Dacian shrugged. “He’s always had a god complex. Gods don’t need last names. Anyway, two hundred years ago he decided he was powerful enough to pull all of the night feeders together under one banner. His. Alone, night feeders aren’t much of a threat to other nonhumans, but an army of them could do some damage. Stephan is the only night feeder to survive this long, and he’s ruthless. That gives him street cred with all the others. I’m almost as old as Stephan, and for two hundred years he’s built his army at the same time he’s tried to call me home. He says he needs my power by his side.”

“And you won’t go.” Eric looked thoughtful. “Cinn told me what happened when you refused him.”

“Yeah.” Dacian raked his fingers through his hair. “At first I didn’t know what was happening. Literally. And then I found out I killed people while my mind was out to lunch.”

“Including some of the Mackenzies.” Eric didn’t sound mad about that.

“The Mackenzies had always been enemies of the night feeders, so my instinct was to kill them. I didn’t recognize friend or foe.” Dacian remembered Sean Mackenzie. If not a friend, at least someone he had known as a good man. Once again, he revisited his agony from when he’d found out he’d killed Sean.

“So you used our own plan against us.” Eric shook his head in self-disgust.

“You and your friends had captured Taurin and stashed him in the warehouse as bait to draw me in.” He shrugged. “I found out and decided it was a great opportunity to fake my death so I could go somewhere where no one would ever be in danger from me again. I can control fire, so I went in and set the warehouse ablaze. As far as you were concerned, I never came out.”

“But you made sure Taurin and I got out.” Eric had one more question. “How’d you escape?”

“The Mackenzies never thought a night feeder could gain much power. Your mistake. I can dematerialize, as long as I’m not in one of my rages.”

“I can’t believe I was that stupid. So why’d you decide to come out of hiding now?”

“My informant said that Stephan knew Taurin’s location and was going to kill him to punish me.”

Eric nodded. “I guess there’s only one thing left to do.”

He stood, and before anyone could move, he reached Dacian, dragged him to his feet, and punched him in the stomach. “That’s for being a dumbass for two hundred years and not trusting your brother and me to find a way to help you.”

Dacian was doubled over clutching his stomach, so he didn’t see the exact moment Cinn brought the lamp down on Eric’s head.