CHAPTER FIFTY
ALARIC
Callista: I grow impatient. The Witching Hour approaches. Where is my killer?
Winnie runs back to her friends. Those tears spilling down her beautiful cheeks haunt me – tears I know I caused.
I hid these things away precisely so I wouldn’t cause her pain. And still, I have caused her pain. I broke the two vows I made to her when I asked her to stay.
I long to go after her, to attempt to explain, to see if what I have broken between us can be repaired. But she is right about me. Iama monster. She is right to run.
My castle is in uproar and I am needed. Gideon comes for me, his face grave. Reginald takes us to my study, where he brought Baylor. I dig my fang into the pad of my thumb, relishing the pain. I rub the wound against Baylor’s lip, rousing him from the stupor Gideon had placed him in – my friend is a fellow adept at an ancient form of vampiric martial arts that can subdue one of our kin. Gideon and I pin his arms and drag him to the ballroom. He barely has theenergy to struggle.
As we enter, the room falls deathly silent.
Silent as a tomb.
The band has been dismissed and Callista stands on the band dais, her arms raised for attention. Perdita stands behind her, holding a tablet towards the crowd where Isis’s camera footage plays on an endless loop. The only sounds in the room are the scrape of Baylor’s body against the marble and his voice rasping on the tape.
“I want to taste you as I take your life. I bet you are the sweetest delight.”
Disgusting.
He deserves the hell that awaits him.
I cannot help but feel that I deserve it, too.
Hundreds of vampiric eyes watch as we toss the struggling Baylor at my mother’s feet. I scan the room for Winnie and see her huddling in the corner with the women from the Nevermore Coven minus Arabella and Dora, who are taking Isis home. I admire the grim set of her jaw, her determination to witness this justice for her friend even though she is upset and frightened and I have broken her heart.
My body knows it’s too late – I have broken us. But my heart leaps when her golden eyes meet mine.
She quickly looks away.
“A grave crime was committed during our revels – the third such crime committed within our community in the last month.” My voice booms around the vast room. I let my words drip with the blood and dust of the battlefield, with every vile act I’ve committed and every torture I’ve endured. They must all know that I will not tolerate monsters in my house.I’mthe top beast here. “Our justice must be swift. I call upon the ancient Rite of the Mora to judge this man.”
“Yesssss.” A hiss echoes through the crowd, the vipers coiling to strike.
“Who will judge our court?” I call.
“I will judge.” Callista steps forward, her features alight with relish. “Lady Callista Valerian, of the Blood Valerian, for theNightshade Court.”
“I will judge.” Perdita’s staccato voice rings like music through the silent hall. “Princess Perdita Chastain, of the Blood Chastain, for the Midnight Court.”
I draw back in surprise. I didn’t know Perdita had undergone the rites to administer the Mora. She has more bravery than I credit her for.
“Have we a qualified representative from the Dusk Court?” calls my mother.
It’s a loaded question. Members of the Dusk Court usually prefer not to reveal themselves?—
“Here,” a voice calls from the back of the crowd.
Vampires shuffle aside, granting the representative a clear path. A woman in a midnight dress dotted with a galaxy of gems and a diamond-studded mask over her face steps forward into the light. Something about her is familiar to me, although I cannot place it. She lifts the mask to reveal?—
“Lilac?” I hear Winnie gasp from across the room.
Of course.
In the weeks that she’s been serving me during Reginald’s forced village outings, I’ve never once asked Lilac about her court affiliations. Like me, she favours drinking in silence, and I got the sense she’s in Argleton for the same reasons I am – to live free of court interference. But it stands to reason she is from the court of potion masters and magicians – after all, she does mix a mean blood cocktail.
