Page 83 of Marked By Night

To say Dante was a little shocked to find Kaos and I naked together would be an understatement, but there is no time to dwell on it.

As I make my way down the hall to Reed’s room, I can hear low voices, but I can’t make out exactly what they’re saying. I tentatively push the door open and gasp when he comes into view. Kaos may have healed the worst of his injuries but Reed is still worse for wear. Mottled bruises dot his entire face and there looks to be burn marks down his arms and his neck.

“What the hell happened?” I ask, closing the door behind me with a soft click.

Reed’s silver eyes snap to mine and the faraway look in his eyes disappears briefly.

“We don’t know yet,” Dante replies, putting his arm around my shoulder in a protective move that’s unnecessary. “He wouldn’t talk without you here.”

“Me? Why me?” I ask, confusion twinging my words. “What difference does my presence make?”

“I was wondering the same thing,” Elian says, unbuttoning the cufflink on his button-down shirt and rolling his sleeve up, showcasing more tattoos. As much as I hate to admit it, he looks hot as fuck like that.

Hubba, Hubba.

“Hey, Sadie,” Reed whispers hoarsely, running a hand through his reddish hair. I notice for the first time that his glasses aren’t on his face. Probably broken if I’m guessing. “I never dreamed I’d find you here.” A small smile tugs at the corners of his lips, but he winces and it drops.

My heart twinges painfully. “What’s going on, Red?” I ask. Kaos frowns at my nickname for him but I ignore it.

The faraway look in his eye returns and he turns his gaze away from me with a sigh. “It’s quite a long story.”

When his eyes meet mine again the depth of the pain in them steals my breath away. He looks like someone who has the weight of the world on their shoulders and failed.

I lick my dry lips, shifting nervously as I await his answer. I don’t try to rush him, I simply tell him, “I have time.”

Since the bed is pushed against the farthest wall, I slink down on the corner and scoot back against the wall to wait for him to be ready to talk.

The light spilling in from the curtains highlights the orange tones in his hair. Sometimes it looks darker, almost brown, but in the sunlight, there’s no mistaking it as any color other than red.

“Listen, the first thing I need you to know is that I had no idea who you were at the restaurant.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” I ask, tilting my head to the side in question.

“Because after that is when everything started going downhill,” he whispers and the pain in his gaze is like a thousand sharp knives eating into my flesh. “The second thing you should know is I didn’t break our pact.” He pauses for a moment, looking over to the Kings before looking back to me. “My father did. He was furious when he found out how your Circle had been evading us, and tortured one of the men loyal to me to find out the specifics.”

Elian’s eyes narrow to slits. “You know more than what you’re saying,” he says, stalking toward Reed but he stops when I put a hand up.

“Let him speak, please,” I snap. “Red, you’re not making any sense to me right now. Let’s start with why you’re here. Why are you beaten and bruised? How did you fall through our porch? How did you get through the protective ward?”

Reed sighs, looking way too weary for someone his age. “That night I met you at Harborview, there was an attack from your Elders…” He pauses, and a single tear falls onto his cheek. It almost looks silver as it rolls down his face, and then hits the white bedsheet. I can tell that the display of weakness costs him a chunk of pride by the slump of his shoulders.

Personally, I prefer a man that’s not afraid to express how they feel.

“I rushed back to find that they decimated my entire home—my people. The entire community is gone. They were still there, and they made me watch while they murdered my father. While we never got along, it was truly awful…” He trails off in a coughing fit.

Kaos rushes over and starts patting him down again, his hands lighting up in that dark glow as he heals more of his injuries.

“Even the women and children?” Dante asks, utterly horrified.

Reed nods.

Thinking about that makes bile rise in the back of my throat. An entire society decimated, and for what cause? Nothing can justify that. I don’t even know anything about the Light Weavers, yet I know that what the Elders did is wrong. So fucking vile, and I make up my mind about them. They will get what’s coming to them, even if I’m the one that has to bring about their demise.

“I’m so sorry about your people, Red. Words cannot even express the magnitude of my sorrow for you,” I whisper, running my fingers through my ponytail. “Did anyone else survive?”

“I’m not sure. I—I’m a fucking coward. I ran. I used the Light to travel. At first, I couldn’t leave, but I begged and pleaded with the Sun God to take me to my mate and I ended up here.”

An accompaniment of growls echo across the room. Dante reaches over and plucks me off the bed and away from Reed, tucking me into his body protectively. Essentially, he pissed on me, claimed me without actuallypissing on me. Kind of like how licking something or someone claims it as yours, but in more of an alphahole way.

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