Page 149 of Her Blood Revenge

‘We are not sending witches.’ I look at the woman who speaks. She holds a witch’s hand, but she is most definitely human. ‘Humans will go and see what we can find out. And just so you know, not all humans and witches hate one another. Some see past the inherited hatred. You should know that, witch killer. Seeing as you are in love with the very thing you spent years killing.’

‘There’s nothing to find out from the palace that we don’t already know. The blood queen is back. The prince is workingwith her, and the covens are compromised. We’re on our own, and we need to strike quickly before Neve returns the blood coven!’ I look at the leader again. ‘We don’t have time for trips to the palace. They have Ashe, and every second they have her, they’ll be hurting her.’

I feel sick even thinking about what could be happening.

The coven rises as they make their plans. I stand close to Shaw, and the two of us look down at Dorian.

‘I can’t believe he’s-’

‘We need to figure out where Neve took Pixie,’ he says, cutting me off. He doesn’t want to hear the words. The truth is, neither do I. He looks at Dorian as he speaks. ‘Do you recall what she said about the cottage?’

‘Cottage?’ I repeat.

He steps closer and lowers his voice. ‘When Pix spoke to Sinthia, she said something about a cottage. “In the Dark Woods where the birds won’t sing and the sun never rises.” She said that’s where Neve would be.’ We need to figure out where it is before they do something to her she’ll never recover from.’

‘Neve was furious that Cole hurt Ashe. She said that losing his magic was punishment enough for trying to defile her.’

‘You’re saying these words to try and make us both feel better. But you and I both know Neve does not care about Pixie. She does not care what happens to her. And she will not care if Cole tears our girl to pieces. They both know her trigger word, so she is helpless against them. Cole has lost his magic, and I have spent weeks… more… walking his dreams and providing him with nightmares so disgusting that he hasn’t been able to get any real rest this wholetime. He’s going to be even more vicious to her than he ever was. And we saw what happened when Pixie resurrected Neve and her sisters. She suffered all of their deaths, one by one. Every minute. Every day. Just think what she’ll be left as if she experiences the entire fucking coven’s deaths. She’ll be deranged or catatonic if she even survives it. As long as Neve gets what she wants, she won’t care what happens to Pixie. So don’t be so foolish as to think she’s okay. She’s not. So get to work. Take Dorian somewhere safe and then find Leo. I want those fuckers who abandoned us to get their arses back here and pay off the debt they owe us for protecting them all these years. You threaten Thalia if he proves difficult. He knows where they went.’

‘And what will you do?’

‘I’m going to try and walk with Pixie. Or Cole. Or with anyone who can help me figure out where the cottage she spoke of may be.’

He leaves the room, slamming the door so hard it breaks into splinters.

I look down at Dorian and sigh heavily as I pick him up. The lump in my throat is unbearable as I walk out of the room with him.

Poppy slides up my neck and rests herself on my cheek. A sense of comfort oozes from her.

‘Thanks, Pops. We’ll get her back. Just you wait.’

Outside, I head towards the same house I took Pixie to before.

A lump of mud hits the side of my head.

Slowly and brimming with a murderous rage, I turn. Now is not the time to piss me off.

Thalia is leaning out of a hut’s door, waving me in.

Oh yes. Killing her will cheer me right up.

Leo peers around behind her and gestures for me to hurry as he looks around.

I follow, and he closes the door.

‘This better be good.’

Leo takes Dorian from me and rests him gently on the floor before guiding me to a table. On top of it is a cage with a single fire pixie thrashing around inside.

‘And I’m looking at a pixie because?’ I ask.

‘Because I have a kindred,’ Leo says, pulling up his shirt and revealing the markings on his stomach. ‘One that I can use to help you. But if they knew I brought a pixie here, they’ll probably kick us out.’

‘Yes. Seeing as Pixies are Neve’s spies and can report back to her on where we are!’

‘It’s a fire Pixie. It needs fire to commune back to Neve. There’s no fire in this room,’ he argues. ‘And we’ll kill it when I’m done.’

‘What’s your kindred, Leo? And it better be good, or I will kill you.’

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