Page 159 of Tempest of Wrath and Vengeance

“And how will this be worth my while?” she hissed.

Razik straightened, taking her hand and tugging her to her feet. “We can discuss that tonight overdinner.”

The look Eliza sent him was all heat and fire, and Luka averted his eyes because this was definitely something intimate between the two.

“Set up the visit to this library,” Razik said then. “I’ll see if I can find anything on visions, but if you think of anything else that might be useful, send a message.”

Then he and Eliza disappeared—Traveled—out of the room.

Theon and Luka sat there in silence until Theon spoke the obvious.

“You have a brother.”

“Yep,” Luka said.

And that brother didn’t seem to give a single fuck.

29

AXEL

Axel followed the male in front of him down a passage in Bree’s home at the House of Four. It’d taken him three days to get back here. An entire day of driving from the portal station in Dark Haven had gotten him to Arius House, where he’d waited until well into the night to sneak into the sprawling house. He hadn’t wanted to run into his mother, but he’d wanted to gather a few of his things. Some extra clothing. His favorite chaosphere sweatshirt. Extra earbuds. He’d been in and out in less than an hour, but then he’d had to drive another two days to the Underground. It was a trip he’d made numerous times before, but he’d always had a driver. It took him longer to navigate all the mountain passes on his own.

And during the day.

Because even with sunglasses on, the sun hurt his eyes.

The drive had been torturous in other ways though. The entire way he’d thought of Kat and their child. Had she told Theon yet? Was Eliza holding her hair back when she got sick? Was she eating? Was she healed enough for him to take more blood from her?

No!

He wasn’t going there again. He’d make sure of it. It was why he’d left. To keep her safe from himself.

But wouldn’t he go to that place again? He was going to be a Night Child. A vampyre. His world would revolve around blood, yet the idea of drinking from anyone else was as appealing as finding himself on the losing end of his father’s wrath.

Once the transition was complete, it would get better.

At least that was what he had told himself over and over again, mile after mile. He just needed to get through these next two weeks of agony.

It’d taken another few hours to make his way to the Underground Districts and then to the House of Four. The guards at the entrance didn’t question him, which meant Bree was expecting him. That was confirmed when the male leading him through the passages now had met him at the door and only said, “Come with me.”

They finally stopped outside a set of large towering iron doors, and Axel had to wonder how they’d gotten them in here. The male pushed the doors open, standing aside and gesturing for Axel to go through. Hesitantly, he took a few steps and then paused as he looked around. It was some kind of vault or armory. Perhaps both.

Weapons of all kinds were along the walls. Swords. Daggers. Bows and arrows. Spears and whips. Even some weapons he didn’t recognize. But stacked on the floor were chests full of coin, gold, silver, and all manner of jewels and jewelry. This was a room Luka’s dragon dick would get hard over.

He wandered farther into the room, his hands in the pockets of his jeans. He didn’t dare touch anything. This was new territory for him. Before he’d been their superior, although he’d rarely needed to pull rank with anyone in the Underground. But soon enough, he’d be one of them, and he had no doubt therewould be more than one person lining up to prove they were stronger and more powerful than the fallen Arius Heir.

And the clan leader he was here to see was going to be one of the first in line.

He rounded a corner to find Bree. Her back was to him, her long black hair loose. She wasn’t wearing her usual red dress. Instead, she was wearing a red skirt that reached the floor with deep slits up the side. Her black top left her back exposed, and when she turned, it barely covered her chest.

She was holding a sword in her hand, and by the gods, it was a beautiful weapon. The hilt was gleaming gold, intricately designed with several rubies inlaid. The blade itself appeared black at first, but as Bree moved, the light caught on the steel, revealing it to be a deep crimson red. With a skill that only came from years and years of practice, Bree swung the sword, spinning with the movement. Her skirt flared out around her, and Axel had to admit it was impressive she could move like that in heels that tall.

He stood several feet away, waiting for her to acknowledge him. Was this to be his life now? He didn’t know, but he needed to figure it out, and that started with learning to control the bloodlust. It could obviously be done. Bree certainly didn’t appear to have a need to maul every Fae that came near her. The problem was neither did he. He’d almost prefer that over only wantingKat’sblood.

She sheathed the sword before placing it carefully inside a case that sat atop a table. Snapping it closed, she replaced a lock that was clearly enchanted as it glowed beneath her fingers.

“That’s a lot of protection for a sword,” Axel said, unable to just stand there any longer.

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