Karson snorted, his eyes darting to Ethan with malice. “It matters not, Ethan. I will find it with or without her help.”
Sarah’s eyes were glazed as they drifted to the ceiling. She muttered, “You will never find it. It’s in the last place you’d ever think to look.”
My muscles shook as I stepped forward. “Karson,” I whispered. “Everyone has suffered enough.”
His brow flickered as his gaze locked with mine. “I can’t let this go, Amelia. If the others see me showing mercy, it shows weakness, and weakness opens a floodgate for reprisals.”
“No, even if she did hurt Mary, it shows them you are strong enough to forgive.”
“This is all quite touching,” Rodney drawled. “But we have another matter we need to address first.”
Rodney’s fingers curled around my shoulder. My blood ran cold, my walls shooting up in my head like plated armor.
Karson stilled, darting his eyes from Rodney to me.
“What seems to be the issue?” Michael edged closer.
Rodney’s breath burned my ear. “Would you like to tell them, sweetheart, or shall I?”
Chapter 72
The Secret
Ethan went to move closer, but Janice crossed a sword in front of his body. “I would advise you to stay where you stand, Ethan.”
Ethan tensed. No one moved; they knew if they did, Rodney could snap my neck in less than a heartbeat.
“Rodney, you harm her, and you will pay the price,” Karson’s savage growl rumbled through the room.
“There will be no harm come to her fromme. She only needs to speak the truth, and you can do with her after that what you will.” Rodney gripped my chin, his fingers ice cold as he pulled my head up.
His threat cracked against my armor. Threatened to tear me down. “What,” I snapped. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“No, not willing to share? Shall I, then?” he asked, like he was ordering dinner. He turned his attention to Karson. “Have you ever come to wonder how you, the head of vampires, a man who despises witches, could fall in love with one?”
I stopped breathing, panic burning red hot in my chest. He fell in love because he knew me, knew my heart, saw something he wanted, he cherished.
Rodney shifted his hand to the back of my neck, sending icicles down my spine. “Now is your chance to own up, witch.”
I gritted my teeth, kept my armor raised, and snapped, “I’ve nothing to own up to.”
“No? I have it on good authority that she has been spelled to bewitch vampires. Spelled so that you would fall in love with her, Karson.”
Karson went dead still. It struck deeply the way his mind whirled as if he thought I’d do that.
It was the most ludicrous thing I had ever heard. My laugh was bitter. “If that’s true, then let me go, asshole.” He didn’t let go, his grip only tightened. “Look at that, your story crashes before the first fucking paragraph.”
“Rodney, it’s clearly witches trying to cause problems.” Karson stalked down the stairs. “Release her now.” His clawed hands curled into fists.
“No closer. I’d hate to see something accidentally happen to her,” Rodney said casually, the threat curling through my body. Karson halted, looking anxiously between Rodney and me. “I will let her go. You will get her back. My word is my vow. But you need to listen to me. We are old friends—have I ever betrayed you or let you down? Look at you all, clambering around her like she’s some queen.”
“It’s a lovely story truly,” Monique said, rising from a still sleeping Kenneth. “But if I could have gotten away with it, I would have ripped her throat out, so your theory is off kilter.”
“Ah, but you didn’t, did you. Why is that?” Rodney said.
“Because Karson would have killed me,” she answered. “Let her go, you fool.”
“You didn’t hurt her because something in you told you not to, something in you wouldn’t let you hurt her. Just like every vampire who is sired by Karson.”
