Total pages in book: 401
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
Kieran’s mouth snapped shut.
“And contrary to my actions, I do have restraint.” I held his stare. “But you also know more than anyone that it only lasts for so long.”
The silver aura behind his pupils pulsed as he stood there silently. His power retracted, and the golden sheen faded from his skin. Figuring he’d gotten the message, I stepped back.
I was wrong.
“Do you really think she won’t notice this shit between us?”
Not a single part of me thought that. Poppy was very observant—annoyingly so.
“You won’t be able to keep this from her,” he said, his voice low. “She’ll notice—”
“She’s not going to notice shit because you and I aren’t going to act as if there is any shit between us.”
Kieran’s laugh was less biting this time. “Are you kidding me? Someone blind, deaf, and half-dead would notice that things aren’t right. And she’s already asked.”
He had a point. And she had asked.
“Then we’d better get our shit together,” I said with a tight-lipped smile. “But if you can’t handle it, you have the room closest to the Solar. If you prefer not being in the Solar, you’ll still be able to hear if anything happens.”
Kieran snorted. “With Poppy awake, I pity any idiot who attempts to make a move against her.”
“As do I,” I replied. “But I’m not worried about the typical idiot. Kolis is out there. He could still be a wraith, or he could have a physical form now. Either way, he can project his whatever the fuck it’s called.”
“His vellá,” Kieran said.
Of course, he remembered that. For a moment—just a second—the normalcy was a relief.
I ruined that in the next breath. “Can you handle it?”
“I can handle it,” he gritted out.
“Perfect.” I moved back. “Now, if you don’t mind, I need to go find the fucking generals.”
“Murin is beyond the city’s Rise.” He paused. “I believe he’s holding afternoon training if that is what you’re looking for.” His gaze met mine. “And that’d better be what you’re looking for.”
Tension continued building in the muscles of my back. Because he knew what I was like when I was wired too tightly. He knew what I needed. Fight. Fuck. Or pain. One of the three in excess worked. But since the kind of fucking it took was out of the question, that left the other two. So, I knew what he was getting at. And it was like a fucking punch to the gut.
“I’m past that point in my life,” I bit out, holding his stare. “I know who I am.”
“I would hope.”
“You should.” I rolled my shoulders back. “After the generals, I’m going to feed on someone who is hopefully not fucking Emil.”
“That may be a problem.”
I briefly closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Why?”
“Naill and Perry are both on patrol, and Hisa is with Lizeth,” he shared, smirking. “Emil is the only one in Wayfair you trust enough.”
Fuck me.
I pivoted.
“Cas.”
Every muscle in me locked, forcing me to stop.
“I won’t say anything to her.” He paused. “For now.”
My hands fisted at my sides.
“But as you know, my restraint only goes so far, too,” he said, his voice low. “I know you don’t want to put this shit on Poppy and make her feel guilty, but I don’t know how the fuck you think she’ll feel when you do finally get around to dealing with this if you keep it from her.”
I inhaled, tasting the bitter chalkiness of ash as I stared ahead. Yeah. I didn’t want to put that on her. But if she learned that I knew? If she realized what it had caused? It would break her heart.
“So, I suggest you get on with it,” Kieran said. “Because I’m not going to let you do this to her—to us.” The breath he took was shaky. When he spoke again, his voice had turned coarse. “I won’t let you do this to yourself.”
POPPY
The sky looked…different.
My hands rested on the balcony’s smooth stone railing as my gaze traveled the endless expanse. There weren’t many clouds.
But there were stars.
Thousands of them blanketed the sky like diamonds had been scattered across it.
It would’ve been beautiful if not for how wrong it was, considering it was only late afternoon and several hours from what should have been dusk.
It had to be another sign of the imbalance in the realms—one that would continue to worsen as long as both Casteel and Kolis were in the mortal realm.
Gods. That wasn’t an outcome we had even remotely considered when we brought Malec to the Bone Temple.
I should be more disturbed than I was, but it paled in comparison to what I’d experienced in the Continents and what I’d seen carved into Reaver’s features when he realized I couldn’t wake Jadis.
Anguish.
Gods, I could still hear it in his voice.
My hands trembled against the railing. Why hadn’t my touch worked?