For the first time in centuries, I don’t feel alone, even when I’m always surrounded by people.
A distant sound filters through the walls.
A shout.
Then another.
My body tenses instantly, every sense snapping into place.
The club.
Something’s wrong.
I slide out of bed silently and cross the room in a blink, pulling on pants and a shirt as I go. I pause at the door, listening.
Glass shatters below.
A scream.
The sound of furniture being overturned.
Pandemonium.
I swear under my breath.
I let my guard down.
I was too focused on her. Too wrapped up in watching her breathe. Too indulgent in a moment of peace I haven’t earned.
I don’t have to wonder who it is downstairs. I already know. I can smell their stink in the air. The vampires from last night didn’t retreat.
They regrouped.
I move fast, opening the door just enough to bark orders down the hall. Guards flood toward the stairs. Weapons. Commands. The old rhythm snapped back into place.
I turn back just as Cassia sits up in bed, eyes wide, hair a mess.
“What’s happening?” she asks, voice thick with sleep.
“Stay here,” I say sharply.
She’s already swinging her legs over the side of the bed.
“No.”
I’m across the room in an instant, blocking her path. “This isn’t a debate.”
Her eyes flash. “Someone’s hurt.”
The certainty in her voice makes my chest tighten.
“You don’t know that.”
“I do,” she snaps, already reaching for the door. “I can hear it.”
She’s right.
Another scream echoes up the stairwell.
