Page 73 of Phoenix Falling
DEMETRI
The dorm was silent as I slipped inside, save for the occasional shift of bedding or whimper in someone’s sleep. Two thin privacy screens lined either side of the room in front of the rows of beds, cutting off the view of the females as they slept. Since there was no entry from outside into the back of the dorm area, there was no danger of intruders coming from that direction, and the screens gave the females some small sense of protection and privacy in their most vulnerable moments. That had been Lyris’s suggestion.
My heavy heart softened at the thought of my twin. She cared so much for the psychs here, was tender and careful with each one of them, and yet she was tough as nails when it came to a fight. She’d stood up to Sun earlier without flinching because she’d been fighting for Risk’s safety. Nothing the female had done, nothing Sun had done would have stood in her way. And my heart had been in my throat every second. Sun had been out of control—we’d all known it; hell, anyone who could see him would’ve known it. He’d been dangerous, and my twin had been in the line of fire.
Unfortunately, I thought I knew why he’d lost his control at the evidence of the redhead’s betrayal, and it didn’t bode well for any of us.
“Long day?”
My hand lifted, seeking Imogen out, needing to touch her before I’d even had the chance to consciously recognize her voice. Fingers twining with mine gave me strength when all I felt was concern.
“Long enough that I didn’t hear you walking over.” And that was saying something, because I didn’t miss things like that. Especially when they involved my attention on my mate.
A crease appeared between Imogen’s brows. “What’s wrong?”
I tugged her with me to a nearby chair, curled my opposite hand around her hip, and pulled her into my lap. My favorite place for her to be. “A lot. So much…” Things I couldn’t say. Things I was ashamed to say. This business with Sun and Risk was a disaster in the making for our people; I shouldn’t allow my own selfish desires to rise when there were much more important things at stake.
And yet rise they did as Imogen curled herself against me. She tucked her head into my neck, and the scent of her, warm female and flowers, enveloped me. Blood rushed to my groin, the need for my mate rising—needing to feel her, needing to join with her. Sun didn’t have this now. My heart, already tender over Lyris, ached for my king.
Lyris strode through the door, beelining for us. “You two get out of here.”
The bite of her voice told me exactly what her mood was. I rubbed my chin against the top of Imogen’s head, loving how her hair always caught in my stubble, connecting us. “I am on duty, Lyris,” I reminded her.
“Yeah, well, I’m not leaving my females tonight.” She frowned at the privacy screens as if angry that they prevented her from seeing her charges. “We don’t need both of us here. Go away.”
The pain in her voice started a tightening in my stomach. “Lyris—”
She didn’t say anything more, just shot me a look. Imogen seemed to interpret it as well as I did. Slipping from my lap, she stood and gave my hand a squeeze. “Let me get something real quick.”
“Imogen—”
Her smile was so gentle when her gaze shifted to Lyris, then back to me.“I’ll be right back. You two take a moment.”
I stood as well, watching as Imogen crossed to the screens and disappeared to the other side before turning toward my twin. Her scowl had me sighing. “Sun is—”
“I don’t want to talk about him right now.”
I knew she didn’t, but this was important and someone besides me needed to get some perspective. “Lyris, that female…I think she is his mate.”
Eyes the same green as mine went wide, startled. “No.”
“Yes.”
Lyris seemed to consider that a moment. “How sure are you?”
“I’m pretty sure.”
“Why?”
I threw a look over my shoulder in the direction my own mate had gone. “Because no man goes that insane over a female that means nothing to him. If she was a one-night stand, her betrayal would barely affect him. Finding out that your mate has been deceiving you…” I couldn’t imagine. And yet his actions today might have lost him that mate and damned my king to hell for the rest of his earthly life.
“He could have killed her, Dragon.”
Lyris’s fear for the female saturated her voice, stabbing at me. “But he didn’t. He couldn’t. She’s his mate; trust me.”
“God, what a mess.”
I leaned against the wall next to her. “Yeah.”
