Page 112 of Night Fae

"Where my family will be waiting." Zev's expression hardened. "Along with whatever Yuri has planned."

Malik set the book aside, studying Zev's face. "Are you worried about facing your father? Your grandmother?"

"No." The answer came quickly, definitively. "I've been ready to end them since the day they killed Rhys. Since long before that, if I'm honest with myself."

"Then what?"

Zev crossed to the bed, settling near Malik. "I'm worried about losing control again," he said openly. It had never been his nature to soften his words. "In the shadow paths, I nearly killedyou because I couldn't stop feeding on your energy. I became a monster. In the battle tomorrow, I may need power. More than I have on my own."

Understanding dawned in Malik's eyes. "You're afraid you'll take from me again."

"Yes." The admission cost Zev, but Malik deserved to know what they were facing. "When we face Yuri, when magic flies and blood is shed... the temptation will be there. Power calls to power, and yours..." He paused, struggling to find the right words to describe Malik's unique energy. "Yours tastes like nothing I've ever known."

Malik studied him quietly. "You don't have to be so afraid. I'm not."

"I would have killed you if Knox hadn't ripped me away from you." Zev's fingers curled into fists in his lap. "What if there's no one to stop me next time?"

Malik's hand reached for Zev's, anchoring him. "I trust you, Zev. More importantly, I know you. You're not some mindless creature of hunger. You were in a dark place when you lost control. I don't think it'll happen again."

Something in Zev rebelled against Malik's easy trust. "Imagine the most addictive substance you can think of. Now imagine it multiplied by a thousand. That's what your energy feels like to me."

"And you can have it," Malik insisted. "You won't kill me."

"You don't know that. I could lose myself again."

"Then I'll help you find your way back to yourself, just like I did in the fields." Malik squeezed Zev's hand. "I'm nottotallyhelpless."

Zev wanted to sigh in exasperation, but his human wasn't done talking.

"Let's practice," he said. "Now, tonight." Determination replaced the gentleness in Malik's voice. "Take a little of my energy. Just enough to feel it, then stop."

Zev recoiled. "No. After what happened in the shadow paths?—"

"This is different." Malik moved closer, eliminating the space between them. "I'm not weak or unconscious. I'm asking you, deliberately, to try. To prove to yourself that you can control it."

Zev searched Malik's face for any sign of doubt but found only steadfast confidence. It humbled him, this human's trust, especially knowing what Zev was capable of.

"You would risk this? After everything?"

"I would risk much more for what matters." Malik took Zev's hand and placed it against his chest, over his heart. "Just a little. Then stop."

Zev hesitated, then slowly nodded. He closed his eyes, focusing on the connection between them. He'd never attempted this with such deliberate control before. Always it had been desperate need or unintentional feeding. Now he reached for the bright thread that bound them together, barely touching it.

Energy flowed immediately. Warm, intoxicating, infinitely tempting. Malik's life force tasted of everything Zev had been denied for most of his life—acceptance, belonging, possibility. It would be so easy to take more, to drink deeply until he wasdrunk on it. The craving built instantly, a monstrous thing rising in his chest.

Zev's fingers curled against Malik's shirt, his body tensing with the effort of restraint. Three heartbeats later—he counted each one—he severed the connection and pulled back.

His eyes opened to find Malik watching him, smiling.

"See?" Malik said softly. "You can do it."

The weight of Malik's encouragement hit Zev with unexpected force. This human, this remarkable, stubborn human, saw him for what he was and accepted him anyway. Not despite his darkness, but with full knowledge of it.

"Rhys taught me I could love," Zev said quietly. "You're teaching me I still can."

The words hung between them, an admission Zev hadn't planned to make. But once spoken, he couldn't regret them. They were true in a way few things in his life had been.

Malik's eyes widened slightly, but he didn't retreat from the declaration. Instead, his smile grew even more brilliant. "If I'd known that earlier, I might have felt less insecure about competing with a ghost."