Tempted

been protecting, they were not truly of her flock, nor did they follow her.
    “The tunnel between here and the abbey collapsed,” said Nicole.
    “It was open when I entered it.”
    Nicole took a step toward him and sniffed the air. “You smell of Stevie Rae.”
    Rephaim made a dismissive gesture with his good hand. “I reek of the bed I slept in.” He cocked his head to the side, as if confused by what she’d said. “You say I carry Stevie Rae’s scent. Is she not the Red One, your High Priestess?”
    “Stevie Rae’s a red vampyre, but she isn’t our High Priestess!” Nicole snarled, and her eyes took on a red glow.
    “Not your High Priestess?” Rephaim pushed. “But there was a red vampyre priestess called Stevie Rae who stood with a group of fledglings against my father and his queen. She had your markings. Is she not your High Priestess?”
    “That was the battle where you were hurt?” Nicole ignored his question to ask her own.
    “It was.”
    “What happened? Where’s Neferet?”
    “Gone.” Rephaim didn’t hide the bitterness in his voice. “She fled with my father and those of my brothers who still live.”
    “Where’d they go?” Kurtis asked.
    “If I knew that, I would not be hiding in the earth like a coward. I would be at my father’s side where I belong.”
    “Rephaim.” Nicole gave him a long, considering look. “I’ve heard that name before.”
    The Raven Mocker stayed silent, knowing it was better for her to come to the understanding of who he was without him having to brag about his position like a braying ass.
    When her eyes widened, he knew she’d remembered where it was she’d heard his name.
    “She said you were Kalona’s favorite—his most powerful son.”
    “Yes, that is who I am. Who is this
she
who’s been talking about me?”
    Again, Nicole ignored his question. “What covered the door to the room you slept in?”
    “A checked blanket.”
    “Stevie Rae’s room,” Starr said. “That’s why he smells like her.”
    Nicole acted as if Starr hadn’t spoken. “Kalona took off without you, even though you’re his favorite.”
    “Yesssss,” Rephaim drew out the hiss of anger that came with the acknowledgment.
    Nicole spoke to Kurtis and Starr. “You know this has to mean that they’re coming back. This birdboy is Kalona’s favorite. No way is he going to leave him here forever. Just like we’re her favorites. He’ll come back for him; she’ll come back for us.”
    “Do you speak of the Red One, Stevie Rae?”
    In a motion so fast her body blurred, Nicole moved to Rephaim’s side, clamped her hands around his battered shoulders, and in one smooth motion lifted the huge Raven Mocker off the ground and slammed him against the side of the tunnel. Eyes blazing red, she breathed rancid breath into his face as she said, “Get this, birdboy. Stevie Rae, or the Red One as you keep calling her, isn’t our High Priestess. She isn’t our boss. She isn’t one of us. She’s tight with Zoey and that bunch, and that’s not cool. See, we don’t have a High Priestess, we have a queen, and her name is Neferet. Now, what’s with this obsession with Stevie Rae?”
    Agony seared through Rephaim. His broken wing was on fire, lighting his body with white-hot agony. With everything inside him he wished he was whole again so that he could destroy this arrogant red fledgling with one slice of his beak.
    But he wasn’t whole. He was weak and wounded and abandoned.
    “My father wanted her captured. He said she was dangerous. Neferet didn’t trust her. I am not obsessed. I am only following my father’s will,” he choked out through the pain.
    “How about we see if you’re really telling us the truth,” Nicole said. Then she tightened her already viselike grip on his arm, closed her eyes, and bowed her head.
    Incredibly, Rephaim felt her palms begin to heat. The heat radiated through him, tracing his bloodstream, pounding in time with the frantic beating of his heart, and slamming into his body.
    A shudder went through Nicole, then she opened her eyes and lifted her head. Her smile was sly. She continued to hold him against the wall for one very long minute more before she dropped him. Looking down at where he’d crumpled on the floor, she said, “She saved you.”
    “What the fuck?” Kurtis shouted.
    “Stevie Rae saved him?” Starr said.
    Nicole and Rephaim acted as if neither had spoken.
    “She did,” Rephaim gasped, fighting to get his breathing