Page 106 of Poison Sun

Our hands.

“Our” was always me and Viktor. Together.

Not anymore. It’s now him and Lucas.

And he’s not simply going to hand over the compass. Which means it’s time to get him to answer the question that has the potential to seal his fate.

So, as I look down into his sharp green eyes, it’s with the knowledge that this might be the last time I’ll ever see them.

My chest is hollow. My blood is ice. My ears are ringing with a pressure that fills my head, making it feel like my brain’s about to explode.

I’m an outsider looking in, and as I speak, it feels like it’s coming from someone else and not from me.

“Tell me,” I finally say, using my magic to keep Viktor’s restraints in place. “On the night of Lucas’s attack, did you kill any of those humans on my territory?”

At the mention of humans, I glance over to the bed to check on Eliza. She’s breathing, but still unconscious.

Viktor must have drained more of her blood that I realized.

Now, the silence stretches between us, thick and heavy. I can almost hear his thoughts whirling, deciding how much to reveal, weighing the consequences of his next words.

“Yes,” he finally admits, the word striking me like a physical blow.

Part of me had hoped, foolishly, for a different answer. An indication that the Viktor I knew was still there beneath the layers of darkness Lucas and his clan had draped over him.

Now that he’s said it, there’s no taking it back.

And now, he must pay the price.

Before I can speak another word, the connecting door between this one and the one next to it bursts open.

Maria stands there, her expression fierce, eyes blazing with a mix of anger and determination.

As per the plan, she was waiting on the other side of the door the entire time, listening to our conversation, ready to strike when she received confirmation that Viktor had broken supernatural law.

Now that he’s admitted to the crime of killing a human, she leaps into action, her form blurring as she shifts into a wolf and launches herself at him with lethal precision.

He struggles against the magical restraints, but it’s no use. Her attack catches him off guard, her claws raking deep across his chest.

His scream gets caught in his throat.

Blood—dark and thick—flows from the wounds. The beige carpet is already stained with it.

They’re the type of wounds that would be fatal to a human.

For a vampire, they’re enough to send him into shock.

He flails against my restraints, but I hold them strong, watching as the wounds start to mend themselves. Time slows, and it’s all I can do to hold on. To not let the sight of him like this knock me down as well.

Maria’s next blow is a vicious one, aimed at his throat.

With a desperate gasp, he looks at me, and in his eyes, I see a flicker of the man he used to be. The friend—the brother—I once knew.

I’m frozen. Shellshocked. This is a nightmare.

One from which I know I’ll never be able to wake up.

He tries to speak my name, but it’s so gargled that I can barely make it out. The blood continues to flow out of his wounds. The ones on his chest are healing slower now, since his body is fighting against the slash on his neck, too.

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