Page 75 of Sugar Rush

He tilted his head, gaze flicking up from the striped cone to me. "Blatantly?"

"She's got a point. They're not trying to hide their hate," Joseph murmured, edging protectively closer to Taj.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" I breathed.

"Someone's been spying on us; they told Eidolon we had Lou, and he sent us X to distract us," Taj hissed. "The wraiths!"

"Wait!" I gasped. "I'm having a thought!"

"Seems unrealistic, but okay," Taj muttered.

"He gave us X back because he knew Lou would tell us about this tower. While we were healing him, he must have come here and set this trap."

And it would have been cool if I could get angry about that, but I was empty. My mates' rage blasted through my soul but had no effect on me. Dammit.

In positive news, being murdered couldn't hurt when you didn't feel anything. Because that's what would happen. I'd find Eidolon and kill him, but he'd probably kill me, too.

So be it.I shrugged the thought off.

"Fuck," Joseph growled, scowling at the wraiths. "And we brought the wraiths here with us, like idiots."

"I'm going to burn them all," I hissed, and darted around Taj, lighting up my hand with black, twisting fire.

Joseph tagged along, because he refused to let go of me. Another rumble of dark, fiery rage crashed through my soul, making me gasp.

"I need both hands," I told Joseph, not daring to look him in the eye in case he saw my deception. "Please, Joseph."

I felt his resistance, but he exhaled a growling sigh and uncurled his fingers from mine. "Kill them all, sweetness."

I swallowed the lump in my throat, but there was nothing to do about the burning in my eyes.

"I love you," I said, keeping my tone as light as possible. "Every part of you."

The manic cat in our bond stopped racing around and began to purr. It hurt to feel the panic slam back into him when I covered my whole body in fire and raced into the huddle of sneering wraiths. Andkeptrunning.

I sprinted through them, knocking people aside, burning whatever touched me as I ran.

Eidolon's code had never been sophisticated. I hadn't been a particularly intelligent eleven-year-old when he taught it to me. The rule was simple; say any random words you want, but the true message is in the final word.

There's a squirrel in the lasagne and the treehouse has a personal masseuse and spire.

Spire—another word for tower.

And here I thought I wouldn’t have to climb the endless staircase.

"Avie!" X yelled, stabbing a knife directly into my chest. But I just got him back; he'd just escaped beingtorturedby my monstrous abuser. I wasn't leading him back there. I wasn't leadinganyonethere.

Eidolon had to die, but no one else had to get hurt in pursuit of his murder.

Only me. Never my mates.

So I ran, and even when fury and fear hit my soul, I kept running. I didn't dare stop.

31

My lungs had collapsed halfway up the black, square Feared Tower, and I was running on breathless determination now. I fuelled my conviction with memories, making them sharp and ruthless in their detail.

Joseph, still and wan on the floor of the great hall, a candlestick buried in his shoulder and a terrifying silence on the other side of the bond. Blood had soaked through his clothes, so much it should have been fatal.

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