Page 55 of City of the Lost
“What are you doing?”
“Lending you my strength.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “My endurance ...”
And then he was gone, and the tingling soaked into my skin, leaving a pleasant warmth in its wake.
Azren strode out of the kitchen, followed closely by Valance. I straightened and hooked arms with Valance. “Well, come on, stud. Let’s go put on a show.”
Valance shared a look with Azren. Azren nodded, then grasped my right elbow. The world tilted on its axis.
* * *
We materializedin a gray stone chamber, just the three of us. Chains hung from bolts hammered deep into the walls. And shackles lay on the ground attached to thick chains which had been bolted into rock. There were other things hanging on the stone walls too, shadowy pointy things that made my toes curl.
I finished my survey of our welcome chamber. “Well, isn’t this cozy?”
Valance made a choking sound but Azren was silent, his hand still on my arm, grip a little too tight.
“What took so long?” Elora emerged from the shadows. Her gaze zeroed in on Azren and then dropped to his hand on my arm.
Azren released me and walked away to stand beside his liege. All expression melted from his features and he was an impassive automaton. The show had begun. I stepped closer to Valance, and he wrapped his arm around my waist.
Elora arched a brow.
“Mother, Miss Bastion has complied with the contract by being here. I’m thinking we can get this wrapped up quickly. We have dinner reservations.” He dropped a casual kiss on my head, like he’d been doing it forever. I tilted my face up and smiled; his vertical pupils dilated, and his mouth softened and then descended on mine in a kiss that had probably been intended to be a peck, but as soon as our mouths touched fire raced through me, my mouth parted, and his tongue swept inside. His hands twined in the hair at the nape of my neck, tugging, forcing my neck into an arch, allowing him to deepen the kiss. I fisted his shirt, pulling him closer, inhaling him, breathing him in through the connection of our mouths.
“Really, Valance? Playing with your food again?” Elora’s tone was flippant, but there was a definite edge of steel to it.
Valance broke the kiss. Oh, God. Had I just whimpered?
His dazed expression cleared, and his mouth turned up in his signature cocky smile. “You know me, Mother—ever the unconventional male.”
“How long have you been fucking her?”
His grip tightened a fraction on my waist. “Oh, about as long as you’ve had her under contract.” He winced. “I may have proven to be a slight distraction.”
Elora growled and then focused on me. “Miss Bastion, what news have you for me? What have you discovered about the rogues that plague me?”
I glanced at Azren, but his gaze was fixed somewhere over the top of my head. At first glance, he seemed perfectly at ease, but the white-knuckled fists at his side told another story. Heat seared my face, and my gut twisted under the Draconi liege’s intense scrutiny.
“Answer me!” she snapped.
I flinched. “We had a couple of run-ins with them. The first time, they got away, but Azren managed to snag one with his dagger.”
“The dagger that is now lost?” Her gaze flicked to Valance, lip curling.
I cleared my throat. “Totally not our fault. Azren was wounded by a Lupin and got infected with a drug that was killing him, but we managed to save him.”
Her eyes were narrow. “Go on.”
Oh, God, her eyes. They were like daggers poised to spear my soul. I shifted my gaze slightly to avoid direct contact. “Then he got kidnapped by the Shedim, and I had to go find him.”
“And I assume this is when you came upon their location.”
“We barely got out alive, and when we went back with reinforcements, they were gone. They got the dagger.”
“So, you failed. Twice over.”
Her tone grated and the words were out before I could stop them. “I’d like to see you do better.”
