Page 55 of The Coveted
Next to the King.
Next to myenemy.
It felt like I was slowly coming down from a crazy, psychedelic drug binge. At least I had one foot back into reality.
Lucius laughed, only partly at my expense this time. “I’m surprised you seem shocked. I mean, Daelon—”
I held up a hand. “Nope. You can stop right there,” I said, before I could stop myself. “I don’t want to hear it.” I didn’t want to hear about whatever past, kinky exploits Lucius wanted to rub in my face. Probably with Renata. I bristled, nearly expecting Lucius to retaliate against my so-called poor manners.
Much to my surprise, he just laughed again. Now Iknewhe was up to something—if he was letting me order him around to a certain extent. And what was up with the out-of-character good mood?
“Or what? You’ll silence me like you did poor Harry?”
I pursed my lips. “He came running to you about that?”
“Mm. I don’t know what he expectedmeto do about it, though. I thought it was pretty hilarious, truth be told,” he mused. “And then you drained that poor girl, which was even better news.”
My stomach dropped.Drainedher? How did he even know about that? “Is—is she okay?”
Lucius snorted, glancing at me like I’d just asked the most ridiculous question in the world. “Of course, she’s okay. Fascinating you would even ask.”
I breathed a sigh of relief, though that breath was short-lived as I realized I had no idea where we were going or what he wanted from me. “Some of us actuallycareabout other people.”
“It’s a weakness,” he snapped. “But no matter. I’m just happy to see you… integrating.”
Well, now I knew I made a wrong turn somewhere if Lucius was happy with my actions. We approached a door with guards posted outside, and I was somehow both thankful and disappointed that Daelon wasn’t one of them.
“Don’t worry, I’ve made my entertainment take leave for the evening,” he murmured, propelling the door open with a flick of his hand.
I wrinkled my nose with disgust, and then I hesitated at the doorway. What was I doing here? I wasn’t entirely myself yet, the euphoria of the night still clouding my body and mind. It was dangerous to be anything but clear-headed around the man who was literally tearing holes in the fabric of our multidimensional reality.
“Go on, then,” Lucius commanded, an authoritative edge to his voice to let me know that I didn’t have a choice. “After you.”
I stepped passed the guards, sucking in a deep breath and reaching out to my power reflexively to make sure it was still there and ready. It was a room not unlike some of the ones back at the party, but this one had a bed against the wall to my left. I had to fight hard not to imagine what Lucius and hisentertainmenthad been up to just moments before. Across from us curtains billowed, as the doors to a curved balcony overlooking the gardens stood ajar.
Lucius strode to the massive, king-sized bed and sat down. He made a come-hither motion with his finger, to which I responded with an indignant cross of my arms.
“I think not,” I choked out, firmly planting my feet.
Lucius’s eyes narrowed. “Sit down, Áine,” he sighed. “My patience isn’t infinite.”
Before I could weigh my options, I felt my body lurch forward, against my will at first as I worked to block Lucius’s spell. “Fine,” I huffed when I had successfully impeded his command. It was then that I walked to him on my own.
I sat down, trying to keep up a wall of confidence even as I stared into the darkness that was the Witch King. I left a good foot of distance between us.
“Good girl,” he said softly, and I grimaced. “I’ve discovered a way for you to earn your place here, so I’d practice a little more gratitude if I were you.”
My stomach churned. None of this could be good.
“Give me your hand.”
“What? Why?”
Lucius rolled his eyes. He grabbed my arm from my lap and faced my palm against his. Everything in me wanted to flee. My power yearned for me to run as fast as I could, away from Lucius and away from this castle. “I want you to try to channel my power.”
I searched his eyes. “What? You know that I can’t do that. My body literally rejects it.” Andwhy?
His grip on me was tight, and his piercing blue eyes seemed to battle against a flare of annoyance. “I have a theory. I think it’ll be different this time. You have to let it in—it can’t be forced. You need to accept it from me as if it were your own.”
