The vampire nodded. I scanned the vampires who settled into ranks behind Set and guessed dozens more crouched on the roof.
“Silver and spells coated the spear that struck Julien.”
“Much like the arrow you have aimed at me,” Set pointed out with a slight smile.
Noa tipped her head to the side. “Should I send it toward your heart?”
The vampire shimmered. “Would it give you satisfaction? Dissolve your guilt?”
“Nothing could do that.”
“Guilt is the stone’s weight, pressing on the heart,” Julien’s sire murmured. Her gaze flicked away, then back to Noa. I gave her points for giving my mate the courtesy in this conversation, instead of turning to me for answers. “Why did you order me here? Why the urgent code?”
“Send them away and I’ll tell you.”
“I think not.”
The threat in Set’s smile had me stepping forward. My shoulder brushed against Noa, letting her know I was there, standing with her.
“How close of a friend were you to Amal?” my mate asked.
The question clanged like a bell.
“Enough to side with her?” Noa’s fingers tightened. The bowstring creaked. The arrow tip wavered, held steady. “Did you betray Julien when he learned what he shouldn’t have? Is that why you went to such lengths to give me the journal? See if I’d discover the same information? The secret? Use it to justify destroying me?”
Set turned, made eye contact with the vampire standing behind her, a towering brute I wouldn’t enjoy having to face in battle. But I would. Made sure he had no doubt.
One by one, the vampires left the field until only Set remained.
I stepped into the snowy yard—the vampires left their perches on the roof in the same order. Those in front left first, trailing black mist catching in the sunlight.
“Answer the questions, Set,” I said smoothly as I re-climbed the porch steps.
“You must forgive me, Alpha, but I’m not used to interrogations.” She tilted her face toward the clouded sky as if she noticed the distant rumble of thunder. Then she lowered her chin and sent me a shrewd look. “Why should I be patient when my progeny hides inside?”
“Answer the question, Set.” An order this time. She shrugged.
“I befriended Amal. Tried to help her. And in the end, I despised what she had become.” The vampire’s attention was back on Noa. “Do not pity Amal. It is the most pitiful among us who do the most damage and call it justified. There is evil in her. There will always be evil in her.”
“I’m satisfied,” Julien said, as he stepped into the doorway. “Let her in.”
Set held his gaze, her eyes glittering. “You doubt your own sire?”
“Do you resent me for it?”
“I resent her for having the fierceness of a lion, protecting you.”
“You resent her being a faille cursed with a queen’s sins and aligned with a dread lord,” Julien clarified, his voice weakening. “Come inside. I… need you.”
CHAPTER 20
Grayson
The healing proceeded as if it was ordinary. Set slit her wrist, allowed the blood to drip onto Julien’s wound. The healing eased the fire from Julien’s body. The skin knit back together. For added insurance, she ordered him to feed. As Julien’s fangs descended, pierced Set’s white skin, I turned Noa away. She didn’t need to relive those moments when she’d been so desperate to save Julien’s life that she’d offered herself. I wasn’t worried about Julien. The vampire was too honorable to take advantage of her. He would realize her offer came from a generous heart, and it wasn’t in him to betray her trust.
But once a human—or a wolf—felt a vampire’s tug, the rush of sensual pleasure became a drug, addicting with the first hit. Noa would struggle with the craving for the rest of her life.
“Do you know who betrayed Julien?” she asked. “Barend’s side, or Amal’s loyalists?” The unspoken addition to that list was someone in Set’s inner circle.
