Page 88 of The Prince's Curse

meet in the main hall now

The phone was a replacement, and if there was any indication that her life was new, it was the brand-new phone that held no familiar numbers, only those of the vampire court that had taken her in. The glowing display reminded her that there were only two days until her birthday.

Well, the guilt might not be an issue much longer if history repeated itself. Despite being told there was a good chance she’d die within a week, it was hard to get too upset. The whole thing felt so absurd that it was hard to take it seriously.And even when she did, there was this sense of hopelessness; if the woman who had raised her was a powerful witch who’d managed to tie her soul to reality through multiple deaths and rebirths, what chance did she have of fighting back?

Her heart thumped as she descended the stairs. A familiar scent drifted to her, and the tension in her chest eased when she looked up to see Julian standing near the bar, his green eyes fixed on her. One of his hands lifted slightly in invitation, and she hurried to meet him.

It was impossible not to smile, especially with the memory of him falling to his knees and devouring her with that wicked mouth, making good on the promise of her dreams. But even that pleasure soured; did she deserve such kindness from him?

She had met most of the other vampires by now, mentally checking them off as they gathered around a long table set up in the middle of the room. Golden lights twinkled in the rafters, casting a pleasant glow over the dim room.

Despite the guilt tangling its cold, slimy arms around her gut, no one seemed to be glaring daggers at her. Julian’s gaze cut to an empty chair next to him, and she sat down across from Paris, who was his right hand. She recognized Safira, Dominic, and Misha. And at the far end of the table was Shoshanna York, the pretty human witch who’d given Kova hope, who hadn’t thrown fire in Scarlett’s face even when she broke into her damned house.

She was startled to see a vampire woman who looked nearly identical to Olivia Pierce walk over to the table and start placing glasses in front of each of the vampires, tray balanced with practiced ease, like a cocktail waitress. “Thank you,” Julian said politely. The woman returned with sparkling water for Scarlett and the other non-vampires, then took a seat next to Olivia.

“Update me,” Julian said brusquely. “Roll call, city, then the witch.”

Paris nodded. “The Nightwatch is accounted for. We had some injuries in the raid, but nothing that need concern you.”

“Did you find Rhys?” Julian asked.

“We talked to Kova,” Scarlett said. “Given that he was locked in a cell, he couldn’t be sure, but he hadn’t seen anyone matching the description. And he hadn’t seen Jordan at all. Neither did I.”

“I tried,” Misha said. “I found a sample of his blood in the clinic and produced a bloodstone, but I kept hitting a wall. Similar to what happened when I was looking for Lilah.”

“But you had a connection?” Julian asked. “Does that mean he’s alive?”

“I really don’t know,” Misha said. He winced. “I’ve never tried finding a dead man. It’s possible that he’s alive, and it’s possible that I found his blood.”

Paris turned to Julian. “I don’t suppose you can find him with that handy little Covenant.”

“It doesn’t work that way, as far as I know,” Julian said. “I wish it did.”

Olivia cleared her throat. “Your little tussle at the Hilton downtown ended up on the news. Right now the stories are muddled; all that’s clear is that someone jumped off a balcony and survived, and then there was a brawl in the lobby. There are a couple of posts on social media with people claiming they saw someone jump up ten floors, but it doesn’t seem to be getting any traction. Thankfully it happened so fast that no one got video of you guys. There were a few recordings of Jonas being taken into the ambulance, and one of Julian hauling ass out the door, but nothing else.”

“Can you get it taken down?” Julian asked.

“I’m reporting them all, but trying to scrub something from the Internet is like trying to contain water in a pair of pantyhose,” she said wryly. She smiled and continued. “Regardless, there’s nothing that screams supernatural creatures of the night on the video. And despite the shitshow of the last week, we had a clean night last night. But there were some electrical issues with the streetlights outside the building, so there were city trucks parked outside all day, setting off the security system. We’re working on it.”

“Any news on the other vampire that attacked Misha?” Julian asked.

Paris shook his head. “I’m assuming he tucked tail.”

Julian glanced at Scarlett. “Do you know anything about them? A dark-haired woman, a man with a buzz cut?”

Her heart kicked against her ribs. “They’re Lux’s little puppets. Paige and Adrian.”

“Lux?” Julian asked. “She’s Armina’s apprentice, correct? The blonde one who was working with Shea?”

“That’s right,” Scarlett said. “She’s working out new ways to control vampires. It’s different somehow from what she did to Kova. She’s got these stakes. I told Misha about it.”

“Are they different from us?” Paris asked. “In the sense of being vampires, I mean. Obviously, they’re assholes.”

“They’re strong,” Misha muttered.

“I don’t really know,” Scarlett said. “But they follow orders to the letter. Kova sometimes resisted orders, but he always seemed like himself. The first time I saw Paige, I freaked out and jumped her. Once Lux told her to stand down, she didn’t even try to defend herself, even though I put a stake through her throat. It’s like once they get an order, they’ll follow it without hesitating.”

“Then she must have told them to take you out,” Paris said, glancing down the table at Misha.

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