Page 30 of Bedeviled

He’s not real, he says down our connection. That’s a fake name and face.

My eyes widen. Christopher Mendoza is not some poor soul framed for a crime he didn’t commit. He’s not even real. He’s just some conjured identity made to appease the media. Which likely means Memnon paid someone off to make this story go away.

Is that all, Empress?

No, it’s not all. I want to know what Memnon intends to do with the Fortunas’ wealth and what he wants to do about Eislyn now that we know she’s still alive. But most of all I want to crawl back in bed with him and feel his skin on mine and whisper secrets into his ear I’m too afraid to tell anyone else.

That’s all.

Across our connection Memnon hesitates. After a moment, however, he adds, My mind is on you always, est udugab amage.

My eternal queen.

Before I can respond, I feel him pull away from our connection.

I let out a shuddering breath, then rub my eyes with my thumb and my forefinger.

I am in way over my head.

I exit out of the news article and choose to ignore Kane’s message altogether. Instead, I click on a message from a new number.

Hey wench, this is Sybil! This is my new number. Miss yooooouuuu.

I suck in a sharp breath, then rapidly update Sybil’s contact info. It’s only been a couple days since I last saw my best friend, but a lot has happened in that short span of time. She was one of the witches trafficked, and she tried to save me and escape her own forced bond by getting bitten by her lycan boyfriend. And now according to pack law, she has to isolate with other werewolves for the rest of her first lunar cycle, essentially until she gets the hang of shifting.

It’s only a few short weeks until I get to see her again, but I’m already feeling the distance.

On a whim I tap on Sybil’s new number and bring the phone to my ear.

“Hello?” she answers.

“No howls for me?” I say. “I’m disappointed.”

I hear her cackle on the other end. “You couldn’t handle them, freak.”

“Probably not,” I agree with a smile.

“What’s up?”

I open my mouth, unsure how to start. Finally, I settle with, “I miss you.” If she were here, I’d be in her room right now, throwing myself dramatically onto her bed.

“You do realize it’s only been two days since you last saw me.”

“Two days too long.”

“Goddess, you’re clingy,” she says.

“A lot has happened,” I say, a little of the levity bleeding from my voice.

Though Sybil doesn’t immediately respond, I can tell the heaviness of the last several days is settling on her.

“How has it been going?” I ask, pushing away from my door.

“Good.” She sounds tired.

When she doesn’t elaborate, I say, “So, have you changed into a cute little wolfie yet?”

“I was literally bit less than a week ago.”