Chapter 11
You May Rise
Cora
“Fuck you,” Cedar muttered as he slipped into a drug-induced slumber.
I rolled my eyes, because I knew from the look he threw my way as he fought the drugs that the words weren’t for the stupid bitch stabbing him in the neck while trying to scrub his mind of memories. Oh no, those words were special for me, and me alone.
It took everything in my power not to reach down and punch him in the face for his ridiculous attitude.
However, I couldn’t fully blame him. He had no idea I’d taken his blood with a purpose.
And while I had no real idea if this would work, I’d read that vampires who drank from each other were more connected, and if I wanted to keep him alive after Vega’s bullshit, I needed any extra help I could get to focus my magic.
Blood magic was finicky. I’d done the research and felt as if he may understand if I explained the situation to him.
Maybe. But, I wouldn’t be doing that. If I were being honest with myself, he was more likely to try and kill me if he knew what I’d done.
The blood bond I’d just created between us.
Yes, the less he knew, the better.
Every time I’d trusted a male, I ended up in a situation which caused deep regret and a sense of betrayal. It was better to just do it myself.
They could all fuck off as far as I was concerned.
A small part of my heart denied that I meant it when I looked down at the stunning bronze-skinned male sprawled on the floor, now unconscious.
But I locked it down before it could grow.
Absolutely not would I be feeling shit for him.
He was a male at the end of the day, and I knew if I allowed him, he’d disappoint me just like those before him. Hating him was easier.
Besides, the feelings were lust at best.
I had a job to do and that was it. A job that wouldn’t be possible if I allowed Vega and her Esoti magic to kill him before I could bring Keres the information he wanted.
The problem was, with Vega’s magic, she normally left her victims half dead, and that wouldn’t work for me.
Vampires had a better survival rate, but what was left wasn’t always good.
So I’d set out to find some magic of my own in an attempt to protect his mind from her.
However, it wasn’t easy magic and it left me exhausted the last time I’d tried it.
This time, I was hoping the bit of blood magic would help aid my endeavors.
If it didn’t… well, at least he tasted divine and the methods used to obtain his blood were fun.
“Toss him in the chair. I won’t be kneeling down on this foul floor for anyone, let alone a damn bird,” Vega muttered to her cronies.
Fates forbid we have to lean onto the floor.
I watched as two of the guards lifted Cedar by the arms and tossed him back onto the same chair as before, tying his wrists behind his back.
Walking around the front of him, I knelt on the ground, placing my hands on his thighs.
My magic swelled easier within me than it ever had before. I tried to swallow down my shock. I knew the magic linking me to Cedar would be easier to call upon with the blood, but this was… a great deal more than I expected. I pushed those thoughts back to examine when I didn’t need to focus.
Blood magic when not used properly could be dangerous and even addictive, and that was the last thing I needed right now.
I focused my magic on exactly what I wanted to do—not only protecting Cedar’s mind, but pushing Vega out of his body entirely. Magic had to be focused on a specific outcome or it could become too much, allowing the magic to take control instead of the witch.
Mother used to spend hours drilling the basics into my mind before she died, and that was one I’d never forget.
Control it, Cora. Never let it control you.
Mere moments later a muffled cry filled the room, but I ignored it.
Fully focused on the power radiating through my veins.
Part of me knew I needed to let go, but a darker force in me refused.
A feral unknown part of me wanted her to suffer the way she’d made him suffer.
I celebrated over the pain humming through the air.
A scream sounded, muffled voices hollering, people moving about, but it wasn’t until I felt Cedar’s thighs tighten beneath my palms, and I heard him whisper, “Cora.”
I released the thread of magic I’d been focused on and found his dark eyes heavily on me. He was awake, but he should’ve still been in his drug-induced catatonic state.
“What?” I grumbled as I pulled my hands back from his legs. He didn’t have time to respond as we both looked around the cell, our gazes breaking apart.
Vega was on the ground, convulsing, blood pouring from her nose and ears. Rusor was screaming as he held her in his arms, calling for help as the other guards ran in and out bringing clean clothes and a healer.
