One that felt like the late king’s.
“As far as I need to,” I answered.
“Then say it,” he ordered. “Say you would give me your magic. That you would drain yourself until you lay dead at my feet, your pitiful life wasting away, all for my sister.” When I remained silent, his anger rose. He leaned forward. “Say it!”
Atlas’s hands were suddenly grabbing me and forcing me into a fully standing position.
“I apologize for the disrespect she’s shown you,” she said quickly. “I will see to it that she is punished. Do not worry about my loyalty, it belongs to you.”
Just as I thought he was going to burst, the vampire that had been standing at the door walked in with another. They were wearing the very same outfit Vesper and I did when we were in the palace—all black, weapons strapped to their hips. It seemed to be one of the only things that had remained unchanged.
It was jarring to see what we would have been like if we’d never left the palace. Like fragments of some weird parallel universe.
“Feeding time,” the one who wouldn’t stop looking at me said.
Adrian gave me one last lingering look before he turned and left the room. The vampires lingered, letting us know our time was up and ready to escort us out if needed.
“Let’s go,’ I said and nudged Atlas to the door.
“You just had to open your goddamn mouth, didn’t you?”
She stormed out of the room, with me following closely behind her.
Guilt and anger filled me.I would do anything for Aurelia, so why… Why was it so hard to offer my life for her?
“You know what we have to do now,” I told Atlas, who still wouldn’t look at me. “Vesper has been waiting. We have no idea what is going on in?—”
“I’m not done trying,” she hissed, walking faster, and my fist shot forward and grabbed her arm, turning her to look at me.
Her eyes widened. Her nostrils flared. She bared her teeth at me as she pushed me off her with her vampire strength.
“Watch yourself,witch. I have been more than accommodating.”
I couldn’t hold back anymore. I let my magic seep out of me and conjured red vines to slither up her body so fast she didn’t know it was happening until one of them was brushing against her cheek.
She froze but still let a warning growl rumble deep in her chest.
“Atlas, what asurprise.”
We both turned to see a new person in the hallway, a tall vampire with slicked-back hair and a mustache. He was wearing a uniform I hadn’t seen before, and there was… something about him that made my skin crawl.
Instinctively, I stepped back and pulled my magic back to me. I couldn’t tell if he was worse than Adrian or not, but my mind was telling me to run.
Atlas stepped closer, obviously not sensing the same thing.
“GeneralLee, is it now?” she asked, a bit of apprehension sinking into her voice.
“It is,” he replied with a proud smile. “The council sent me here to oversee the transfer of power. Funny seeing you here. Especially when you didn’t show up the other day.”
The stare down between them told me something was wrong here.
“Funny thing.” Atlas narrowed her eyes at him. “If I remember correctly, even in your prime, you couldn’t even fight off a single witch, let alone another vampire. But someone made you ageneral?”
He puffed up dangerously, the aura that made me want to run getting stronger.
“I trained. Evolved. Took some time, but all things come to those who deserve them, am I right?”
Atlas made a noise in her throat but didn’t look convinced.
