Page 73 of Wicked Heirs

“The healing part… it doesn’t take away from what he did.”

“Oh, I know, believe me. And justice was delivered that night I ripped him out of the sky.”

Yeah, Orpheus had told me all about that, the impressive display of her angelic power.

I couldn’t help smiling. “Good on you.”

I summoned her a bowl of little marshmallows onto the coffee table in front of her.

“Thank you,” she said, brightly.

As I sat back, I told her, “That could have gone sideways, you know? Really fast.”

“I had the iron weapon with me.”

“That was a bit much. Especially given the damage it can do to Talon’s kind. Really brutal damage, Alena.”

“I had to make it clear that I wasn’t going to pull any punches.Show of force, remember?”

“Even so. It’s not a safe strategy to go in hot like that—pun not intended.”

She popped a handful of marshmallows into her mouth as she took my words in. Once she’d swallowed, she said, “You’re a lot like him. What I know of him from my mom, anyway.”

“My dad?”

“Yeah. Elliot Sabre is known for being cautious and diplomatic, actually favoring the latter over things coming to a clash. Even though he could literally obliterate anyone.”

“Just because he possesses the power, doesn’t mean he needs to use it at every juncture. In fact, he should do the opposite. Otherwise, that’s how megalomaniacs are born.”

She smiled. “I see he taught you well.”

“He was well on his way. Until I was turned.”

“I’m so sorry, Xavier.”

I shoved a hand through my hair and released a heavy sigh. “You know, when you fed me your blood, it was the first time I felt more than a fraction of my magic at my disposal. I could even feel nature in the way I used to for a brief time too.”

“I’m glad,” she said, reaching out and rubbing my arm. “But it’s not all darkness with the vampire side. There’s beauty to be found in the demon, that which you haven’t begun to explore yet.”

“You actually believe that?”

“I do. Everyone has darkness in them. But as I’ve learned the hard way, denying it all completely isn’t the way to go. You lose so much of yourself. I mean, I basically tried to function as human and completely denied a massive part of myself. I ran from who I was. It was lonely and confusing and it hurt me. I don’t want the same for anyone else, especially not somebody I’ve come to care about, somebody who doesn’t deserve to live that way.”

I stroked her fingers on me. “I appreciate you saying that. And I care about you too. A great deal.”

“I’m getting that, yeah.”

I conjured something for myself then, a jar of Red Vines. “Mygo-to snack,” I told her. “Helps with the bloodlust and… other things.”

I started chewing on one while she went with her marshmallows.

And it was really nice just sitting and being like this with her.

It was a shame I had to bring some harsher realities into it. A part of me wished I could just leave it, but I couldn’t. So I put it out there. “So, you and Orpheus? That’s an interesting turn of events.”

“Disturbing is closer to the truth there,” she said, jokingly.

“You’re drawn to the dark and you don’t like it, but with Orpheus, he makes it feel okay, like it’s nothing to be ashamed of, like it’s to be embraced. He does it himself in a non-dangerous way and he’s very good at walking that line.”

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