Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 107209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 536(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 357(@300wpm)
Fizzlewick snorted. “Of course not. Seriously, crossbreeding a Kurjan and a demoness had probably a one in a quintillion chance of working. I would love to get my hands on those records, if there are any, which I somewhat doubt.”
So did Vero. He’d learned young that if somebody wanted to keep a secret, they certainly didn’t write anything down. It was shocking, frankly, that Talt had left the information about Paxton being part Kurjan in his journal. But perhaps he’d wanted the word to get out as a way to take down the demon nation and even the Realm by using Pax. Things hadn’t quite worked out that way.
“Why all the questions?” Fizzlewick asked, his purple eyes narrowing with intelligence.
Vero kept his curious mask in place. “I want to know more about my brother.”
Fizzlewick replaced his now clean glasses on his nose. “I understand. I’ve asked the king if I could draw his blood and conduct research, and he has denied me. None too politely.”
Vero couldn’t blame Pax. “I’d like to spend some time in the lab as soon as the equipment arrives, to study the most recent blood draws. It’s time to make that Sunshine Cure permanent, like we thought it was at first.”
“Of course,” Fizzlewick said evenly.
Vero forced a smile. It was too bad he couldn’t trust Hunter any longer. He needed his ex-friend’s help to figure out why there was a fucking demon mating mark on Vero’s hand. He needed to genetically test himself without anybody else knowing. This had to be a mistake. Or a manipulation of his genes just to screw with him. His heredity and connection to the Kurjan nation was the only thing keeping Paxton’s head on his shoulders. If they were both half-demon, which just couldn’t be possible, they’d be dead within hours.
Chapter Twenty-Four
After a quick lunch at her desk, Lyrica sat back from the computer, her mind spinning. How was it even remotely possible for the newest victim to have shown up in the middle of nowhere like that? She couldn’t find a missing person report for Canada or Alaska with a description that fit the victim. The entire situation just didn’t make any sense.
A shadow crossed her doorway and she looked up, her eyes focusing. “Vero.” Her entire body flushed, head to toe, and heat filled her face until her cheeks ached.
“Hi,” he said, his eyes a darker blue than usual. “How are you feeling?”
She blinked. “Um, good.” This was awkward. She shifted uneasily on her chair and pain ticked through her hips. Even though they’d been together last night, she didn’t feel close enough to him to explain the soreness she felt. Not that she was complaining, because she definitely was not. She would’ve bet that sex like that only happened in romance books. Dark ones. “I’d like to visit some of the newcomers later today. Maybe take them some sort of welcoming gift?”
“Sure. Just make sure you’re guarded the entire time.” He looked distracted…and dangerous. Sexy.
She swallowed. “That’s fine by me. I’m not stupid, and somebody is killing women. And attacking Kurjan leaders.” The recent attackers had been after Vero, which should terrify her. But he was so dangerous when he fought. Why did she like that about him so much? “Also, I’m creating a presentation for you and Paxton about businesses some of the Kurjan mates would like to create.”
He frowned. “Why not just tell their mates?”
“They want some independence, Vero,” she snapped. “Plus, apparently mates have been worried in the past about the Kurjan leadership and have kept their families out of sight.”
He sighed. “That makes sense. I tried to stay out of sight as much as possible as well. I guess we need to be more obvious about our changes.” He glanced at his watch. “We can do that if we all survive the Convexus.”
She cocked her head. “You and Paxton have been so secretive about that. Is it just a summit?” That’s the most she’d been able to get from either of them.
“Yes. The Dark Solstice for the entire Kurjan nation shall happen on Tuesday night, and it’s the most holy of nights. The Cyst make all important decisions that night, and it only occurs every thousand years or so. We feel the change in the atmosphere as it nears. So, if there will be a treaty, or better yet, if they’ll rejoin the nation, it has to be decided when the far shining star we call Leo Noctis goes dark.” He shrugged. “The Cyst are the spiritual leaders, and that’s our law.”
No wonder everyone was freaking out. Hopefully the camp would look like it was in one piece by then. “Leo Noctis? Doesn’t that mean Night Lion?”
“Yes. The star is in the constellation Leo, which looks like a lion, even to us. Humans call the star Regulus.”