Marius flung open the carriage door, careful not to let the last rays of sunlight touch the vampire, before he jumped to the ground, letting the door slam shut behind him.
The moment he got his bearings, he groaned.
Kydona help them all, this was worse than what he’d Seen.
Menacing Scowls and A Dance with Death
The carriage walls were closing in on Vivienne as seconds ticked by in agonizing slowness.
“Marius,” she hissed through clenched teeth, her wide eyes staring at the door in disbelief. “Come back.”
There was no reply.
Of course not.
Why would the prince of this land have any care for his personal well-being?
Vivienne felt like smacking her head against the carriage wall. Why? Why was this her life? Now, more than ever, she was certain she’d been cursed.
She must’ve angered a god in a previous life. There was no other explanation. First, the sneaking off. Now, this.
She extended her senses, listening for the prince, but she didn’t hear his voice. Come to think of it, she didn’t hear anything at all.
The darkness within her screamed at the wrongness of the situation.
Something was happening outside. Even though she didn’t haveshadows to warn her, she could sense the change in the air. She chewed on her lip, her nails cutting into the skin of her palms once more as she debated the best course of action.
On one hand, the sun had been setting when Marius opened the door and slipped outside. There was a chance it would be safe for her to follow him outside.
On the other hand—the one that had kept her alive for over a century—Vivienne wasn’t keen on risking her life based on a chance.
However, her choice was made for her when a masculine grunt of pain reached her ears. She wasn’t sure whether it belonged to Felix or the prince, but she refused to remain hidden while something happened to the royal she was blood-sworn to protect.
Praying that this wouldn’t be the last choice she ever made, Vivienne tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword and flung open the door.
Time seemed to slow as she jumped outside, landing feet-first on the ground.
Squeezing her eyes shut instinctively, she braced herself for the hard sear of the sun on her flesh, followed by brutal, burning heat as flames devoured her from the inside out.
For one long, drawn-out heartbeat, she stood outside and expected to die.
Then, the familiar, bitter, snow-bearing wind kissed her cheek as though it was welcoming her home.
There was nothing in this world that compared to Eleytan wind. The other kingdoms were warmer, to be sure, but she’d always loved the cold. Born and raised on the northern edge of the Black Sea, she’d barely experienced a day without snow.
For a moment, she let herself relish in the peace that came from being back home.
Then, she opened her eyes.
The tranquility the cold wind had brought her dissipated as though it had never existed. A breathy curse slipped from her lips, and her momentary relief at being alive vanished.
A dozen men, all wearing hooded cloaks, stood in a circle twenty feet away. Their outer garments were common in Eleyta, where even the summers never got warm enough to melt stubborn patches of snow deep in the forests.
It wasn’t their appearance that worried her, but the weapons they held. Some carried swords, while others gripped a variety of sharp farming implements. All the weapons, save one, were pointed directly at Marius and Felix, who stood back-to-back in the middle of the circle.
They were surrounded.
A thousand curses ran through Vivienne’s mind as she drew in a sharp breath, scenting the air.
