I glanced around. Enough men waited, eager for the challenge. My skin iced with dark frissons, lightning seeking an outlet. Dull thunder warned in the distance. But the first aggressive move would not be mine.
One honor I had left to offer Julien—I would not attack his sire until she’d had her say. I nodded in greeting. “Set.”
“Wolf.” The vampire’s lips tightened, a slash of bright red against all the black and white. I thought of Noa, how she’d appreciate the stark beauty in the colorations. Want to photograph them. Or she’d think of the blood the vampires left, smeared across her skin, and want to kill them.
“You have my condolences.” Might as well get it out in the open. “I’m sorry for your loss. For Cybelle. Njal and Kazamir. And for Julien. He was a friend.”
“What are you doing about it?”
“What are you? Vampires created Amal long before I learned of her.”
Set said with deadly calm, “The wolves bear blame for their kings and queens.”
Old news, words I was tired of hearing.
“No worse than vampires who turned her into an immortal monster.” My canines punched down, and I did nothing to hide the aggression. “Tell me what you want.”
Hissing rolled from the guards behind Set. She silenced them with a flick of her hand. “Where is Noa Bishop?”
My wolf stirred, on edge, bristling. “Safe.”
“That’s not what failles are for. She is a weapon. You should use her, not hide her.”
I let Set see the ancient menace of a dread lord. Hear the ominous thunder rolling closer and the chill dipping into the air.
She stiffened.
My lip curled back. “You are a guest here, Set.”
“Don’t warn me off, wolf. Hiding won’t save her. She has enemies. Ago is hunting her.”
“We left that fucking Ago pinned to the wall,” Levi said as he stepped forward, the spear trembling in his tight hand. He bared his teeth. “I was there. Witnessed it. Listened to it. You did nothing—”
“Stand down, pup,” the vampire behind Set sneered. “Ago’s sire only stepped in to keep her from killing Barend’s chief enforcer.”
“They’re allies—Barend and Ago’s sire?” I asked.
“Yes.” The vampire did the explaining. “Ago is a brutal hunter. He’ll find Noa Bishop. Extract revenge before they turn her.”
“How many other traitors hide in High Citadel?” Levi demanded—reckless, but his courage earned my admiration. “I saw how quickly the rats ran when Noa started fighting back.”
I watched the vampire behind Set—a male, with his lips pulled back. He let his fangs descend as if he didn’t care that I was watching.
Levi took another step toward Set, shaking.
“What about Brin-the-fake?” he snarled. “How did you fucking not know? And you sent us into the tunnels, where hybrids waited to rip us apart. Traps that killed Cybelle and Njal. Us, too, if we hadn’t gotten out.”
Set let her gaze linger on Levi for a second too long. My wolf growled low in my chest.
She turned toward me. “The hybrids are your responsibility, since an elder in Sentinel Falls is selling captives to Barend. If you’d cleaned it up, we wouldn’t have this problem.”
Set’s accusation had first come from Levi. He’d told me what was said in the tunnels, the argument between Julien and Cybelle. Later, Laura confirmed it, and Mace had already sent his spies out to search for information. “What proof do you have?”
“Only that this elder operates in your northern quadrant, hides near the Alpen and the glaciers. We’ve been hunting him for months.”
Months where she hadn’t told me, even though she could have. “Excuses, Set. How eager were you to find him?”
Her cape flared, and I waited for the moment when realization hit—a dread lord’s power had disturbed her clothing, not the breeze.
