Page 17 of Lifeblood

His smile faded. “You really were just a child when you were orphaned, weren’t you?”

Barely. I nodded. “First my parents, then their family and friends. I was barely old enough to comprehend what a family was. I don’t remember much of my childhood.”

I’d been whisked away and hidden for a time, and then… somewhere along the way, I’d become what I am today.

“I know lifebloods have divine magic, which expresses as light and light healing powers. I know we have true forms, but not what they are. By the time I’d have been old enough to shift, the other lifebloods were gone and there was no one there to teach me how.”

And without instruction, how was I to know what form to turn into?

“I also know our immortal silver blood can grant other supernaturals immortality, which is why your Demon Courts killed my kind.” And all ofthatis how we’d ended up here today.

Lance listened intently, leaning in over the food tray. “See, you know plenty. Except for one error. It wasn’t always so violent between demons and lifebloods.”

“No?” Because all I’d ever known said differently. Most foremost the fact that I was the last lifeblood alive.

“No,” Lance confirmed. “And much of that is tied into exactly why we can’t talk about things outside the Demonic Courts. It’s not always safe to speak of things like that without protection. Words have power, after all.”

“This is what I don’t understand, and I’m sorry for constantly questioning it. But if I’m not safe with four demon kings, whereamI safe? Where are any of us safe?”

All of the mysteries were starting to get to me. They’d forced me into a room with four of my mortal enemies by way of a lottery they’d said was more complicated than it appeared. We’d discovered we were all mates. They’d agreed to let me live—andnot, presumably, as a prisoner. I’d laid my reasonings bare for running all this time—my greatest shame. And yet here Lance was, teasing dangerous information with zero follow-through.

Lance smirked, which put me on the defensive. I was prepared for another one of his world-class pivots, but instead, he said, “The fact that you broke into Gareth’shotel roomwithout issue speaks to exactly how unprotected we are here. Just wait. Patience, lifeblood.”

My jaw worked hard. “Ava,” I corrected. But I was more annoyed by being told to be patient again than I was about Lance referring to me bywhatI was instead of who.

“Ava,” he corrected before plucking a grape from the bunch on the tray. He lifted it to my lips and held it there, waiting for me to acquiesce. It sent a shiver down my spine, recalling the memory of last night when he’d silenced me with a finger.

I gave in and ate from his hand, which only made his smirk grow wider. This demon king was so… strange. Fae were unusual outliers in the supernatural world. There were real fae, all woodlands and sprites and little wings, and then there were demons like Lance who rode the line between the stereotypical dark demons and creatures that wore whimsy and fantasy like dark fae of myth. In all my years, I’d never understood how they’d all come to be, but it made Lance interesting beyond measure.

“So,” I said as comfortable silence fell around us again. And itwascomfortable, strangely. Lance had a way of making me feel utterly at ease in a way that should have unnerved me. “A fae demon, then? How does that work?”

He made atsk-tsksound and wagged a finger, signaling a conversational pivot before he executed it—again. “Wrong question, but it does make me a perfect match for a unicorn, don’t you think?” He winked, and the charm of it, the charm ofhim, was working.

At least until my brain caught up with his words. “Awhat?”

“Unicorn,” he said simply as he rose from the bed. “A lifeblood’s true form. That’s probably why you get under Gareth’s skin so much. Unicorns and dragons are natural enemies. He wants to hunt you down as much as he wants toclaimyou.”

My cheeks flushed at Lance’s words. Gone was my confusion and shock over the wordunicorn—I’d come back to that later. All that existed were images of Gareth chasing me into the park from the hotel. Hunting me down was exactly what had happened the night before the lottery. That also explained the control Gareth had been fighting to maintain while pinning me to the ground with his own body.

Lance laughed and the sound of it was like bells ringing throughout the room, easy and clear and carefree. “Easy, Ava. No one will hurt you now. You’re safe with us, even Gareth. I promise. Come here.”

Lance moved closer and gestured for me to turn. I did as he’d asked without knowing what he was going to do, but the moment his deft, rainbow-skinned fingers touched my shoulders, I moaned. He was massaging my shoulders and neck, with warm, firm hands and a light touch of magic that sent tingles shivering down my body. Within moments, the tweak in my neck felt completely gone.

My head rolled back on my shoulders as I relaxed into Lance’s touch.

He leaned down to my ear and whispered, “Don’t tell the other kings you’ve already moaned for me.”

My breath caught in my throat, but I was spared from the embarrassment of a verbal response as a knock came upon the door. Then another, this time more incessant.

The door to my room swung open and instead of a guard, Mordred appeared in the doorway. His gaze landed on us, Lance’s hands on my shoulders, my head back and lips parted with flushed cheeks, and his eyes narrowed. “What are you doing?”

Lance let go of my shoulders and jumped up, all innocent eyes and amicable smile. “Just making sure our mate is taken care of. Poor thing slept pressed against the window. Not that I’m against pressing against windows—”

Mordred lifted a pale hand. “We leave in half an hour. Be ready. She’ll ride with Tristan for protection.”

Yikes. He was not happy. Also,pressed against windows? I couldn’t help but flash a look at Lance. He winked at me, which only made my cheeks get hotter.Oh.

“Sounds good,” he said to Mordred before turning back to me. “Just try not to make Tristan blush too much. The two of you are competing for some ‘easy blusher’ award, and I’m afraid one of you may perish before a winner is announced.”

---