“Good question.”Desi looked at me.
I crossed my arms and relaxed against the wall. “Because he had loved me when I had nothing. Both as a human and after I turned. He didn’t see red eyes, blue eyes, or my last name. He just wantedme.” I reached for my necklace, and he reached for his. I looked at him, and we both smiled.
“You’re a fucking loser, but you’re my loser.”
“Likewise, Nerd.”
“He doesn’t see me as ‘The Young Blood Priestess.” I put my hands up and did air quotes.
“Shame,” Fake Ginata sighed. “The High Priestess won’t like it. You can’t be mated to someone like him.”
“Excuse me?” I took a step forward. Instantly, Desi steppedtowardme in defense, putting himself between us. “Someone like him? At least he’s not a liar. A fake. An imposter. He doesn’t need to pretend. What will my aunt think when she finds out you can’t be trusted? What did she promise you in exchange for me?”
When Fake Ginata didn’t reply, I asked again. The redhead stood taller and put her nose to the sky as if we were truly beneath her.
“She’s going to make me more powerful than any of the sins. I won’t need to borrow the name anymore.”
“Borrow? You’ve been stealing from our sister.” Ludovica stood, finally. Her entire front was covered in thick, dark blood. She wiped her mouth, but it did little to clean her chin, neck, and arms. “You don’t get to walk away from that.” She clenched her fists and widened her red eyes.
“Oh, please. It’s too late. The High Priestess is sending her people to come to get her, and then I’ll be rewarded. I’ll be so rich I won’t need a single thing from anyone again. Fuck Ginata and all the Seven Sins. Seriously, you two should leave while you still can.” She waved them off with a flick of her wrist.
I blinked.
People were coming for me?
The room fell silent for a moment as everyone took in her words. Ludovica came to stand beside me. She reached for my hand, and I took it. It was sticky from Jonathon’s head. We watched as Desi stuck his hand in his pocket. Ludovica and I shared a look, knowing exactly what was coming.
“Who are you?” He cocked his head to the side.
She grinned. Her eyes were wide with excitement over her future. “My name, before I took over for your friend, was— in Chelsea. I guess I can just start going by it again. I always liked it more than Ginata.”
I couldn’t take my eyes off Desi’s back. Every muscle was tense yet confident. I could feel the excitement radiating off of him.
“It sounds like I have no real choice but to take your word for everything. I will admit I did not expect any of this tonight. I should probably leave.”
Ludovica squeezed my hand and gently tugged it when Desi pulled out his tarot deck. I nodded and took a small step back with her. I would go, but I wanted to see how it played out.
“Well, Chelsea, one last thing, will you pick a card?” He fanned the deck out and extended my hand. She eyed it with amusement.
“You’re a magician now? That explains how you won her over.” She laughed and took a card from his hand. She looked at it, then turned it for us to see.
“Justice. Is that good?”
Desi glanced at us, licking his lips and grinning. He then turned back to her and stepped forward.
“That’s excellent.”
32
“Do you really think she deserves whatever he’s doing to her in there?” I asked, sitting in the car with Ludovica. I stared at the building. We had left through the front because, apparently, in the back, there was another body that I shouldn’t see.
“She created a cult centered around convincing men to serve women and the women to treat men like sex slaves.” Ludovica didn’t look up from her nails, which she attempted to clean. “Definitely Seven Sin material, but no, I think she is going to get everything she deserves. I’m more concerned about where the real Ginata is. I’m sure Desi will try to get the truth out of her before he kills her.”
“Polyamory isn’t—” I started, but Ludovica cut me off.
“No, what she was doing was not Polyamory. I’m cutting off their supply, and hopefully, the blood community here can heal and decide for themselves. The people here had no choice.”
I considered her words. She wasn’t wrong.
