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All too quickly, the surge of energy waned and the hunger returned, just as vicious as before. Worried, I opened my eyes and met Rik’s gaze, my mouth still locked to Ezra’s cool skin. Without my alpha holding him up, he would have already slid to the floor unconscious.
“Mehen and Vivian, take the sky. Itztli and Daire, you’ve got first watch on the ground. Everyone else, fuel up and be ready to swap in. G, give Winston the heads up in the kitchen and assign the next watch cycle.”
The door slammed open and Llewellyn and Tlacel made a beeline straight toward us, while the other Blood filed out to their assignments without a word. Even Mehen—a feat indeed.
I could smell the blood in the air. Both Lew and Tlacel already bled from cuts on their throats. I would have laughed if I didn’t feel so shitty. They had no intention of going as quickly as Ezra.
Releasing my mouth-lock on his clammy skin, I leaped for them both like a woman possessed.
7
RIK
I fucking hated making any mistake, but especially one that upset and offended my queen. She needed me to be right one hundred percent of the time—or she could end up unprotected and vulnerable.
One of her Blood dying because of my mistake would be bad enough. But for my queen to suffer even a second of discomfort and lack because of my actions was intolerable.
Especially Shara.
I would rip my own heart and throat out, allow her cobra to poison me a dozen times, ask Xin to chop off my head, and break every bone in my body before I’d fail her again.
:Rik.: Her bond shrieked in my head, a burning misery of endless hunger. One arm locked around Llewellyn’s neck, she pressed her entire face to his bloody throat, while her fingers jammed into the wound on Tlacel’s. :Don’t let me hurt anyone else.:
:We’ve got you, my queen.: I strode to the door, mentally giving a tug on the other two Blood bonds for them to follow out to the hallway.
Across from the master suite, another wing stretched in the opposite direction with guest rooms we’d never used. I opened the first door, relieved to find a clean and tidy room with a regular king-sized bed.
I touched Guillaume’s bond. :Tell Winston our queen has vacated her suite until it’s cleaned.:
:Done,: he replied immediately. :He’s apprised of the situation and has already arranged for a new bed to be delivered first thing in the morning.:
:So quickly?: Shara asked. :Tell him thank you.:
Guillaume huffed out an amused chuckle. :He says he learned to always have extra beds available and ready at a moment’s notice, especially special orders.:
Dropping to the guest mattress with Shara on top of him, Llewellyn laughed. :Let’s just say House Isador has always been hell on beds.:
Tlacel lay beside the other Blood, curling on his side close so she could touch him at will. Lew smoothed his hands up and down her back, stroking her hair, keeping his touch gentle and comforting rather than sexual. He even rolled her toward the other Blood so they could both touch her, skin to skin, giving her the warmth and energy of their bodies. Slowly, the sharp urgency in her bond eased. Without Blood feeding on her at the same time, the gnawing hunger lessened from madness inducing to only starving as she fed from them both.
As the former Isador alpha, Llewellyn could take a deep, long feeding without losing consciousness as quickly, but Tlacel hadn’t served a queen before Shara. He was older than me, yes, but not alpha, and as one of the lesser Blood, he simply didn’t feed her as often or deeply as me.
Quietly, I eased onto the bed behind him and wrapped my forearm around to offer my wrist.
Surprised, he hesitated for a moment. :You should feed her directly, alpha.:
:I do, often and regularly. I will again. But for now, it pleases her to feed on you, and this allows her to enjoy you longer.:
He relaxed against me and sank his fangs into my wrist. :Thank you, alpha. I’d give her my head like the knight if she needed it.:
Shara turned her head so she could see us, though she still fed from Lew’s throat. Her eyes gleamed like liquid starlight, shining with all the love in the universe. :Thank you, alpha.:
My throat ached, my heart weighing like a ton of crushed granite in my chest. I’d allowed the pressure of the Triune to get to me—and it wasn’t even about me at all. The Triskeles had called Shara Isador to its table. Exactly as she is, and was, and always will be.
All I had to do was love her. Exactly as I do. Exactly as she needed.
“No more heads will be lost tonight,” I said aloud, my voice gruff against the rawness in my throat.
* * *
