Page 31 of The Huntress

Coward.She smirked.

Shifting her focus between Syl and Darius, she wondered what the point was of this meeting. Darius’s annoying presence had her thinking he was at the core of it.

With a telepath in the room, her thoughts weren’t her own. She pictured a wall, building it around her mind like she’d read about in her paranormal romance novels. Much to her chagrin, she’d fantasized about suckbloods and beasts, but the fictional ones weren’t as disagreeable as the real ones.

She didn’t want her mental intruder to hear her thoughts about Syl and Darius, or worse, Val. She wasn’t certain the wall would work, but she tried it anyway. Doing something was better than standing idly by and allowing someone to mind-fuck her.

Mind-fuck?the voice whispered. There was a familiar quality to it. She shook her head and focused on strengthening her wall and her musings.

What the hell was this royal suckblood doing wandering around the docks in the middle of the night? In a tux, too? He’d said the canister held their future. Leo had said it wasn’t a weapon, but how well did she know Leo? Could she trust he hadn’t lied to her?

It’s not a weapon.

Get out of my head!she shot back.

“You’ve upset Darius by taking his toy.” Syl addressed their audience as if this was a theater performance.

She tightened her hand on Gabe’s while she added a thick layer of concrete to her mental wall.

If this idiot thinks I will choose Darius—

He’s my king, but yes, he does sometimes do idiotic things.

Like have a woman blow him in the middle of a ballroom.She searched the crowd for Leo. If Syl was here, where was his shadow?

You saw that? How did you see that, Callista?

She didn’t answer him.

“I don’t give a shit about Darius. If the fool hadn’t intruded…” Gabe’s voice resonated with anger. “Regardless, I speak the Rite ofAdsumoover Callista, as you now bear witness to.”

The crowd gasped, followed by shocked murmurs. She glanced at Gabe then at the surrounding suckbloods. Was this what he’d asked her to agree to? Okay…Adsumo. It sounded ancient, like something tribal and best left in a dark cave miles beneath the earth’s surface. Not knowing what it was, she reserved judgment. For all she knew, it could mean sex for a while, or keeping her as his pet or as his personal feeder, although he’d denied the latter. Judging the crowd’s reaction, claiming her was something not done lightly. Regardless, she didn’t want to agree to any of them.

“She’ll weaken you.” Syl’s eyes widened with a mixture of surprise and anger. “You haven’t announced the rights over anyone, not in centuries.”

Whoa.What Syl said made her instincts leap again. First, centuries? Gabe was that old? They had longevity, but she hadn’t realized it spanned hundreds of years. Second, how could keeping a feeder weaken him?

She scowled, not liking the idea of causing anyone harm, not after the countless partners injured in the line of duty because of her.

You have chosen your champion wisely, Callista.

“He cannot have her. She’s mine,” Darius whined.

Syl flicked his hand at him to be quiet.

Darius stilled, his blatant obedience lowering her opinion of him, not that he had far to go.

“Devereaux, have you bewitched my brother as you have tempted my advisor?” Syl asked her with honest interest on his face. Gone was the annoying smirk, the pseudo-charm in his voice. Instead, he arched a brow and peered into her eyes with unwavering curiosity.

She suspected genuine expressions were rare for him. “What the hell are you talking about?” she asked. He was a blithering idiot.

He means me. You have tempted me…

I don’t know you! Why isn’t my wall working?

Syl tutted. “I suppose I’m being an idiot. You’re human, are you not?”

“Yes,” she said. “You’re being an idiot.”

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