He blocked every blow until he used his speeds against me and grabbed me from behind, my stakes pinned with my arms over my chest, holding me tight against his front.
“I only want to help,” he growled, and I was taken by surprise. “I’d like to help you find them, the ones who killed your father.”
I had never needed help, but I couldn’t deny that I was fucking tired; all the traveling and fighting had been wearing on me. I had noticed I was thinner, looking more pale here recently, but I had tossed it on the back burner in comparison to the revenge I so craved, and having help sounded kind of nice right about now.
They could be my way in, and then at least if they got killed, it wouldn’t be someone I cared about. I could always kill them afterwards if I needed to. But… they werethem.
“How did you know why I was here?” I asked.
“You have been a busy woman since his death. You’ve killed more monsters than I care to remember. People might not knowwhois doing the killings, but word travels, love,” he said while I struggled in his hold, trying to catch my breath. “Now, if I let you go, you must promise to not kill me.”
“I promise,” I said, and as soon as he released me, I rammed one of my stakes into his thigh. He hissed as he stumbled back.
“So much for your word,” he muttered as he yanked the stake free and tossed it to the ground.
“I didn’t kill you,” I said with a smirk, and one of his brothers chuckled from his chair, the one with the darker hair, while the other grinned at my response, taking a sip of his liquor. “Now, what would you want from me if Ididagree to this deal of yours?”
“I don’t want anything from you. I just want a better world;wewant a better world.” At this, I almost laughed. He continued when I didn’t respond, “Because contrary to what you all may think ofour kindnow,we,”—he motioned to his brothers—“don’t disagree with your ways. There should be lines monsters shouldn't cross.
“Life, humanity, is something to be respected. Cherished, even.” His voice grew a little somber at the end of his sentiment. “I’m sure there are plenty of monsters out there that have no regard for such a thing, and if they meet their end by your blade, or bullets, then I’d say it’s well deserved.”
I had to look over each of their faces to be sure that what he was saying was the truth. But none of them moved to kill me when I knew they easily could.
Hell, the one who had me in his hold could have ripped my throat out. A part of me yearned to believe that not all were like the beasts that had killed my father, that perhaps some flicker of humanity could exist within them.
But the hatred, the loathing I harbored for their kind, surged like bile in my throat. Could I really work alongside the very creatures I had sworn to destroy?
My father would have given them chances, but could I?
“What do you say, little monster?” he asked again, and I looked over at him before peering at the other two men sitting in the chairs.
Now that I was observing closer, I realized they were all grossly attractive.
One had dark black hair and piercing blue eyes, with swirling black tattoos on his forearms from what I could see of his rolled-up sleeves on his button-down. The other had light brown hair, and I never thought I’d think a Vampire's eyes looked kind, but that was the only thing that came to mind when I looked at him.
The one making the deal nodded his head for them to come over, and they both stood, walking over to me.
“I’m Sebastian Davorin, but call me Bastian, and these are my two brothers by heart, not by blood. This is Nox.” He pointed to the one with dark hair, the one who looked like every girl’s worst mistake.
He eyed me like he wanted to eat me in more ways than one, as if he could see every inch of flesh under my clothes.
It made me shift uneasily on my feet.
His cocky looks, square jaw, and menacing bad boy grin did things to my insides.
“And that’s Thorne,” Bastian finished, pointing to the one with those kind, dark, forest-green eyes. As if the bark and the leaves of spring were meeting together in his gaze. His jaw was more angular, and his hair was brown and looked to be gelled out of his face.
He flashed me a smile full of straight teeth—a heartwarming one. One that wouldn’t make you suspect anything lurked just beneath it. All of them had lighter skin.
“Well, it seems you’re already acquainted with who I am…”
“Everyone recognizes a Velika when they see one. Do we have a deal?” Bastian asked, and the chill from the thought of accepting seeped into my soul, but it was nothing compared to the icy knot of exhaustion that had settled deep in my bones.
My muscles ached from the relentless cycle of hunting and running, a never-ending pursuit fueled by rage and an insatiable need for vengeance.
There was something unsettling about accepting aid from those who shared the same monstrous nature as the ones who'd torn my world apart. Why would they want to help me? What did they have to gain?
A better world was the biggest bullshit response I’d ever heard. Everything had a cost; nothing was free.
