Page 35 of Siege of Blood and Betrayal

It means we treasure our young above all else.

There’s no fighting back until we secure the little ones.

“Where are they holding them?”

Link grimaces. “They’re in the dining hall while they eat. Daeva says they’re having a ‘get to know you’ picnic. It’s obvious she’s keeping the kids close so she can kill them quickly if anyone steps out of line.”

“Zane’s going to lose his mind when he hears she’s endangering the kids.”

“Zane’s alive?” Dante’s eyes blow wide. “The bitch told us she got to him and she’s taking over the seethe.”

“That’s bullshit. I just spoke to him. Scotland snuck in to surprise Bran for his birthday, saw him die, and then bolted to get Zane to a safe house.”

“Thank fuck,” Link says.

Dante nods. “Yeah, that is by far the best news we’ve heard in the past twenty-four hours. But if there’s a threat, why aren’t you with him? With Bran dead, you’re the squire now, right?”

Both Dante and Link drop their gazes to my forearm.

I’m not sure if Zane wants Scotland put into the line of fire by outing her, and I certainly don’t want to talk about being fucked over, so I ignore the question and get back to why I was sent here.

“Speaking of Bran, where did you put his and Francesco’s bodies?”

Dante gets the hint and throws a thumb over his shoulder. “They’re in the ballroom in two rosewood coffins we brought over from the funeral home. The staff and members of the seethe have been encouraged to view them.”

Link scoffs. “The bitch thinks she’s beating us down by putting them on display. In reality, we’ve all been honoring them and vowing to avenge their deaths.”

Good. They deserved nothing less.

“What about the other dead? How many of ours versus theirs?”

“Ours are in the grand foyer awaiting nightfall. We set them out for final farewells and will let the sun claim their bodies tomorrow.”

“And the fanger mutts?” Jaxon asks.

“They don’t seem to care about one another beyond obeying Daeva, so we tossed them into the courtyard first. They’re nothing but ash now.”

I’m glad their dead are gone, but my chest tightens at the idea of a dozen friends and acquaintances lying in the grand foyer awaiting their final destination.

It’s a tragedy that they are gone, and their efforts to fight our foe shouldn’t be set aside so soon. They died to protect our seethe, and that is the noblest of deaths I can think of. “What ifwe move them into the ballroom to be with the king and Bran? Will she allow that?”

Dante shrugs. “She didn’t seem to care what we did with the bodies one way or another.”

I meet their curious gazes and shrug. “I’m sure Zane will agree that if members of the Vasari seethe fought to protect our home and people, then they should be lain to rest with Bran and the king. It’ll unify the seethe at the same time.”

“We could bring up a bunch more coffins and set them up in an honor guard circle around the other two,” Link says.

“I’m sure Zane will appreciate that.” After all, Bran and Francesco were more than leaders—they were the foundation of our family. “Now, as much as I want to shred Benoit, I don’t think we can do that until the children are safe and we can get them out of here and to a safe house.”

Dante’s eyes flash red. “We could slay him and dispose of the bodies with the others.”

I hold up a halting finger. “Zane’s demanding to shred Benoit himself. He wants a bloody spectacle to set the stage for anyone else who might have similar ideas.”

Dante meets Link’s gaze and the two of them nod. “Fine. We can wait until the children are safe if the king wants vengeance for his father. Although, it won’t be easy to see that French fucker and not rip his nuts off.”

My blood boils with the need for revenge, too. Unless I kill someone soon, I won’t be able to control myself. “The children are our priority. Let me speak to Zane and see how he wants to handle this.”

Scottie

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