Page 18 of Blood So Brutal

They spoke in hushed tones, but it was too much, too exposing.

“Let’s just go,” I sighed. “You’re causing a scene. We were about to leave anyway.”

The brothers looked at me. Hells, they both had that same concerned look in their eyes. I knew why Wolf cared so much, but Jessiah?

I wasn’t entirely sure I could trust him yet. He may love Wolf, but so far, he was loyal to his father.

“Come on,” Jessiah said, turning around. “You’re lucky I’m the one who found you here. One of Father’s men would have her locked back up in that dungeon without a second thought.”

Yeah, lucky.I glanced at Wolf, but he didn’t meet my gaze as he pulled me out of the pub and onto the dark, vacant streets.

Chapter 6

Wolf

Ilay on the floor of my bedroom, listening to the low pounding of her heart. She fell asleep an hour ago, wrapped in the soft linens of my bed. I could smell her too. The subtle scent of my soap lingered on her perfect skin.

Pine and sweet, sweet cherries.

This was my own personal form of torture, to have to stay this close to her, unable to touch her. Not able to kiss her lips, to hold her in my arms.

Still, tonight was a step in the right direction. She finally looked at me without disgust and hatred. It was likely the ale, but still. I missed the way she smiled, the way her eyes lit up.

I heard footsteps approaching from the hall outside.

I immediately sat up, careful not to make a single sound as I rushed to the door, waiting. The footsteps grew closer, closer, closer before stopping right in front of my door.

I twisted the doorknob and threw the door open before my visitor could knock.

Luseyar stood in front of me, his hand on his hip, his chin raised. “Your father summons you,” he said.

“Right now?” I whispered. I glanced back to make sure Huntyr was still sound asleep. “What about her?”

“Leave her here,” he insisted. “He only wishes to speak to you and your brother.”

The hair on the back of my neck rose, but I nodded once before grabbing my shirt and slipping out into the hall.

Jessiah was exiting his room at the same time. He clearly just woke up, with his golden hair messy and his shirt in wrinkles.

There was no way he knew where we were tonight. If he thought for even a second that I took Huntyr to that pub, he would have me in shackles.

It wasn’t entirely unheard of for Asmodeus to summon us like this. He was chaotic and had no sense of schedule, but usually, this meant he had a new idea—good or bad. I still remembered the way he summoned me to tell me I would be going to Moira to find the girl who would end everything.

My brother gave me a reassuring nod. He did that often, and the older I got, I wasn’t sure why. It’s not like he could really protect me. Not against our father, anyway.

We both started down the hall after Luseyar in silence. Every step I took away from her felt wrong. I hated leaving her side; even in the dungeons, I hated it.

“What does he want this time?” I asked once we were away from the bedrooms.

Luseyar glanced over his shoulder. He wasn’t a bad guy. He was stuck in this trap with Asmodeus, same as everyone. But he would do anything to protect himself, and that included hurting either one of us.

That included cutting my damn wings off.

“You’ll find out soon enough,” he said with a sigh.

Great. We were going in totally blind.

Father was the one who told us to observe The Golden City anyway. If anyone had seen us out, I had a perfectly good excuse for walking the city with Huntyr. There was something else. I could feel it.

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