I shrugged. “Oh, you know. He was just being his usual charming self. Trying to distract me from winning.”
Around me, the other demons craned their necks, listening to every word I said.
“You look radiant!” said another woman from the back.
A male demon with bronze horns lifted his champagne flute. “Truly regal, Shadow Scion.”
I cast a quick look at Shai, who just shrugged. I wasn’t used to being showered in compliments, and I had no idea how to respond. Of course, they were only hedging their bets, hoping to be on good terms with the next ruler. As soon as I walked away, they’d be doing the same to Orion.
“Do you need anything, Lady Morgenstern?” someone asked from behind.
What I really needed right now after that exhausting fight was not to be the center of attention.
I lifted my empty glass, and before I could say another word, someone snatched it away to refill it. But I’d been in a dark underworld for what felt like a year, and then in a quiet apartment by myself. I wasn’t quite used to all these people yet. Even the moon seemed too bright, somehow. Why did I feel like I could hear everyone’s breathing?
I held up my hand. “Thank you, I’ve had enough champagne. I’m going to get some rest and think about the next trial.”
I forced my way out of the crowd, desperate for space. Once I reached the edges of the festival, my gaze flicked toward the river. Following the Acheron was always the easiest way around the City of Thorns, and walking west along the bank would take me back to my apartment that overlooked the pool. Towering stone buildings loomed over me on one side. On the other, the forest seemed to beckon. When I’d first arrived here, the wilderness had struck me as sinister. Now, it looked like heaven. The sight of it made my fangs lengthen and my heart beat faster. I ran my tongue over my teeth, dizzy for a moment with hunger.
What was I hungry for? Something I couldn’t name, a power I’d once possessed.
I glanced down at the tattoo on my arm and traced my fingertips over the dark contours of the skeleton key. In the underworld with Tammuz, I’d lived like a real demon. With just the two of us there, I’d trained in a primal world, becoming a predator. A memory flashed in my mind: I’d taken down a stag with my bare hands, sinking my teeth into its neck to feast on it.
I swallowed hard, shocked to remember I’d eaten it raw.
I started toward the stone river walk, breathing in the humid air. For now, the ball was in my court. As the shadow scion, I would choose the next trial. The time, the location, the task…
What I’d learned from tonight was that anything involving physical strength was a risk. Maybe I’d win, maybe not.
As I crossed onto the river walk, I heard Shai calling my name, and the sound echoed off the stones. I turned to see her walking between Legion and the blond demon. They really did make a gorgeous trio.
“I wanted to introduce you to my friends,” said Shai breathlessly as she drew closer.
The blond held out his hand, and I shook it, my gaze trailing over the tattoos that snaked around his arms. His eyes were the color of whiskey. “I’m Kasyade. But almost everyone calls me Kas. And I am absolutely delighted to meet a real succubus.” With his messed-up hair, he had an almost boyish look—which made his deep, gravelly voice unexpected. “I was already intrigued by Mortana, but I didn’t want to get anywhere near her, given her reputation.”
This close, I got a better look at him. He was styled much more casually than most of the demons I’d seen, in dark jeans and a T-shirt that gave him a kind of tattooed, muscular, James Dean look.
I glanced at Legion, who was clean shaven and dressed more formally. “We’ve met before,” I said, “but I suppose I was Mortana then.”
Moonlight glinted in his angular brown eyes. “It took a long time for Shai to convince me that you were someone different. But then I suppose if you were the real Mortana, a Lilu king would have ripped out your heart by now. And he still might, of course, since you’re trying to take the crown from him.”
Kas sighed. “Please excuse my blunt friend.” He glanced over his shoulder. “But he’s right. You’re not safe here, no matter what the king said.”
I shook my head. “I’m sure Orion knows the rules are very strict. He’s not allowed to hurt me outside the trials.”
Shai hooked her arm into mine. “We’ll escort you home anyway.”
Kas quirked a lopsided smile, his cheek dimpling on one side. “I didn’t want to miss the chance to meet our city’s first queen.”