Page 32 of A Heart Of Bitter Poison
“True,” I muse as I wring the water from my hair and slide conditioner through my locks. “Though if he’s gotten wind of Semyon and his mission to make hybrids, he might have gone underground. He’s one of the oldest left, so he’s gotta be on Semyon’s priority list.”
“I’m sure Ashen will bethrilledto meet him,” Ediye chimes from where she sits on the bathroom counter. I poke my head out of the curtain and give her the stink eye. “Does he know?”
“What, that I made Cassian into a vampire?”
“That too. But I was more talking about the leaving him at the altar and breaking his heart part.” Ediye smirks as my stink eye turns into a vampiric glare. I retreat back into the shower and snap the curtain closed to the sound of Ediye’s laughter.
“It’s none of Ashen’s business anyway. In case you’ve forgotten, he betrayed me and landed us both in a fucking dungeon. For amonth. And I’ve just killed him for the second time, so I’m sure he’ll give no shits about something that’s ancient history.”
“Yeah, well, he also did save you from a demon snake-“
“I saved myself! Bitch.”
“-and then rescued you with his fancy demon blood while spending hours whispering adorations in your ear and then hours more by your bedside, threatening anyone that so much as glanced at you. I believe the phrase ‘if you look at her for one second longer I’ll skewer your eyeballs and feed them to you like cake pops’was used in reference to Cole at some point.”
I snort a laugh and try to cool a sudden flood of warmth that spreads within my chest. “That’s some interesting imagery. But it makes sense. The Master of War is very invested in the health and well-being of the Shadow Realm’s newest potential weapon.”
“Yeah… I don’t think it’s that.”
“I don’t care what it is. He’s a demon, I’m a vampire. I don’t belong in his realm and I’d rather die than go back. They’d throw me right back in that dungeon and pick up where they left off. And I’m definitely not falling for his shit again, end of story.”
“So, I’m confused… is that why you had sex with him?”
I raise my chin and give a haughty shrug, not that Ediye can see it. “He’s hot as hell and I was horny. It was angry sex. One time deal.”
Ediye laughs like she’s got my number. “Oh vampire. You are so fucked.”
I scoff as I let the water slide through my hair to wash the conditioner away. “Why shouldIbe the fucked one?Heshould be fucked. I fucketh him.”
“Oh youfuckethedhim all right. But when Cassian finds out you’re still alive, he might be all up in his feelings about it. And I don’t think Ashen takes kindly to sharing.”
“Pfft. There’s nothing to share. I’m not a fucking whale carcass for two sharks to fight over. I’m the fucking orca that swims up all stealthy-like and kicks both their asses.”
“Yep. You’re alllllll sea panda.”
I turn off the shower and whip the curtain open. “Sea pandas are apex predators,thankyouverymuch.”
Ediye laughs at my vicious scowl and holds the towel out for me. My glare softens as I realize how much light there is in her eyes. How much relief. To see her smile without a veneer of pain and worry bathes my heart in shimmering light.
“Okay, sea panda. I’m just saying that you should be prepared, in case there are uncomfortable questions. And you might think you don’t belong to anyone, but others might think differently, and I’m starting to believe it really might have nothing to do with your potential to fuck some shit up among the realms.” Ediye leans forward as I wrap myself in the towel and burrow myself in its warmth. She gives me a kiss on the cheek and then smiles at me. “I know you belong tome.”
“I’ve always belonged to you.”
Ediye winks and nods to the counter where my clothes lay folded. “Damn straight, bitch. Now you’ll have to excuse me. My little pet pissed on the floor and I’d better go clean it up.”
I guffaw a smoky laugh and Ediye’s smile spreads before she leaves the room. When she’s gone, I get my shit together, feeling a lot less energetic than when I woke the first time, but a little better than when I came-to in my piss puddle on the floor. When I wipe down the mirror and really assess myself, I look the way I did before my encounter with Semyon and the torture of the Shadow Realm. But I’m different on the inside. I know it. I know without doubt that whatever Semyon started, I need to finish. I can’t go back. I’ll never be what I was. But maybe I can control what I can become.
When I emerge to join the others, they’re all sitting around a dining table with a spread of Egyptian delicacies laid before them. There are kebabs and falafel, a plate of rolled mahshy piled high. For me there is no plate but a large ceramic mug and a matching teapot, and I can smell the blood from the other side of the room, spiced and sweetened just the way I like.
Cole gives me a boyish smile around the food he’s stuffing into his face, all his Reapery manners fromBit Akalumclearly chucked out the window at the earliest opportunity. He’s properly shoveling it in. Eryx gives a little wave with a forkful of falafel. His wings drape behind him across the chair like iridescent knives. Davina sits on the other side between Cole and Mr. Hassan, and she neither smiles nor frowns. She just gives me an observant, unnerving, watchful look as she shifts her honey-colored locks away from her eyes with a delicate hand. Mr. Hassan absolutely beams as he fills my mug and beckons me to sit next to Ediye.
My head buzzes with hornets taking flight but I manage to keep my shit together and sit without toppling over to piss myself in a group setting. I give Mr. Hassan a grateful smile that I then cast across the group. “Thank you all, for everything you did,” I say. My voice is still so husky and raw, but I’m here, able to speak.
“Ediye says you passed out?” Eryx asks, his brow furrowed.
I nod. My eyes dart toward Davina, but I focus back on the angel. “I feel much better than before, but I don’t think it’s over. Whatever Semyon started has to be finished somehow, unfortunately.”
“I have something that might help in the meantime,azizati,” Mr. Hassan says, and he rises to shuffle over to a sideboard to retrieve a leather pouch. He sets it down next to my cup and withdraws a small vial of clear liquid. “It’s called statera elixir. It is used for young and powerful witches who have difficulty controlling their developing powers. You should take it when you wake in the mornings, but you can use it when you feel unwell in the day. It will not solve what has started within you, but it might help you to keep control of your gift, rather than it control you. There is enough in this pouch for several days.”
