Page 93 of Immortal Burden

“I’m not squeamish. But this shit is… different,” I said, wincing as a series of horrific ear-piercing screams reached us.

“Yes. It is,” he conceded. He frowned and released me suddenly, spinning back to where we had been. “Mia has launched herself into the fray.”

“What?”

“I felt her magic flare. She must have teleported, but I can still sense her in the area.”

“She must’ve headed toward those screams.”

“And I’d believed you to be the reckless one.”

“Nah, she’s not normally like that. Just… she can’t stand people suffering. It stems from her… upbringing.”

He frowned.

I could sense the questions on the tip of his tongue.

Thankfully, he didn’t run with it, seeing as though we were in the middle of a fucking warzone.

I kicked myself inwardly, knowing how close I’d come to slipping up.

I couldn’t believe it. I’d never come anywhere near to revealing the secret of Mia’s lineage before. But then again, I’d never felt so comfortable with anyone before like I did with Lucian Black. I’d inadvertently dropped my guard with him.

A bolt of magic ricocheted off what remained of a nearby building and headed straight for us.

I reacted quickly, sweeping my hand in an arc and creating a shield in front of us.

The bolt disintegrated upon contact.

Blowing out a breath and pulling back the formidable shield so as not to drain my power before I even made it around the corner to the heart of the battle, I grasped Lucian’s wrist to get his attention.

“Wait,” I told him.

“We must make haste. The sorceress requires backup.”

I tightened my grip on him. “I need you to leave. I’ll teleport you back to your penthouse.”

“You expect me to leave you on the field of such a brutal battle?” he asked, incredulously.

“There’s high-level magic flying about all over the fucking place!” I said, raising my voice. I gestured wildly at the flaming buildings. “Hellfire!” I scrubbed my hand over my face. “The only thing that could make it more dangerous for a vampire would be if sunlight was streaming from the damned sky right now! Even for me to come out of this unscathed, I’ve got to be on my A-game and I can’t do that if I’m worrying about you! Fuck, Lucian! Just go, all right? Fucking go!”

He grasped my shoulders. “Do not deplete your magic by teleporting me away from here. This battle will require everything at your disposal. Go. I will head to the Guardian Compound and retrieve Cornelius.”

“There’s no way he’s not aware of this. He’s clearly decided the Maven Coven is expendable in his big picture plans.”

He cupped my chin, his eyes burning into mine. “You have forgotten how persuasive I can be.”

I started to shake my head. “Lucian, I—”

He leaned in and brushed his lips tenderly over mine. “Control your reckless tendencies and be careful. I can’t lose you.”

Emotion flickered in his eyes.

And then he was gone in a burst of speed.

I drew in a deep breath to re-center myself, because bringing intense emotion with me into a high-level magical battle was incredibly dangerous.

And then I sprinted toward the crazy light show in the distance, deftly dodging the wildly zig-zagging bolts of magic, the fiery explosions, and the thick smoke and ash emitting from the crumbling structures all around me.

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