Chapter 3 #2
My gorge rises at the thought of them being killed, at the realization that the only reason they were in danger was because of me, because of what I did.
I killed Theo, and now all of humanity will suffer for it.
I can see him turning to ash, his eyes going from outraged to terrified in the space of a moment.
His death at my hands. And then my friends, their bodies being ripped apart by Tantuns, poison oozing through their veins. Dead. All dead. All my fault.
In through my nose, out through my mouth. I focus on my breathing, on something that I can control. But I fail. Tears run and I can’t seem to tame my breath, to hold it. I gasp in air with panicked inhales.
“Georgia.” Valen is beside me.
I look at him through watery eyes.
“Breathe.” He reaches for me.
I flinch.
He pauses, then presses his palm to my cheek. “Please, kedves verem. Breathe.”
His voice is so gentle, his touch warm. “Deeper breath.” He presses his other palm to my chest, his fingers splayed over my sternum. “In.” He slowly inhales.
I try to match him, but I can’t. Then he does it again. Again. More and more until I do match him, the whistling terror in my mind slowing, fading, then falling to a low background whine.
He brings his other palm to my cheek and thumbs away my tears.
“His touch is comfort. Safety.” My mind whispers lies. Even so, the tightness in my chest is gone, my heart no longer pounding.
One more easy breath in, and Valen’s touch disappears.
He’s standing in the doorway again, hands at his sides. “I have to go. While I—”
“Where?”
“Back to Gregor. Word will spread soon enough that several high-ranking Tantuns are missing. I need to get to Gregor before the rumors.”
My skin goes cold. “What will you tell him?”
“That Carlotta and her minions were plotting against him and tried to assassinate me before going for his throat. Their attempt failed, but there was a casualty in the fight.” He gives me a pointed look.
Realization is like a slap. “You’re going to tell him I’m dead?”
“Just so.”
“Will he believe you?”
“He’ll have no choice but to believe me. Carlotta isn’t available to dispute it, though I will be taking him her head, what’s left of it.” Grim satisfaction graces his face for a moment before it’s gone.
“What if he asks for more proof? What if he compels you?”
His gaze darkens. “He won’t.”
“Why not? He’s insane! He doesn’t care if he breaks some vampire taboo by compelling you against your will. He doesn’t care!”
His dark eyebrows jump slightly.
“Melody told me.” Just saying her name still hurts. “She told me he can’t compel you directly without consequences. But he’s so far beyond that now.”
“If he tries it, whatever grip he has on power will be utterly gone. He knows that. The other houses would be in open rebellion, and they would move swiftly to destroy him and his bloodline. He also knows he’s cornered.”
“Cornered?” I shake my head in disbelief. “He’s ruling over a human extinction unchallenged. How is he cornered?”
“When he put me in charge of his armies, he never thought they’d give me their loyalty, not when I’m a half blood. But he was wrong. They are loyal to me. Not just one house. Two houses.”
I chew that over for a moment. “So I’m guessing you mean Corvidion and Dragonis. But not Tantun?” I swallow thickly when I remember them coming for us, for me. “Wait. If you control the armies, then why can’t you just turn on Gregor? Go there and—”
“Our bond isn’t broken.” He sighs. “The blood tie between us is still strong. I’ve spent so much of my energy shielding you from him, erasing you from my mind, my emotions—that I don’t have the ability to shield much more.
And it likely wouldn’t work. He’s weakened, but he still controls the bloodline. ”
“You mean he can still control you?”
“Yes.” Despair soaks the word. “He could use me to hurt you.” He tilts his head back and sighs again. “I won’t risk—” His head turns quickly, as if he hears something far away.
“What? What is it?”
“David. He says whispers about Carlotta have already begun. I have to go now. You’re safe here.” He disappears.
My palms go sweaty as I stare at the empty doorway.
Gregor is a maniac. Valen seems to know his next moves, but is that even possible?
Gregor has decreed the annihilation of an entire species.
There’s no reasoning with him, no bargaining.
A million what-ifs torment my mind, all of them ending with Valen impaled on a spike like Melody.
I press the heels of my hands to my eye sockets at the memory. Her scream. Her light going out.
Will I ever see Valen again? The thought is like a bucket of cold water. My tormentor, my savior—Valen is both, and I don’t know if I can come to terms with that fact. What I do know is the worry that eats away at me at the thought of him dying. Of him never coming back.
I try to untangle the nest of my thoughts, to find some way through this thicket.
Instead of Valen, I try to focus on what I can do.
I know how to make the compound that can kill the vampires—and I have to assume it could also kill Gregor—but I have nowhere to make it, no access to the equipment or supplies I’d need. How can I get them?
I glance at my scarred wrists, the blue veins running underneath my skin. I have the blood I’d need to create a possible cure for the plague. Same problem, though—no way to work it up and analyze it. No way to run tests.
I climb out of bed, my body sore from running, sore from simply existing in this upside-down hell. “David?” I call and stride to the doorway.
He appears almost instantly; his wings tucked at his back.
“Yeah?” He has a sandwich in one hand as if he’d been making it when I called.
I grab the sandwich from him and take a bite, chewing slowly. “I need a favor.”
“A favor? I don’t like the sound of that.” He gives me a wary look, his brown eyes narrowing. “What kind of favor?”