Page 47

LUCIAN

E ven Zazel felt sorry for me. I was that pathetic. I'd dropped right into the drawing room, on the sofa, too spent to find the strength to drag myself into my bed. The house was kind enough to place a cool compress against my forehead.

I wasn't certain how long I'd spent like that when the most annoying voice I've ever heard started to yell. "By all the gods, Luce, what the fuck? Are you dead?"

I wish I were. Death sounded a lot less painful than this headache.

"Too loud," I groaned, resolutely keeping my eyes shut. "Go away."

Ronan had never been one to take a hint—or a direct fuck off .

"Oh, lord. What's wrong with you?"

"Raised three corpses," I grunted, knowing he wouldn't let it go.

He was annoying like that. Nosy, and far too fond of me to let me suffer without knowing the reason behind it.

"Three?" he screeched. "But why ?"

Why indeed. I didn't know why I bothered. All three had the same exact story. No, they couldn't identify the attackers. Yes, there were more than one. Two or three, they weren't sure. A laugh, a voice, and pain. The end. The last corpse, Mr. Manson, added that he remembered cloaks.

What a supreme waste of energy.

Well, not really. Until today, we hadn't known we were dealing with a team. But I could have stopped at good oldNancy.

"Kleos," I summarized.

That was enough for Ronan. "Ha. Oh, well. Let's get you back into shape."

I chanced opening one eye.My friend, stupid man that he was, was offering me his hand.

I snorted. "Not a chance. I would pulverize you right now."

I had used up a lot of power, and I absolutely needed to replenish myself. Once I no longer felt like an army of kangaroos were hopping in my brain, I'd get back to my pool to take a little more strength, and crash for the rest of the night.

"Come on. While I suspect I am likely delicious, you can control yourself. Just take enough to get your ass up."

I shook my head. "Fuck off,Nachtigall."

He sighed. Then the insane fucker flattened his hand right onto my forehead.

I didn't have time to restrain myself: the unexpected physical contact had me lashing out, sucking wave after wave of energy right out of him.

Screaming with the effort it took to go against all my instincts, and with the background soundtrack of Ronanhowling in pain, I managed to tear his wrist away from me.

We were both heaving, him, sweaty and still wincing, me, with the sheer force of the power I'd just ingested.

Ronan wasn't just any guy out there. When I took his energy, I also took in some of his power. The nightmares. The shadows. The need for revenge and justice.

"Are you a fucking masochist, or just insane?" I demanded.

My friend had the gall to laugh. "Fuck, I didn't realize you'd gone easy on me when you zapped me before."

"I could have killed you!" I screamed.

That made him roll his eyes. "Trust me, after that? I know. By all the shades in Hades, you are a beast."

Maturely, I chucked the cushion under my head at him. He dodged it without effort.

"Come on. I didn't risk my life for nothing. Go get changed, we're heading out."

I stared at him in disbelief. "You want me to go out in this state? And what, mummify half of unders? I guess it's been too long since a Regis massacred the general population."

He tsked. "As dramatic as ever. We're going to Pan's. It always makes you feel better, doesn't it? There will be plenty of energy for you to suck at in the air, without having to resort to any murder."

I considered. He was right: at Pan's, witches, shifters, monsters, and gods crossed over to the dark side, and the simple energy flying around was enough for me to feed on without targeting a specific person.

That was why I'd always liked the club—more so than the depravity going on. Even if that could also be fun.

Maybe it was just what I needed. A night at Pan's might also help me get my shit together when it came to a certain little witch who sucked cocks like it tasted better than a lollipop.

"All right. I'm not staying long, though."