The fire of it licks up my spine, fierce and unrelenting, burning away the last of the girl I used to be.
Father raises to his feet, shoving his hands into his dress pants pockets as he stares at me. “And what about those human boys you saved…Do you trust them?”
The question sends shockwaves through my brain, because he’s askingme. Because he is looking at me like my judgment of them matters and that what I have to say carries weight in this plan.
I swallow hard, forcing myself to sift through the memories. Dante’s spirit ruined by his father’s cruelty as he tried to escape the first time. Callum’s guilt carving into him until he snapped and shattered the vat of my blood. Elias taking a bullet meant for me without a second of hesitation.
I’ve seen the broken, flawed pieces of them and I know without a doubt we are all bleeding with the same fire for vengeance.
“I…” My voice falters, and I have to steady myself, breath catching as I press my palms together. “I don’t know the extent of my trust in them yet, personally. But I do trust that they want to burn that place to the ground. I know they’ll do whatever they can to help us.”
My truth hangs in the air between us, fragile but certain.
“I must admit,” Dad says, his voice a low growl that still manages to sound casual, “I was hoping for the opportunity to hurt them.”
The blunt honesty of it knocks a startled laugh out of me. I let out a huff of air and shake my head, some of the tension in my chest unraveling with the motion.
“Once upon a time,” I admit, my lips twitching with a humorless smile, “I also wanted that opportunity.”
The laugh dies in my throat almost as soon as it escapes, leaving me hollow. My smile fades, and the weight of everything presses down harder than before.
Because the truth is that I don’t even know what I want from the three humans anymore.
I used to think I did. Once upon a time, I wanted revenge, I wanted distance, and I wanted to see them bleed for what they stood by and let happen to me. And yet now there’s something else inside of me that I can’t decipher, no matter how hard I try, but one thought stands out starkly: I don’t want to let them go when this is over.
I should want freedom from them just as much as I want vengeance against Terrance.
But the idea of never seeing them again feels wrong in a way that guts me.
I don’t know what that means yet. I don’t know if it’s a new, budding trust in them, or something darker like a shared trauma only we can understand. I only know that when all this is done, I can’t picture walking away from them yet.
That terrifies me more than the thought of going back to the compound.
CHAPTER 30
CALLUM
The last few days have blurred into a cycle of stolen sleep and long hours around Briar’s fathers’ meeting table. We’ve been piecing through every detail with the FBI contact they’re working with from the human realm. Every scrap of intel Dante, Elias, and I could hand over was laid bare. It’s real progress toward bringing Terrance down, but each step forward tightens the knot in my stomach.
All of this ends with us going back to the compound. Back to the place where my uncle carved Briar’s screams into my memory and where I stood by with my hands tied and called it survival.
I need to redeem myself. Not for anyone else, but for me. If I don’t, I’ll never be able to live with the weight of what I allowed.
Somehow amidst all the planning and talking, I haven’t seen her once. Briar’s absence has stalked me through every waking hour. Her face slips into my thoughts when I least expect it, and I find myself wondering how she’s holding together. I made the mistake of asking Elias once and he got cagey in that way that sets my teeth on edge.
He knows something and he’s keeping it close to his chest.
Which only makes me think of her more and whatever she’s enduring that could keep my own brother from telling me her truth.
I wander through the castle’s endless halls, our permissions loosened now that her fathers have stopped seeing us as their direct enemy for the time being. The corridors stretch out, filled with paintings and so many endless doors, until a thread of music cuts through the stillness.
I slow, head cocking to see if I heard correctly.
It’s faint but distinct, the low, pulsing thrum of bass, the ache of a man’s voice singing words I know.The Death of Peace of Mind.Bad Omens. Human music.
A strange sound to hear echoing through the stone walls of a vampire castle. Perhaps music really does transcend everything, bringing us all together in a way that only it can.
Curiosity tugs at me and before I know it, my boots carry me toward it, deeper into the wing. I stop in the doorway, half hiding behind the door that’s only partially open as the music vibrates through the room.
