Page 85 of The Hunt of Night

I press my fingertips into my temples, wincing against the headache that begins to pound louder. “What time is it?”

“Eleven,” Kryll answers, perched on the side of the bed with a tight smile on his face.

My eyes widen in surprise. It feels like I barely slept, and even though only a handful of hours have passed, it somehow feels like most of the day has passed.

“You must be hungry,” Brody murmurs, and I shake my head.

“I need to think before I eat.”

“About what?” Raiden asks, confusion knitting his eyebrows together, and I sigh.

“I don’t know where to start.” It’s the truth, and that’s what is causing even more of a headache.

“That’s what we’re here for,” Brody offers as Cassian stands with his arms folded over his chest, staring at me intently.

I shake my head, and Brody is in front of me in the next breath. “Don’t you dare put your guards back up,” he warns, tilting my chin back as Kryll sighs from his spot beside the bed.

“They already are,” Kryll adds, and I hate how they always have the ability to see through me. Façade or not, it’s a power I wish no one had over me.

“What do you need, Princess?” Kryll asks, cutting through everyone even though he’s the farthest away.

“To think,” I admit, a strange feeling tightening my chest. I don’t like having to explain myself to anyone, but this doesn’t feel like that. This feels…reassuring, I think. I don’t fucking know. I need to think about this too.

“Where?” he asks, his demeanor remaining relaxed as I sense tension from the other three.

“Not here,” I admit, exhaling harshly as I feel judgmental eyes fixate on me even more.

“Okay,” he answers, and I slip past Raiden toward my saving grace among the craziness that are my Kryptos, but that doesn’t stop the hot headed vampire from trying to interject.

“Okay? Definitely not okay,” he grunts, hands balling into fists at his sides, firing anger into my veins again.

I pinch the bridge of my nose, trying to hold back my agitation, when Kryll speaks.

“You’re making it worse.” He’s not fucking wrong.

“How could it possibly be worse?” Raiden snaps, his own irritation coming to the surface. “I learned the vampires are controlling the frenzied vampires. On top of the fact that the head vampires are also in cahoots with the other leading assholes intent on forcing us to be fated mates. All while some of us are having to hide family members for safety so they aren’t used against us. Again.”

“That sounds heavy, but now that you mention it, it’s surprising, just not all that shocking for the vampires” Brody muses, brows gathering in concern as he looks from Kryll to Raiden and then to me.

“It is heavy,” he retorts, and I sigh, lifting a hand to interrupt.

“The fated mates thing…maybe that’s done with. They would have acted by now, surely.”

Raiden looks at me like a second head has sprouted from my neck as he shakes his in disbelief. “They’ve waited this long, biding their time. They’re not known for their patience, Adrianna. They’ll make a move again. And soon, I can guarantee it.”

“My father did say,” Brody mutters, reminding me of the conversation we had. It feels like forever ago, but it’s been barely any time at all.

Pressing into my temples again, the pounding only worsens.

“You’re making me think out of sequence and it’s ruining my brain,” I grumble.

“What?” Cassian mutters, confusion etched into the single word.

“I need to compartmentalize, and you’re only looking at the whole picture. I need to assess each individual issue first before I piece it all together. Otherwise, it gets too much for me.”

Kryll’s hands come down on my shoulders, forcing my gaze to his. His eyes are soft and calming, but his lips are set in a flat line. “Go. Think.”

“No. Do not go and think. If last night taught us anything, fuck, if the past fewweekshave taught us anything, it’s that she’s not safe,” Raiden gripes, sending a cold chill down my spine.

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