Immortals After Dark 07 - Kiss of a Demon King

place!" Pain erupted from his wound.
    "It's because of me that Omort has spared you all these years. Have you never wondered why he hasn't pursued your assassination?"
    Rydstrom had wondered, especially since he'd settled In New Orleans, staying for months in the same place. He liked his home there. It sufficed until he could reclaim his kingdom. Until he could take back Tornin- and scour it clean. His eyes briefly closed against the memories of what he'd seen last night. "Are you sleeping with Omort?"
    "I am not sleeping with him. I'm sleeping with no one. There's an heir to be had, and I'd rather no one question its parentage."
    She hadn't denied that she'd ever slept with Omort, but he sensed she hadn't. Or maybe he merely refused to believe it-because that would put her forever out of his future.
    "Why did you fight Hettiah?" he asked. Each word was coming more easily now.
    "She attacked me. She's been looking for a way to get revenge on me for centuries."
    "Why?"
    "Probably because I made a wreath out of her intestines in front of the entire court. And I've plucked out her organs a few times. And I might have kept them in jars on my bedside table."
    "You . . . you do not." And the vampire had said I was killing her?
    "Yes, indeed. I'm missing her appendix and spleen." She rose, crossing to the table where a plate of food was laid out. "And on that note, are you hungry?"
    He cast an irritated glance at the plate, filled with fruits and vegetables, with no meat to be found. "Now, sorceress, how do you expect me to heal . . . when you feed me twigs?"
    Over the last week, Sabine had yet to provide for him meat and demon brew-a potent fermented drink. The Sorceri drank sickeningly sweet wines and brandies, calling demon brew a crude concoction. He couldn't stomach their sugary creations.
    "I keep forgetting that my pet's a carnivore." She set the plate down. "Here, I'll make you more comfortable." With a wave of her hand, she suddenly made the cell appear to be his old room here.
    But this time, she added a sea storm outside. How would she know ... ? "You read my mind, didn't you?"
    "I did," she said, her tone absent, although her expression was one of interest.
    He'd suspected that she concealed her expressions. In the future, he wouldn't scrutinize her face, he would watch her hands, the tensing of her slim shoulders. "Do you often break your vows?"
    "Constantly." She nodded. "I'd go so far as to say uniformly."
    The fact that she'd broken her word to him was infu-riating-her lack of shame made it that much worse. "No reservations about being known as a liar?"
    "It's not my fault the truth and I are strangers-we were never properly introduced."
    "And what did you learn when you hacked into my head?"
    She seemed keyed up, listening for something from the outside. Again she didn't look anxious, but she paced. "You used to be lulled to sleep by the sea storms here, and have long missed your room in your tower. You have a contentious relationship with your brother that disturbs you greatly. You resent him for losing your kingdom."
    Everyone thought he blamed his brother Cadeon for losing his kingdom. He did partially-was he supposed to act pleased with him? But Cadeon also lied, cheated, and he warred for profit.
    His life had no meaning.
    And yours does . . . ?
    She continued, "You've two sisters, Mia and Zoe, who you barely speak to. They have their own lives, and you wonder if maybe you should have involved them more in your quest. You're ashamed because you found yourself envious of a friend of yours who'd finally found his mate. A Lykae. I think his name is Bowen MacRieve?"
    Rydstrom met her gaze, though he was discomfited by what she'd seen. Because he was envious, and he considered that a weakness. A good man would be happy for a friend.
    But Rydstrom was one of the oldest in the Lore, and over the long years of his life, it seemed that one at a time, each of his comrades had found their females.
    All of them had experienced something he could only dream of... something so vital, they'd each begun to pity him for the lack.
    His mien was stoic, but she could tell he was unsettled by all that she'd discovered. "Anything else, sorceress?"
    "Lots and lots." The demon was a solitary male. He had friends but was too obsessed with his mission to enjoy them. He didn't approve of his disreputable brother or his brother's crew of mercenaries, so he didn't spend unnecessary time with them.
    Sabine had taken him from no