Page 18 of Lifeblood

I blinked. “I’m sorry, what?”

Mordred cut in, a hard tone in his voice, “Just… be ready. Half an hour.”

Lanced laughed again and strolled toward the door. “I’ll leave you to it, Ava.” He left me sitting before Mordred utterly confused and flustered.

Mordred’s straight face did not grow more amused. He simply nodded once and then also left with purpose. I just hoped that purpose wasn’t to attack Lance. But then again, it wasn’t my business.

These demon kings would be the death of me. Of this, I was growing increasingly sure.

CHAPTER6

We were off on Mordred’s schedule, racing across the motorways in a full motorcade that was anything but subtle. Several SUVs, all black and armored, and all containing demons of varying ranks, all heading for Cornwall.

As Mordred had ordered, I sat beside Tristan in a car somewhere near the middle of the motorcade with two demonic guards in the front seats. It felt like something out of a political thriller movie rather than a bunch of demon kings returning to their castle fortress. Like they were rich mobster playboys instead of each kings of a supernatural race.

Tristan’s stoic, silent presence didn’t help matters. He kept his eyes trained on the road ahead and a crease along his brow.

“Did you sleep all right?” I asked when the crease did not disappear after a half hour of driving.

He turned to me with an eyebrow raised. “I’m sorry?”

I pointed to his forehead. “You look stressed. Or bored.”

“It’s a long ride,” he said, a bit dismissively. He must have realized it too because he inhaled deeply and nodded. “My apologies. I’m not always with it these days.”

“No, it’s okay.” I smiled softly. “Just trying to make conversation. Which we don’t have to do. Truth be told, I’m a bit talked out from this morning.”

Tristan’s brown eyes lightened some. “I heard Lance visited. I hope he actually let you eat breakfast instead of pulling some fae bullshit.”

His words didn’t bite, but they did sort of sound like it wouldn’t be news to Tristan if Lancehad“pulled some fae bullshit.”

Last night, I had thought the kings had seemed familiar enough with each other to maybe act as brothers. Now, I was beginning to see that was not at all the case.

“It was just breakfast and conversation, that’s all.” I turned my attention to the fields to either side of the road. Green rolling hills dotted the landscape as far as I could see.

Maybe I should’ve left England. Maybe if I’d escaped far enough, these demon kings and their wife lottery would’ve never found me. But the truth was that the demon kings had reach all over the world, and with that reach, they controlled an incredible amount of power—politically and literally. They would’ve found me, eventually, either way.

Which then begged the question again: What were they so scared of?

When Tristan didn’t reply, I looked back to him. The crease in his brow had returned and he’d pressed his lips tightly together.

“Is something wrong?” I asked.

“No.” But his simple answer didn’t dissuade me.

“Sure looks like something is. Is it me?” I didn’t think so, but talking to Tristan right now was even more like talking to a wall than talking with Lance had been. At least Lance hinted at answers, even if they were in the form of questions volleyed back at me.

Tristan’s hard exterior broke again. The shift appeared to take great effort and it unleashed a hundred questions in my mind, none of which I got to ask before he said, “The spirits are talking. They know what we know about you being a lifeblood. About our apparent shared mate bond. About fate.”

Spirits? “I’m sorry, what? You can… see them? Hear them?” Hewasthe King of the Court of Undeath. I supposed communing with spirits was part of the job. But I’d always imagined that court to be more about straight necromancy than spirit talking. “Is this a bad thing, what they’re saying?”

Tristan’s voice remained low, but he tilted his head. “I don’t know yet. And yes, I can see and hear them nearly constantly.” He swallowed hard—a movement I could see now he’d done on purpose to pull focus. He turned his gaze to me. “I don’t mean to be poor company. The company I unintentionally keep makes protecting you easier should it come to it, but it makes things difficult for me. I hope you understand.”

“No, don’t apologize. We don’t need to talk, either. I was just concerned.” And still was. He very clearly was having a hard time staying in the present moment. What was it like to see and hear spirits nearly always like this?

“I’m fine, but thank you.” He affixed a small smile to the corner of his lips, a vision that sent butterflies stumbling through my stomach. Tristan was handsome—and young. He looked the most boyish of the four, although he was definitely at least as old as me, given what I knew of these kings and their courts.

“The drive is only a few hours in total,” Tristan continued. “Then we’ll be at the palace. The plan is to decide on a full course of action there, although they’re still hoping you choose one of us instead of us having to decide.”

---