Page 79 of Rose and Shadows
Inter-Realm Relations: Treaties and Cooperationwith Professor Lenos Caldrith.
I’d just needed to clear my head.
Then I’d be good to go.
Just… there was nobody available to be with right now or even to talk to.
It was just bad fucking timing, honestly.
Velra was in classes.
Cassius was with Ketheron—he’d taken him back to work at Haven Initiative for the first time since Ketheron had suffered that mind-meddling torment during the CRS facility battle.
Sylas was still above ground, but he was meeting with Kai. Apparently Kai had been reaching out wanting to know the deal with Sylas’ return to power, seeing as though, until he’d witnessed Sylas back in the game during the Morien CRS situation, he’d last known Sylas as having been bound completely without his magic. And as Sylas had explained to me, Kai had been there with him for months prior to all of this fighting to find a cure for him. So Sylas was giving him the rundown. Although, I knew he wouldn’t reveal the existence of theMystic Heartto Kai—my dad’s uber trump card, and what had made the necromantic core transplant actually possible. Knowing Sylas, he’d talk around it, hopefully even to Kai’s satisfaction.
My mom was with Jaxon and Vorzyr, having taken Ryker’s instruction to heart. Well, she didn’t do something from orders alone, so it seemed like Ryker’s words to her during my extraction had just been the little nudge she’d needed. She was going to bring back a better, stronger, more tolerant version of Vyrn Hollow Wolf Pack. Once she was done with that meeting, it was actually something I wanted to talk to her about.
I’d texted my dad, but he’d had one of his most trusted lieutenants, Arthur, text me back to inform me that my dad would be unreachable for most of the day, but he’d check back in later.
I scrubbed my hand over my face and tried to focus on the fight as I watched from the sidelines near the exit. I felt like I needed to keep out of the crowds right now. I needed to know I had a straight-run exit available.
Argh!It was all that shithead’s fault!
That fucker hadn’t managed to get under my skin from the standpoint of undercutting what I knew to be true with my love for Velra, Sylas, and Cassius, nor all the progress I’d made, nor even my strengthening relationship with my dad.
Besides, my power here was my peace—in myself and with my loves. Nothing else mattered.
That was what I’d held to while I’d been tormented by that fucker. And I’d done really well with it.
But there were… bits and pieces of the… physicality he’d subjected me to that kept… surfacing.
I could feel it coming again and I fought to focus on my surroundings instead.
Needing the roars, thuds, grunts, and screams of both pain and excitement from the rowdy crowd to drown it all out.
Even though it was the middle of the day, Graverun was hopping.
Each circular tier was packed with spectators yelling, clapping, and jumping in their seats as they watched the brutal battles going down in the glowing amber fight circle.
Right now it was a sorcerer and a Light Fae, one hell of a brutal magical whirlwind taking place.
I’d walked in here thinking I needed a fight like the old days—not just for training.
But as I’d watched, I’d realized that wasn’t the case.
My breathing quickened.
And then it happened again.
“Mmm, I’m delighting in the way you growled my name. Do it again.”
I growled against Victor’s repulsive voice sounding through my fucking head.
“Shh, pretty thing.”
Clenching my fists, I urged my talons and claws not to break free.
In directing my energy toward that self-control, it left the way open for that shithead’s taunts to blast into my mind once fucking more.
