General Lee’s body was the most grotesque thing I’d ever seen, and the longer I stared, the harder it was to look away.
I had seen many vampires die. My mother. Our people.
But none of them looked like this.
The wounds were carved into his chest, and they felt fresh but somehow old at the same time. Jagged edges. They were deep and still open, but there was no blood coming from them.
I reached out to touch the skin, the urge to feel it overpowering me.Calling me.
“Stop!” Cedar ordered, her hand finding my shoulder and jerking me away.
I snapped out of the trance then, my mind and body catching up. I hadn’t realized how close I had gotten.
All of us were lingering in the side room, the Blood Rites having ended hours before. Adrian fucked off to do god knowswhat, but I didn’t truly care when I had thismonstrosityin front of me.
Atlas had joined us on my request. She had to sneak in from the garden so Adrian wouldn’t see her or notice she’d come, since he would no doubt be likely to attack her for her absence at the ceremony. I had sent my husband away to work on some cleanup and make sure the four of us had enough time to talk, and now that he was back, he stood to the side, not wanting to get too close to the body.
We needed all the backup we could get for something like this.
I grabbed our witch’s hand, needing something to steady me. There was still a constant flow of disgust and fear coming from her whenever she looked at the body.
After her explanation, I could understand why. General Lee had been doing the unthinkable.
“This is…” Vesper started, standing by my side, looking down at the general with a frown. She was trying to send calming waves to both of us through the bond, but it was a lost cause. The situation was unraveling into something far more horrifying than I ever could have imagined.
“Grotesque,” I finished for her. “I didn’t know this was even possible. That someone would stoop as low as…”
I shook my head. Even after I exposed him and everything fell into place, I don’t think I truly understood the magnitude of what the vampire had done. To himself and others.
My eyes fell to Cedar for what felt like the millionth time. From the moment I showed everyone his wounds, she had been on edge. Not just anxiety, but fear.True fear.I'd never seen her like this. Even when her own coven hurt her. When we ran for our lives. When we watched Vesper get taken away from us.
She feared what the body meant. I could sense it in her. Even without the bond, it was easy because her entire body was tense and ready to run. Always facing the door.
“How many witches does it take to do this?” Vesper asked, looking at Cedar, and her fear spiked further.
“At least a dozen, I'm guessing.”
My heart dropped.
Atlas looked at her. “You'reguessing? Aren't you our expert here? Maybe we picked the wrong witch.“
For the first time, Cedar looked to the ground, almost like a sign of submission to Atlas. Anger stirred to life in my veins.
“You don’t speak to her that way,” I hissed. Atlas glared at me but softened almost immediately after. I knew it was due to her soft spot for me, but I didn’t give a damn.
I wouldn’t allow anyone to talk like that to my lovers. Ally or otherwise.
“What I mean is that you're the only witch in close proximity. Are you telling me you know nothing? If we are going to figure out the risks of this whole thing, we need information.”
Nervousness built up in Cedar. I reached out to grab her hand and found her shaking. My heart broke for our witch.
“All I know is that if vampires are doingthis, I am in danger. Every witch is. Once they realize they can harness our power, they will do anything for it. No matter the consequences.”
Vesper stepped forward, taking Cedar’s other hand.
“What else can you tell us about this?”
“I think…” Cedar took a deep breath. “I think my coven is connected to this.”
