CHAPTER 23
WITH THE AIR TENSE from unspoken threats, I spring to my feet. “I need to use the bathroom.”
Hanae exchanges a look with Reece, both rising in unison. “I’ll accompany you,” she offers quickly, her tone leaving no room for refusal.
I’m already backing toward the door. “No need.”
“Sit down, Sister.” It’s no request, not even a warning.
It’s reality knocking.
The lounge erupts into motion. Kale vaults over a chair, cutting off my escape through the main door.
Irene and Reece move to block the windows, despite them being barred.
Palina grabs my arm, anchoring me in place.
I twist violently, breaking free only to collide with Hanae, who appears from nowhere to block my path.
“You’re not going anywhere,” Hanae hisses, all pretense of civility gone.
The sound of the aircraft grows louder with every breath. They are so close. All I need to do is find a way out, or a signal, anything to let them know I’m in here.
“It’s pointless, you know?” Palina says, pacing behind me. “The building is cloaked and warded against intrusion. However they found you, they can’t see you. You’re a ghost to them. And even if they could, they would need Ace’s permission to enter.”
My heart pounds like it’s trying to crack through my ribs, hearing but not listening to what she says. I’ll tear through a wall if I have to. I just need one opening. One chance.
My mind races through possibilities. If the mansion is invisible like she says, something must be generating that magic, like a power source. It’s not just a temporary illusion or concealment.
Since the windows are barred, could they be a weak spot?
Perhaps not the windows themselves, but whatever lets the light slip through, even if it doesn’t burn them.
If the barrier is intended to cause visual distortion and keep unwanted visitors out, then physically damaging it could create a gap—a signal.
Irene and Reece aren’t trying to block me from getting through, but a projectile. I scan the room for anything I could use—a paperweight, a vase, even one of the chess pieces—anything solid enough to disrupt the barrier if thrown with enough force.
I lunge for the fireplace, grabbing a heavy brass poker before anyone can stop me. Palina moves to intercept, but I feint left, then spin right, using the momentum to swing the poker in a wide arc that forces her back.
“Just let me go,” I yell out in a desperate plea, backing toward the window. “You don’t have to do this.”
Saul steps forward, his hands raised. “Give up, Sister. This will not end how you want it to.”
I ignore him, making a desperate dash for the nearest object.
A decanter is my target, but Kale cuts me off with inhuman speed, grabbing my wrist and twisting until the glass clatters to the floor.
A porcelain figurine is my next, but before I can reach it, Kale’s other hand shoots out, catching my wrist again.
I drive my knee up, aiming for his groin, but he sidesteps, using my momentum to throw me off balance.
I’m sent crashing into a side table, more glass shattering as a lamp topples.
The rotors sound fainter now, as if they’re moving away.
Panic surges through me as I scramble to my feet, grabbing a shard of broken glass. Blood wells where it cuts into my palm, but I barely feel it.
“Enough!” Irene shouts, closing in. “Stop fighting, Seraph. You’re only making this worse.”
I throw the glass shard at her face, forcing her to duck, then vault over the settee. Three more steps to the window. Two. One—
Hands like steel clamp around my waist, yanking me backward.
I thrash wildly, connecting with something solid. Reece grunts in effort but doesn’t let go, my body a ragdoll in his hold. Palina appears in front of me, trying to restrain my arms.
“She’s lost it,” Kale mutters, circling to my right.
With a surge of desperate strength, I wrench free from her grasp and slam my elbow into Reece’s solar plexus. He doubles over, giving me just enough space to break away and sprint for the door, knowing my previous plan is a lost cause.
I almost make it, too. My fingers brush the doorknob before Hanae tackles me from behind, driving me into the heavy oak. The impact knocks the breath from my lungs. She spins me around, her forearm pressed against my throat, pinning me in place.
“Stand down,” she warns, her face inches from mine, “or you will regret it.”
I sag against the door, chest heaving.
A gentle knock sounds from the other side, the vibration traveling through the wood against my back. Hanae’s eyes flick to the side, her grip loosening just slightly. She steps back, allowing the door to open, though she keeps one hand firmly on my arm.
None other than Ace walks in, his presence immediately filling the room.
His hair is slightly damp, as if he’s just bathed.
He wears a simple white shirt, half-unbuttoned.
But the casual appearance does nothing to diminish the intensity radiating off him.
