Lucian

The shame felt worse than the silver.

I stood over the small bed, my hands shaking a little as I tried to wrap the fresh bandage around my stomach. Even though the bullet was out, the healing felt slow. And that kick Maelis gave me wasn’t helping.

That woman.

I scrubbed my hand over my jaw, trying to get her smell out of my head, the metal, the spices, and the memory of the pathetic sound I’d made when she slammed the door.

My pants felt heavy, still sticking to my skin despite cleaning up with one of the unused bandages.

The crazy, desperate relief was gone fast, replaced...