Page 31 of The Illuminated
Daelon kissed me, and I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed his lips on mine until we lost ourselves in each other. His hand gripped my hips, tugging me closer. I moved my fingers through his hair, and soon all the worries crowding my mind melted away. He tugged slightly at my bottom lip, his grip on my waist tightening.
His breath hitched as he pulled back, kissing my forehead. “We are literally in Lucius’s bed,” he laughed dryly. “And I’m not sure whether to find that exciting or horrifying.”
“I think I’m going to go with the second one,” I said. I smiled sadly. “Your vision was beautiful. Thank you. I needed it.”
“I needed you to see it before our trip to Paris.”
“Oh yeah, that.” The last time I’d seen Daelon this cagey and nervous was when he’d betrayed me to my enemy, which was a great way to ruin our first good moment together in weeks. Before I could demand more information, he quickly changed the subject.
“We still have so much to talk about. Like what in the world was that all about with the energy vampire who managed to break into the castle? Lucius has put a great deal of resources into finding him in the nearby cities.”
“He’ll never succeed,” I said, and I was sure of it. I could feel that wherever that man went, it was far outside Lucius’s reach. “His name was Cyrus, and I don’t really know how to explain it, but he was one of us. He also wasn’t lost like the witches here in the castle who were stolen from their homelands. It felt like his home was still preserved, and so was his magick and strength. He didn’t need anything from my power except clarity and—”
“Don’t tell me anything more,” Daelon said suddenly. “I’m glad he didn’t hurt you. But I can’t know about any of that. Not when I’m Commander of the Guard.”
I frowned. “But you would never—”
He cut me off again. “Not on purpose. But if it’s ever relevant to the missions I do for Lucius, during those blackouts where I don’t have any concept of what I’m even doing, it could put that man and his home in danger.” Now it was his turn to roll to his back and avoid my eyes.
“You think it’s a part of your job description to find people who resist Lucius’s rule?” I asked, and the weight of my words suddenly hit me in all of their meaning. That was the role of the men who killed my mothers. “To find more communities of witches to destroy?”
I refused to believe any of it. I would have to see Daelon’s alter ego in action with my own eyes, because no part of me could imagine him being involved in the same evil that killed our parents and destroyed our coven.
“According to Lucius, there are no more unconquered lands,” he said, which only made me more confused.
“But you think there are, right? You think that unconquered lands have everything to do with these missions you can’t remember.” There were too many lies and half-truths still between Daelon and me. I couldn’t take it anymore.
What did the prospect of these hidden covens mean for us? That there might be more allies who survived the wars that gave Lucius his unnatural power?
“You’ll see soon enough,” he said, and his voice was so sharp it cut right through me. “He wants you to see exactly what I do when I’m under his control. Like when you tried to break through my shield to see my memories.” The accusatory tone was equally painful, as I knew how much Daelon valued the privacy of his gift.
“I did not! I only asked if I could. Which is a reasonable thing to desire when your boyfriend says he does terrible things he can’t remember.”
“You were very pushy about it.”
“Pushy,” I scoffed. “That’s rich coming from you.” I tried to convey humor, but it fell flat.
Something hung in the air between us, thick and murky. Everything that remained unsaid rattled against my skull.
“I love you, Áine,” Daelon said, and it sounded like a goodbye. “Lucius is back.”
The mattress shifted as he moved to the leather chair in the corner, and I pulled the cover back over me.
What in the hell are you wearing, by the way?Daelon asked, and the sound of his anger at my thin, lacy black slip was actually comforting in the wake of everything else.
It wasn’t my first choice either, pal. But it was better than underwear.
Even if I couldn’t feel his energy, I still liked to imagine it. I knew right now that it was all sorts of red and thorny.
I love you too,I thought to him as Lucius burst into his bedroom. I sat straight up in bed to see Lucius holding a hand over his nose as blood poured from his nostrils down to his chin. He spit a mouthful of red onto the floor.
“What happened toyou?” I asked. This was the first time I’d seen him wounded in any bodily way. It made him look a lot more vulnerable than he often seemed.
He just glared at me, then turned his attention to Daelon. “What’s the verdict?”
“Her attempt on her life was just a product of the dungeons and her clairsentience. She’s no longer a risk to herself.”
“Then off you go,” Lucius said, waving his hand at me in a shooing motion.
