It didn’t matter. A wave of absolute fury slammed into me.How dare she touchme, the necromancer, the one she should fear?I grabbed her wrist and forcefully pulled it off, thinking nothing of the consequences. Bone crunched under the contact. The anger roared in me all at once as if it had been bottled up for days and now it threatened to explode. I bore my fangs at her, my other hand dropping to the hilt of my dagger, but when my fingers grasped the leather guard, my mind finally caught up to my rage.
What was Idoing?
Larissa’s eyes were wide, her stance defensive, though she hadn’t fought back. Of course not—I was under Raphael’s protection. The thought threatened to stir the anger again, but it wasn’t my anger.I’dbeen having a good time with Larissa.
“I didn’t mean to overstep, my lady.” Her posture was stiff, but some concern was on her face. Maybe a hint of fear too. I’d seldom landed a blow on Raphael, but even with Larissa’s own vampiric instincts, she hadn’t been fast enough to pull away.
Realizing I still had her wrist in a death grip, I let go. Holy shit, what had I done?
“No, no, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to. Your wrist…” Guilt hit me square in the chest. I’d hurt her without even meaning to. This must have been what Thea had warned me about. I’d felt hints of this anger before, especially sparring with Raphael, but I’d thought I’d gotten a handle on it.
At least I’d stopped myself before thralling her, but this anger, the physical violence—was it worse? To be so out of control of my body?
Bile rose inside me.
“It’ll heal soon,” she assured me. “I shouldn’t have touched you without permission, my lady.”
It would’ve been easy to blame her sudden movement, but I knew better. She wasn’t the one at fault. I was. “I’m truly sorry. I don’t know what came over me. You did nothing wrong. I just… I was wrong to react like that.”
Her expression softened. “It can happen. Especially since you’ve only recently turned. I certainly didn’t know my own strength when I was newly made.”
Her forgiveness was so quick it almost made me sick all over again. Especially because the part of me she was forgiving—the vampire side—hadn’t been responsible for this violence. “Perhaps that’s it. I’m sincerely sorry, Larissa.”
She smiled, genuine understanding sparkling in her eyes. “Let’s see about getting something to drink. As a fledgling, you’re probably thirsty by now.” She shut the gate behind us.
“I’m always thirsty.” The words slipped out, a little too honest. I was still distracted by the foreign anger I’d faced.
Larissa winked. “I’ll gladly assist any way I can, my lady.” There was some extra meaning in the title that I didn’t quite catch.
“Sam,” I corrected. Had that outburst cost me the bit of friendliness I’d earned?
“Sam.” She waved me forward, but carefully, and didn’t reach for me again. “Let’s see how the others are faring.”
The inn was cozy.That was the first word that came to mind. Artfully composed quilts covered every chair and wall, clearly a passion of someone who spent time here. It was as normal as any inn to be found in the Witch Kingdom. The foyer was empty. Instead, sound rumbled through an open doorway past the entryway.
Larissa strode forward. I trailed behind her after a moment of glancing around.
Round wooden tables with stools of slightly varying heights. A warm fire that we’d seen glowing upon approach. We weren’t the only travelers. A few others sat at the bar or at tables. The only real difference was the lack of bottles set behind the bar top.
Our group had settled around a large table. One of the guards was gesturing with a goblet, the one to her side giving a good-natured shove to the shoulder. Raphael was perpendicular to the entrance but hadn’t spotted us yet, an empty seat at his side. There was a slight curve to his lips, and he said something I couldn’t catch over the din that had the others laughing.
Larissa turned back when I didn’t follow. “Coming?”
I hesitated, unsure. Did she really want me there, after how I’d hurt her? Her wrist already looked better, but the guilt lingered. Yes, we’d traveled for days, but I hadn’t really spoken to anyone but Raphael—and Demos, if you counted him barking orders at us to pick up the pace. But what was I going to do, retreat to my room and hide under the bed until dawn knocked me out?
At least then I wouldn’t hurt anyone—or the grimoire’s influence wouldn’t make me hurt anyone. But then again, I needed to master my resistance. I couldn’t do that from an empty room.
I trailed after Larissa, who was greeted with clasped forearms and grins that said this might not be their first glass of blood wine. She pulled an empty seat from a nearby table.
I got respectful nods and took the only other free space—the one next to Raphael.
“How were the horses?” Raphael asked, a bit blandly.
Was he still in a huff about me going off with Larissa before? “Fine, I suppose. After several hours of trotting along, I can understand why they need to be massaged.” Honestly, with how sore my own hindquarters were, I almost wished we could trade places.
Larissa grinned across the table at me. “You’ll be a natural rider, I can tell.”
I palmed my thighs, feeling the muscle hot under my fingertips. I hadn’t noticed when we’d been on the move the past few days, but now I was acutely aware of the ache. “A sore one, perhaps.”
