Page 19 of The Night Runs Red

I snorted. “Yeah, real rough growing up with loving parents and unlimited wealth.”

Jasper furrowed his brows. “Do not judge a man you do not know too harshly. His father? Yes, his father was an amazing man—one of the best.”

“And his mother?” I asked..

Jasper huffed. “Leonora cares about one person and one person only. Herself. When Ramsey was away… Calia, she did horrible things to Rion. She pushed him to his limits repeatedly, testing his abilities and powers. There were days he could barely walk, yet she still forced him to train.”

I brought the mug to my lips, thinking about the similarities between our families. “Why didn’t he ever tell his father what happened when he was away?”

“He tried. Or at least, he tried once. His father confronted Leonora and demanded she explain herself. She’d made a mistake, you see. Normally, she’d back off a few days before Ramsey would return, but this time, he’d come back early. Rion’s body was littered with bruises. When Leonora couldn’t explain, he placed her in the deprivation chamber for two weeks.”

I gaped. “The what?”

“It’s like a cell, but you are completely disconnected from your senses. There’s no light, no sound, no sustenance. It’s fucking hell,” he said, running a hand behind his neck.

“How would you know? Have you been in it?”

He gave me a cheeky grin. “Once. Rion and I were just kids. We’d gotten the bright idea to play catch with one of his ancestors’ urns.”

I grimaced. “Oh, no.”

“Oh, yes. As you can imagine, the coordination of two gangly ten year old boys was not the best. His father walked in right as the urn shattered against the floor. Ashes went everywhere—it was complete and total chaos. That’s one of the few times I’d ever seen his father lose his temper. He went completely red in the face and started screaming at us. Then, he forced us to clean up the ashes and place them in a new urn before he took us down to the chamber. We spent one hour in there, which was the most terrifying hour of my life.”

We both laughed, and for the first time since I’d arrived, I felt some semblance of peace. It was nice having a friend who wouldn’t hesitate to step in on my behalf. I fought a yawn, and he pushed to his feet.

“I’ll let you rest. Do you need me to help you to the bed?” He held out his hand, and I wanted to take it, but I shook my head and laid it against the cushion. There was a perfect view of the lake from where I sat.

“No, I think I’ll stay here a little longer, but thank you,” I said, turning my head to gaze out. The crescent moon glittered, the first hints of red beginning to peek through.

I’d never seen the fabled blood moon. It was an phenomenon that occurred once every century. But I’d heard my aunt and uncle discuss it—how tensions were higher between the fae and the vampyres around that time. She always looked fearful whenever it was mentioned, quickly shutting down and taking me out of the room before I could learn more.

But it drew closer, and I felt a strange current lingering under my skin. A restlessness I couldn’t shake. However, I could also attribute that to my asshole of a husband.

Jasper said his goodbyes, slipping out the door and leaving me to my thoughts. I didn’t want to think about Rion anymore; he’d occupied more than enough of my time. Instead, I reached for a book on the small table beside me and lost myself in the story.

* * *

A loud thump sounded outside my door, jerking me from a restless sleep. I looked around the room with bleary eyes, shielding them from the light shining down from the reading lamp. I’d stayed up way later than I intended to, giving up on the world of polite societies I’d immersed myself in to instead pull up my favorite steamy read on my phone. One smutty scene led to another, and I’d forced myself to keep my eyes open until I apparently lost the battle.

A string of curses met my ears, followed by a low grunt of pain. “… fucking idiot,” they said. “Stupid, fucking idiot.”

I stood up and walked toward the door. “Hello? Who’s there?”

There was a huff, followed by a long pause. “Nobody you would care to see.”

“Rion?” His name was out of my mouth before I could stop it, which had me closing my eyes and mentally berating myself for showing my cards like this. And it wasn’t that I hated him—I didn’t know him enough to make that judgment. But I sure as hell didn’t like him, not after how he’d been today.

We were as different as two people could be.

“Ah, I knew you would figure it out.”

I fought a smile. “Well, you are an arrogant ass.” There was another loud thump, and I pictured him letting his head fall back against the wood. “Anyway, what’re you doing here? It’s late.”

“Yes, thank you for that observation, wife. I had not noticed.” His words faltered as a small hiccup escaped him. “I have been told, very insistently, I might add, that I need to apologize to you. But can I confess? Apologies are not my strong suit, love.”

“Is that right?”

“Yup.” He ended the word with an exaggerated pop. “It may shock you, but I do not often find myself in positions where I have to do this sort of thing. Or even feel the need to. I have never had to answer to someone like you.”

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