He takes in the messy scene before settling on my face.
His expression remains neutral, but something ominous flickers behind his gaze. “They’ve been circling for twenty minutes,” he says, his voice deceptively soft. “Won’t be long now.”
If they leave, my last hope will be going with them. I can’t let that happen. I only have one, desperate chance left.
Time slows as I assess my options once more.
Hanae stands between me and freedom, her grip firm but not crushing.
Ace blocks the doorway, his attention momentarily divided as Kale approaches to report something in his ear.
The others are scattered throughout the room, alert but relaxed now that the immediate threat seems contained.
There’s no way I’ll be able to overpower a vampire like Ace, but I don’t need to beat him.
I just need to create enough chaos to slip past him.
The thought comes without warning, rising from some primal part of me I’ve always feared.
The part that isn’t human. The part I’ve spent my life denying.
The very idea makes me sick, but the alternative is worse.
Trapped forever, or worse, handed back to Cain.
Flashes of what went down in his lair burn through me. Ones where his hand was buried deep in the chest cavities of those who disobeyed him, his fingers slick with blood, curling around a heart still trying to beat. And for a second, I understand.
I wait for Hanae’s attention to shift away, to Ace, then summon every ounce of vampire strength I possess.
Moving with inhuman speed, I drive my hand forward, hard—not a punch, but a spear—fingers stiff and aimed directly at her chest.
There’s a moment of resistance as my hand meets flesh, then a sickening give as it plunges through.
Hot liquid cascades over my wrist, my arm, soaking into my sleeve.
Hanae’s eyes widen in shock and pain, her mouth opening in a silent scream.
I feel the wet, pulsing mass of her heart beneath my fingers and clench, yanking back with everything in my power.
Her heart comes free in a spray of vitae, still quivering in my grasp. The room freezes in collective horror.
Even Ace stands motionless, caught between shock and something far darker I do not wish to find out. Hanae crumples to the floor, her body already beginning to desiccate.
Skin graying and cracking like ancient parchment, her death gives me the opening I need.
I toss Ace her heart while darting past him, shoving him aside with strength born of pure adrenaline, and sprint down the corridor.
Behind me, chaos erupts. Shouts echo off stone walls as the Ravens recover from their stupor.
Heavy footsteps thunder after me, but I’m already turning the corner and descending stairs, racing toward what I hope is freedom.
I run blindly, no destination in mind except away.
My blood-soaked hand leaves crimson smears on the walls as I steady myself around turns.
The corridor opens into a grand foyer I’ve never seen before. Early sunlight streams through high windows, illuminating a massive front door. Freedom lies just beyond, tantalizingly close.
I speed toward it, greedily lunging for the handles, yanking with all my strength. Locked. Of course they’re locked. “Over here!” I scream, pounding on the door. “It’s me! Seraph!”
If I shout loud enough, Redmoore might hear me. If I can just get outside, the sun will protect me. If I can just find something to disrupt the cloaking spell—
My thoughts scatter as strong hands grab me from behind, forcing me off my feet and away from the door. I’m lifted for a breathless second before being slammed to the ground with bone-jarring force. The taste of blood floods my mouth, my vision a vicious haze.
“No one’s coming for you,” Ace growls, his pressing weight pinning me down.
His hand grips the back of my neck, driving my face into the stone floor, the rough surface scraping against my skin.
“Even if they could, they won’t. You know why?
” His lips graze my ear, and I can feel the chill of his words even before they are spoken.
“Because you don’t want them to die.” He pauses, savoring the fear in me. “Do you, Seraph?”
I struggle beneath him, but it’s useless. The reality of what I’ve done crashes over me. I’ve killed a Raven. Torn out her heart with my bare hands. The nausea rises, burning like coal in my throat. A bitter part of me is proud, but the sensible part of me is terrified.
“I just wanted to escape,” I choke out, guilt-ridden and beseeching for mercy.
His grip tightens, forcing a whimper from my lips. “And now you never will.”
Rough hands haul me to my feet. Through tear-blurred eyes, I see Kale and Reece flanking me, their expressions cold with fury. Behind them, Palina sobs, while Irene stands ashen-faced, her hands covered in vitae.
“Take her to the cells,” Ace commands. “She gets nothing. No food, no water, no blood. Not until I decide what to do with her.”