“What the fuck have you done?” Cedar whispered. I looked up and found his gaze searing into me as I rolled my eyes, refusing to feel guilt for the psycho bleeding all over the floor behind us. He had no idea what she was capable of, not really.
I’d done a great deal to ensure he wasn’t aware of her power.
“I was saving your life. Again.” I got back to my feet, wiping away the dust from my dress that I knew wasn’t present, and then looked down at him. “A thank-you isn’t expected, but it would be nice to hear. It’s not as if I’m required to continue protecting your feathery ass after all.”
Cedar continued to stare at me as if I were some mystery to behold and he wasn’t sure how to act. As if he were worried I’d do the same to him if he muttered the wrong thing. If only he had the slightest idea how unlikely that was. As much as I’d love to do so, I needed him alive and well.
I cleared my throat when it was obvious he wasn’t going to say anything else and I forced myself back to my bed, where I curled up and laid alone. Grateful Cedar was safe, and feeling more empty than ever before as the image of his wide eyes and scorned words stayed with me.
It had been three nights since I’d almost killed Vega. According to Keres’s healers, she was moments away from dying and if I’d held her in that trance any longer, the powerful Esoti would’ve been dead before she hit the wet stone floor beneath her feet. If only I could’ve been so lucky.
I hadn’t been back to see Cedar since that night, not because I didn’t want to—my subconscious seemed more than willing to fill my dreams with images of the two of us together.
No, the reason being was that there was no logical reason for me to do so.
There may also have been a small case of nerves about how he’d react to seeing me again after witnessing what he knew I was responsible for.
Vega was out of work and I’d overheard the staff telling the kitchen crew not to lace their blood for now.
Why waste the venom when their one and only means of extracting information successfully was out of commission and the other was at her bedside?
Apparently, her brother wasn’t taking her accident well at all.
So I kept to myself, quiet, out of the way, tried to blend in while I snuck around in the middle of the day to research blood magic and bonds between vampires, so I knew what the fuck I was doing.
Mostly because I didn’t recall a power increase being involved.
It was just supposed to make it easier for me to hold on to the tie between my magic and Cedar. That was it.
However, this evening was the first celebration Keres would be holding since Vega was injured, and while I thought I’d be ignored since I was no longer to be his first favored, I was mistaken.
He’d had me summoned to a meeting before the fun began in the main hall.
I wasn’t normally present at these meetings anymore unless he had someone of importance he needed to impress, and then I was to be Lady Cora—his dutiful pet.
However, that didn’t seem to be the case tonight.
I wasn’t sure why I was here at all, other than to kneel at his feet while he occasionally smirked down at me.
Not that I was allowed to look at him, but I could feel him every time his eyes landed on me. He hadn’t asked me if I’d learned anything thus far, as if he knew all I’d done was fuck the male and steal his blood to save his life against one of the most valuable members of Keres’s circle.
I attempted to force my mind away from the anxieties and on what was happening around me.
Information was the true way I’d survived as long as I had in this hellscape.
Knowing who to steer clear of, who to stand too close to, smile at too long, making Keres jealous and anxious.
It was all part of the game to stay alive and of use.
The only people here tonight were Keres, Voss, Rusor, two other guards that belonged to Voss, and Lovel. If I recalled correctly, the two guards were males Voss normally had stationed in the Court of Wolves when he needed to report back to Keres. Maybe. Possibly.
Internally, I rolled my eyes because, why the fuck was I here? None of these people were impressed by me.
“Voss, how is your sister?” Keres asked. I glanced out of the corner of my eye to see Keres staring down at his glass in front of him.
“Vega is doing better, My Lord. She’s slowly recovering.
The healer still isn’t completely sure what happened.
Rusor said they were going about the normal routine for interrogations, and something had her…
trapped inside the bird’s mind.” The way he spat bird had my head dipping lower to the ground, letting my hair fall over my face to hide my smirk.
If they only knew what had really transpired in that cell.
“We’re lucky Rusor acted so quickly. It would’ve been a shame to lose such a valuable asset to something so… interesting,” Keres said, his voice mumbling off towards the end.