Page 160 of Obsidian and Frost

I swept my magic around him and teleported him away, sending him straight to his dorm room to give him some time alone to decompress before he had to face dinner.

I turned back to the scene.

The massacre.

My massacre.

They’d deserved far more punishment than that of a quick death.

But I’d had to act quickly in order to prevent Sylas from doing so.

He wasn’t a killer.

As dark as he was and as ruthless as he could be, he hated been driven toward the fatal route. It was a line he deplored having to cross. Considering who and what he was, that was beyond admirable,andabsolutely something to be safeguarded.

Besides, he was carrying enough as it was.

No need to add this to it.

This was mine to take on. And I would carry it well.

It protected them all.

It had wiped filth from the face of the earth.

It had been justified.

I’d done what was necessary for us all.

End of sordid story.

26

~Lazriel~

Nyx kept smiling over at us.

His sleek black horns glinted in the light of the room, as did his layered blue hair which brushed his tight navy shirt. Tight was the theme with him, his black leather pants beyond form-fitting. He was leaning back a few seats down, his feet hanging over an empty one in front of him, chilling and confident all at once.

I sat with my arm around Velra and her holding my hand and stroking my wolf claw pendant around my neck as we listened to Warlow delivering his briefing on Crossborn.

We were in the Great Hall inside the Guardian Compound.

The room was a phenomenon all on its own, all white stone and curved walls. A huge circular amphitheater took up most of the area. At the center was the Speaker’s Circle, a raised platform where people addressed the rest of the room.

I nuzzled against Velra a little more and grinned at Nyx who tossed me a wink, clearly happy for us.

Velra wasn’t normally a fan of public displays of affection, but here in this smaller space and with me just having myarm around her, she was not only welcoming it, but actually encouraging it. And it was really nice.

The contentment rolling through me was reflected in the update that Warlow was giving us as he stood a few feet away in the Speaker’s Circle dressed in his usual down-to-earth jeans and plaid shirt combo.

It was grounding being back here in this place, where we worked to make change, to do something good for hybrid beings like all of us here. And it was exactly what I needed right now with the mind-fuck of everything that had happened lately.

The threat against me.

My mom being unreachable through throwing herself back into the political sphere and being stuck in that ages-long Shifter Stabilization Unit meeting. And now, even though that was done with, she was off the grid.

My awakening with Sylas and all the intensity that had come along with it.