Page 75 of Of Blood and Smoke

“Your nails,” Della said, grasping my hand. They were still elongated, the tapered ends stained red.

She ran her index finger underneath the edge of one, staring curiously. “Careful, they are sharp,” I warned. I licked my lower lip, feeling the hunger rising within me.

She gave me a weary smile. “I don’t think you’d mind.”

“Not at all,” I answered, giving her a deep, quick kiss. The residual blood from Brett mingled with her taste, enflaming me,driving me to nip her. The mewling sound she made when I bit was licked away with a long swipe of my tongue and her fingers dug into my sides as I backed her toward the staircase.

I would’ve just taken her right there in the chamber, but I didn’t want Micha seeing her at her most vulnerable, that was only for me. Inherently selfish, I wouldn’t share. Every wisp of her pure soul, every sparkle of her sweet eyes, every drop of her blood was solely for my sustenance.

Cupping her cheeks tenderly, I pulled away. “Go upstairs,” I told her.

Brett’s final words deeply concerned me. It was uncertain whether he’d acted alone or if he’d been following orders from someone here in the Third Realm. The man whose house we’d retrieved Della from hadn’t known Brett was going to bring her there. He didn’t know she was there until Micha and I had arrived. What had he been planning?

If anyone knew the ways of the Ancients, the Collective, it was me. Brett was clearly unfamiliar with their ways. I’d worked for them for years, enforcing their rules, privy to their goals, and executing their punishments.

Many, many years would go by with their absence. The five men remained separated from general society in their private homes situated far, far away from the palace complex.

During those times, a lord would be in authority over the court, such as Sem, the last lord I’d been appointed to. There was no one left whom he’d worked with, here.

Sem was dead, or extinguished—the proper term since he wasn‘t coming back. His essence was rejoined, in theory, with the Creator. No one truly knew what happened when one was extinguished, only that no one ever returned. The finality of this type of disposal was sobering.

Seeing as Sem was gone, I was at a loss as to who may have hired Brett to interfere and had to assume he’d acted alone.

THIRTY-FIVE

Josiah

“You’re absolutely covered with blood,” Della said when I entered the room. Her eyes snagged on my forearms, where streaks and drops had dried and would begin flaking shortly.

I rolled my sleeves back down and started tugging the shirt off. “Yes; occupational hazard.”

She sat on the edge of the bed. “I can’t believe Brett is gone.”

“Does that distress you? He kept you beholden to him under duress and then hetookyou.”

Della bit her plush lower lip—something I should’ve been doing—before she spoke. “It’s just strange, thinking about how he’s gone. He was always around.”

Unbuttoning my shirt, I replied, “He would’ve hurt you, and I won’t stand for that. There is no outcome in which he wouldn’t have died.”

She nodded once. “What was he talking about?”

I knew what she was referring to, his insinuation that I was in danger. They would come for me at some point, but I didn’t want her living in fear for me. The situation was such that there was no way to know for certain when or truly if the Ancients wouldstrike. Undoubtedly, they would but I was hoping my friendship with Ezra would interfere.

The problem was it could be today, it could be next month, or it could be five years from now that they’d make a move against me. Time moved differently, here in the Third Realm, and a reliable system with which to compare it to in coordination with the other Realms did not exist.

The disorder of the clock was maddening and unpredictable.

I picked Della up and placed her on my lap. She tied her smooth legs around my waist and rested her cheek on my chest. I wrapped my arms around her middle. She was so tiny. So human. So breakable.

Devoid of any magic, she was no match for any supernatural creature. The time had come for me to explain some more things to her about my life.

“Brett insinuated I was in danger but I’m well-respected. We’ll keep you safe, no matter what, so don’t fear anyone coming. As I’ve told you, there are many different kinds of beings out there and none are unfamiliar to me.”

She glanced up at me. “But what about those you called the Ancients?”

“I’m not supposed to engage in a relationship beyond sex with a human. There are only twenty known of my kind in existence, which is far too small of a number. I’m supposed to mate with a powerful witch, vampire, or demon from the elite families. What we are doing is forbidden.”

She peered up at me. “Then why are you doing this?”

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