~ ZEV ~
Zev pulled out of Lhars' mind completely. He wished his hands were free to claw through his hair, or scratch his neck. His skin felt too tight. So tight, it thrummed, because the weight of everything he'd thought… everything he'd assumed…
He'd been wrong. So wrong.
"You know," he said softly, "I haven't made any attempt to hold her heart—"
"She doesn't want me, you fucker. Leave it alone. She's just like every other blind idiot here who takes one look at you and decides the sun shines out of your ass. Even the humans… I don't know what magic they put on you, Zev, but one of these days I hope you start appreciating it. Because the rest of us have to fight for the kind of loyalty and devotion that you shit all over, every day of your fucking life."
Zev stared at the ceiling and sighed heavily. "I'm sorry," he said. "I really didn't know."
