Page 110 of Let Sleeping Vampires Lie

I pushed up to a knee and saw the stage clearly for one brief second.

One mercenary vaulted onto it, moving with inhuman speed. He snapped a guard’s neck without slowing, then grabbed the edge of the stand and kicked it aside.

The case slid.

Another mercenary, taller and heavier, reached out and caught it with one hand. He did not even glance at the host, who clutched his chest with wide eyes.

All their focus lay on the serum.

I drew the compact form of my spear from my thigh holster, flicking my wrist to extend it. The spear snapped into its full length with a soft metallic whisper.

Con tore into the first mercenary that reached our aisle.

It was not elegant.

He caught the man’s wrist mid-strike, twisted with brutal efficiency, and slammed his elbow into the soldier’s throat. Bone cracked. The enhanced jerked, eyes wide, black veins pulsing under skin as his altered physiology tried to compensate.

Con did not give him time.

He drove a dagger up under the man’s ribs, angled for the heart. Whatever augmentations they had, they still needed a pump.

The soldier dropped.

Three more took his place.

Cerise was on her feet now, lips shaped around a spell. Silver light flared from her fingers, lancing toward one of the mercenaries charging the stage. It hit a shield instead, exploding in a shower of sparks.

These men had protections layered over flesh and cybernetics.

They were not here to negotiate.

They were here to take.

Valerian’s presence pressed closer, circling my mind like a predator.

“Show me,” it seemed to whisper. “Show me what you can do when you stop pretending you are still safe.”

My magic rose.

Fire first.

Heat crawled up my spine, simmered under my skin, coiled in my chest. It wanted out. Wanted fuel.

I looked at the tide of soldiers sweeping toward the stage. At the buyers cowering behind seats. At the guards trying and failing to halt the assault.

At Con, holding a line alone, blades flashing.

If they escaped with that formula, we would be fighting their results for the rest of our lives.

I pushed to my feet.

The world narrowed.

Sound dimmed.

The edges of my vision blurred, leaving only the shapes that mattered.

Soldiers. Case. Con.