Page 30 of Lifeblood

His brilliant grin distracted some from all he refused to say, but I’d be lying if I said his deflection didn’t hurt after thinking of him as the easiest to get along with. Not to mention me admitting to being afraid. To have that vulnerability met with deflection stung.

Lance drained his wineglass and reached for the bottle.

“Wait.” I grabbed a knife on the table. “Here. Don’t want to forget.”

As if a demon king could. Still, Lance’s retreat had soured the mood some. I’d rather get this part over with quickly.

“Ava…”

I held my palm and the knife above his wineglass. “It’s what we’re here to do.” I smiled. “Then we can enjoy the rest of our date.”

Lance’s eyes studied me closely, but then he nodded with a smile. “As you wish.”

I made a small cut in my palm, hissed with the now familiar pain, and let my silver blood, shimmering in the twilight, collect in Lance’s wineglass. Just enough to sustain him for now, the same as Mordred. “Here you go.”

Lance held the glass up before him for a long moment. Twilight caught my silver blood and revealed a shimmering layer of gold swirling within.

“So much divine power,” Lance said, “in a few drops of blood.” He brought the glass to his lips and drank. His body tensed violently and he slammed his free hand on the table.

I jumped. “Lance?”

With what appeared to be great effort, Lance forced his body to relax, and then he set the glass down on the table as if nothing had happened. “Hmm. Seems as though my fae ancestry still doesn’t mix well with the gods’.”

But when his eyes met mine, they flashed silver, just as Mordred’s had. Lance’s skin danced more brightly with rainbows too, and the flowers and plants closest to him seemed to grow more vibrant and colorful.

Lance took a few slow, deep breaths, and then grinned. “Thank you, Ava. I acknowledge the great gift you’ve just given me. And one day, I will repay you in kind.”

I opened my mouth to say it wasn’t necessary, but words had not yet left my lips when one of the trees in the courtyard quite literally came to life. Its roots sprung out of the dirt, followed by its large branches swinging down toward our table.

My eyes widened and I jumped up. “Lance!”

Lance glanced over his shoulder just in time to see the massive limb swinging our way. He lurched over the table, grabbed my arms, and dragged us out of the way. We landed with a hardthudon the ground, my shoulders screaming in agony.

“What in the hell?” I gasped as my lungs heaved.

That was when the courtyard grass came alive, too. Slithering up our bodies. Pulling us under.

We were under attack. Again.

CHAPTER12

“Stay down,” Lance ordered, his tone biting as he stood to face the danger. Which at this point appeared to largely be livingtrees.I’d never seen anything like it before. But the way Lance jumped up into action, I had to believe he had.

He fired magic in the form of a kaleidoscope of color toward the giant enemy tree. The rainbow torrent of energy slammed into its bark, and the monstrous entity reared back, wailing. Actuallywailinga low, loud cry as Lance’s magic split it in two. Splinters of bark and wood exploded outward.

I wrapped my arms around my head to protect myself. Doing so made it so I couldn’t fully see Lance’s next attack, which resulted in moss and grass exploding.

Fear seeped into my veins. If any plant on this palace island could be about to attack, was anywhere really safe? And since when didplantsattack?

An answer came as two sets of hands clamped around my arms and middle. Only when I glanced down, I couldn’t see them, just feel as they gripped hard enough to bruise. Before I knew it, I was being hauled away from Lance as he was kept distracted by the attacking plants.

“La—!” I tried to scream, but I was cut off by yet another pair of hands wrapping around my mouth and nose. That set offrealpanic. I called my magic to my hands and tried to burn the ones holding me, but light wasn’t meant for burning, only blinding, and I wasn’t sure my attackers evenhadeyes, let alone full bodies.

My assailants yanked me backward toward one of the courtyard’s walls. I kicked the entire way, fighting every inch they dragged me, until one moved their fingers a little too close to my lips. I managed to get my teeth around one and bite—hard.

The attacker yelped and let go. As soon as my mouth was free, I screamed, “Lance!”

Lance turned instantly, worry creasing his features. And then anger. Pure, raw anger. “Howdareyou?”

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