Page 89 of The Path of Blood and Betrayals

She reads my face, nose wringing. “Did you sleep with the blood summoner?”

Shrugging, I kick out my feet, the flames licking at the soles. “Definesleepwith.”

“Bel’s fiery balls,” she curses, rubbing her forehead. “Must not have been good. You’re still in a piss-poor mood.”

Coming close, she inhales again, scowling as a fang drops over her lip.

“Are you fucking serious, Kade?” She grabs my shoulder, making me face her. “You drank from her?”

I glare, ignoring the accusation. I won’t feel guilty for the gift Max gave me.

She handed me something no one—including Sose— had ever given me. She saw the beast inside my soul and still wasn’t afraid. The bravest of men couldn’t do what she did.

And now, she owns me.

What is she doing to me?

Why do I crave her so fully, that the ache of her absence slices into my heart like a blade?

“I didn’t take it. She gave it willingly.”

Fee rears back as if slapped. I understand—this is completely unheard of.

“Did you kill her?” She glances around as if expecting to see a corpse. “Where is she?”

Growling, I toss my blade onto the ground, nails digging into my knees. It shouldn’t bother me, to be accused of killing a woman who was in my bed—but it does.

“She left my bed hours ago, Fee,” I snap, glancing to the dark tent. She tried to find release and failed miserably. It shouldn’t please me, but itdoes. “Not happily, but very much alive.”

“ThankAzure,” she mutters, shoulders dropping. “But Gods, she’s stupid.”

“She’s brave,” I defend, holding the bottle to the light. “She did what no one else would do.”

“Normal people don’t offer their necks to a male who tried to rip it out mere hours ago.Stupid.”

“Or compassionate. What’s this?” I ask, holding up the bottle.

“Human blood. I paid a pretty coin for it. There’s a Human village outside the forest, near where the Fury nest was. It took most of the night to get there and back. I thought you might need it.”

Fee’s eyes—so similar to our mother’s— peer at me with concern. I look away.

“I hate when you look at me like that.” I grab a clean tunic, sliding it along my wounds without a wince. “I’m fine.”

“I’m worried.” She scans me again. “You arenotfine. You don’t lose control. You don’t attack. You haven’t fed directly from anyone since?—”

“Iknow.” I glare at her, cutting off her train of thought. I might have drained the lord of his blood, but I never drank it, just bled him for touching Max.

This is different.

She frowns. “You got the last one killed, Kade. Do you really want to keep pushing this? If you kill the blood summoner, in a fit of bloodlust, we have no tool for father. We have no way of appeasing him.”

She swallows down whatever emotion she’s feeling,glancing to the raging fire. With soft eyes, I nudge my shoulder into her smaller one, offering brotherly comfort.

“Are you worried about the advisor?”

She snorts miserably. “Something about her is,different.” She shrugs. “But I’m more worried about her effect on you, brother. You don’t know what it was like to watch that curse consume you. To see the one person in this world who has never hurt me—try tokillme.” Her jaw clenches even as she fidgets with a string on her leather vest. “This woman changes something in you, riles up the beast, makes you weak. And you’renotweak.”

“I’m not,” I agree. “I’ll admit. This is the first time I’ve not had full control of my beast. Even with battles or injuries. It’s drawn to her.”