I press my face against Sebastian’s back, bloodied hand gripping the crisp white of his long-sleeved shirt. It’s too disorienting to watch the space around us, and I study the way my blood spreads over his clothes. I can’t remember a time I’ve bled like this.
“No!” Sebastian screams, slamming to a stop. If it weren’t for his grip over my legs, I would’ve flown right off his shoulder. His voice is unrecognizable, more of a roar than anything else. “Don’t you fucking?—”
He doesn’t get the chance to finish his command. Something slams against his chest—and my legs. Sebastian doesn’t move, but I do. I fling to the hardwood floor, landing hard on my hands and knees.
By the time I rotate onto my butt, too much hashappened for me to comprehend. All I know is a vampire lies across from me, his head separated from his body. The vampire’s eyes are bloodshot, the skin around his mouth and eyes pale, almost translucent. Even in death, they’re staring at me, as if desperate for a taste.
Sebastian stands over the man, his mouth and throat coated in dark blood.
Dead. Sebastian just killed that guy, and it was undoubtedly my fault.
“I’m sorry—” I start, but Sebastian doesn’t let me finish the thought.
I’m already back in his arms, and we’re moving again. This time, he holds me bridal style, between his arms, as we sprint once more. I realize I still don’t know where we are. I should have looked, should have paid better attention.
“I’ll kill you!” Sebastian screams, pausing again. “Another fucking step, and you’re all dead.”
I tense, curling myself tighter against his shoulder.All?
“Master,” a voice says. Feminine, light, but unfamiliar. “Please?—”
“Go!” he roars.
I bury my face into his shirt and cover my face with my hand. The blood smears over my cheek, warming my skin, taunting me.
Do something, I beg myself.Don’t just sit here, waiting to die.
I don’t know how many vampires we were originally up against, only that we are far outnumbered now. Three in front of us, blocking the way toward my cell. Behind us, there are at least two more. Sebastian shifts his stance, keeping both within our frame of sight.
“Don’t make me,” is Sebastian’s final warning.
Somehow, even before a single one has moved, I know his words are in vain.
I focus on the three in front of us. A pale woman with brunette hair, twisted in ringlets. A dark-skinned woman with braids. A man with a buzz cut and a dramatically broken nose. As I study them, I channel my magic to my palms.
The brunette woman moves first. I twist in her direction, throwing my hands, palms out. I even close my eyes, channeling Cora’s advice.
It doesn’t stop her.
That’s Sebastian, who somehow holds me with one hand and catches her neck with the other. I open my eyes just in time to see his teeth sink into her throat. Her blood splatters across my face, mixing with my own.
“Put me down,” I tell him. “I can help!”
I expect him to resist, to pull me closer.
Instead, he drops me immediately. I’m shaking hard enough my knees fail, and I stumble onto all fours. Sebastian stands in front of me, putting me between him and the wall.
The woman’s lifeless body would be enough to keep any sane person from attacking, but the remaining vampires don’t hesitate. They charge forward, all at once now, eyes wild and locked on me.
My heart beats painfully against my ribs. It feels as though I’m being punched from the inside out. I don’t let myself dwell on the fear or the pain or anything beyond keeping myself alive.
To their knees, I tell myself.Drop them to their knees, and don’t let them move.
Sebastian is overtaken. I don’t look at him, only at the ferocious vampires clinging to his arms and body. The dark-skinned woman is clawing his chest and throat. Her eyes are on me, so distant I’m not sure she’s fully aware of what she’s doing.
I start with her. I focus on those dead, distant eyes before closing my own. Magic pulses beneath my skin. I can feel it—not just its presence, but its shape, as if my adrenaline has sharpened it into something tangible.
My arms shake as I push the magic toward the woman. She releases Sebastian, letting out an animalistic grunt as she slams to her knees. Her brow scrunches, and a pathetic wail pulls at her lips.
