed’s arm slipped around my shoulders as Ashenfell dismissed the class, and I leaned into his warmth.
“I knew you could do it, dream girl.” He grinned and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “I’ve gotta meeting with Hunter, but I’ll definitely let him know about this.” His lips brushed against mine, leaving them tingling before pulling back and leaving the stadium.
Nightwind was in front of me as soon as Reed had left, and I hadn’t even seen him come in. He didn’t usually have this class with me, did he?
“So, that’s why you won’t give me the time of day? Too busy kissing the lousy dream demon with a human mom?” His words were laced with venom as he spoke of Reed. “I’m so much better than he is. Why would you choosethatover me?”
Anger seared through me, but before I could let out my rage on Nightwind, Dex moved between us in a blur with help from his shadows, his presence startling me.
“It's fucked that you would let someone speak about yourboyfriendthat way,” Dex spat out, his words like daggers, as he narrowed his gaze on me. It was obvious that he was mad at me, but it had to be about something else. He hadn’t even let me get a word in edgewise before interrupting, and Iwasabout to yell at Nightwind. “Maybe Bram's right, and you're just a little bitch of a noble.”
I gasped, flinching back at his words.Hemlock and Skel had called me out for my nobility, but to hear Dex do it hurt.
“I really thought—” He cut himself off with a whisper before disappearing into his shadows. He didn’t give me a chance to deny any of what he had said.
I swept my gaze toward Hemlock and Skel, and their expressions twisted with murderous anger.
My heart raced, my mind grappling with the hostility that seemed to close in around me after such agoodexperience in class.
What had happened between the start of class and now?
I finally focused back on Nightwind and his sneered expression as he looked down on me. “Do you honestly expect me to believe you didn’t haveanythingto do with that attack Dreadful planned?”
He stumbled back with his eyes widening. “W—what do you mean? Did Dreadful’s heel kick you delirious?”
