Page 108 of Hell Fae King

“I suspect Vivaxia wanted you to lose control, similar to how you did in the Netherworld. And I think she’s playing on your emotions, too. She saw how you reacted to Azazel’s injuries, and attempted to replicate the act with Ajax. However, you felt something today, something that had you redirecting your influx of power. And you managed to siphon only her spell, not the Nightmare Fae essence.”

Which was really fucking impressive. But equally frustrating since she’d acted as a damn martyr.

“What you should have done was use that energy to form a weapon that you could send back through your link to Vivaxia, something to harm her. However, we’ll work on that.” Because now that I knew Camillia could sense the connection, she could use it.

“You know she’s using me,” Camillia whispered. “I… I didn’t even… I just sensed it and reacted.”

“I know.”

“Buthowdo you know?” she asked, blinking at me. “How did you…?”

“I felt it,” I told her. “And I felt the connection the moment you returned to my realm. She’d activated something inside you, something to do with your siphoning ability, and I realized what it was the moment you started redirecting your power to me and my realm.”

“I just knew I had to push it away from her.”

“So you latched onto the only other outlet you could find—your connection to my Source,” I told her. “Which would have been fine had you not shoved your own fucking soul into it.”

She flinched. “All I was thinking about was countering Vivaxia. And I had no idea how to hold on to the power, so I just… shoved it away to the nearest trusted outlet.”

“My Source,” I murmured, my hand sliding up her thigh to her hip.

“Your Source,” she echoed, causing my lips to curl a bit.

“Yes. But as for holding on to the power, you can and you did.” I tilted my head as I held her gaze. “Azazel unleashed a catastrophic amount of energy into you, and you not only accepted it, but youkeptit. So it is possible, Camillia. You just need practice, something I’m going to give you. Because, unfortunately, Vivaxia knows what you can do now, and she’ll be ready to thwart your redirection during her next attack.”

“Which will be soon,” she muttered warily.

I nodded. “You likely weakened her by absorbing her spells and feeding them into the Hell Fae Realm, but she’ll regenerate quickly.”

“So we need to figure out her next move before she makes it,” Camillia replied.

“And ensure you’re ready for it,” I told her. “Which leads me back to my role in all this—I have to be hard on you. It’s the only way to prepare you for Vivaxia’s true power.”

Camillia frowned at me, her storm-like irises swirling with thoughts.

I waited, aware that I’d thrown a lot of information at her in her already exhausted state.

Yet her pinkened cheeks and alert gaze told me she didn’t mind. She was considering everything I’d said, and perhaps even more.

“Why bother with all these smaller attacks?” she asked slowly. “What’s her true goal here? If she’s powerful enough to face you head-on, why bother with everything else?”

“Because she’s not powerful enough to face me,” I told her. “You’re her conduit. She’s working through you—trying to provokeyou—to do what she couldn’t.”

“Mate you?”

My lips twitched. “No. She wants you to steal my light and feed it back to her. But you’re proving to be a bit of a rebel, Miss De la Croix. And I’m certain it’s royally infuriating your dear grandmother.”

Camillia growled, the sound going straight to my cock. “Donotcall her that.”

I smiled. “Not a fan of the family connection?” I lifted my hand to her neck, my palm fitting perfectly around her slender throat. “While it’s unfortunate, it’s also fortuitous.”

She narrowed her eyes, wariness filling her features. “Why is it fortuitous?”

“Because your familial line is what will make you the perfect Hell Fae Queen.”

Her wariness vanished behind a look of astonishment. “What?”

“You heard me just fine, Camillia,” I murmured, my gaze falling to her lips. “But in case you didn’t understand them, allow me to demonstrate what those words mean—by worshipping you as your Hell Fae King.”