Chapter 24 · Let the King Out

"Kane."

I said his name into the dark and felt the thing inside him answer.

Not with words. With heat. With pressure that made my ribs ache and my wrist burn where the mark lived. The blackout had killed every light in the hall, every phone screen, every exit sign. Someone was screaming near the back. Glass shattered. The wedding guests trampled each other trying to find the doors.

Kane didn't move.

He stood three feet from me, breathing hard, and I could feel the air between us vibrate like a plucked wire. His hand was still on my wrist from the kiss. His grip had gone tight enough to bruise.

"Let go," I said.

"Can't." His voice came out low and scraped raw. "If I let go right now, I'm going to kill someone."

"Then kill the right people."

His eyes snapped to mine. In the dark they didn't look human. They looked molten. Gold and red and something older than either.

"You don't know what you're asking."

"I know Marcus sent those hunters. I know he cut the power to flush you out. And I know if you don't move right now, he wins."

Kane's jaw locked.