Page 3 of Claim the Twilight
The vampire blood that has turned her into this…A beast that’s the vampire manifested. Something none of us thought possible.
The vampire should be a part of Orina. It should be merely a shift in her nature—power and the thirst for blood. The vampirism should be in her control. Instead, it’s this…this black-eyed feral monster wearing Orina like a pretty suit.
Could the vampire blood in her veins be the reason Loviator was able to break free of Micah and Christian’s golem?
“Kaster should be here,” Padma says. “The bastard lied to us. He saw Orina that night. He saw us too, and he just…left.”
“He thought she was dead,” Holly says. “He had to go after Loviator with the other white wings.”
“Why are you defending him?” Padma demands. “He was supposed to be our friend.”
“I know,” Holly says softly. “But he’s a white wing. I doubt friendship supersedes his duty.”
“No. It doesn’t.” I cross to the bars, getting close enough for the wards to sting my skin. “If Kaster’s a white wing, then he’ll be hunting Loviator now. They’ll find her, and then…”
“What?” Padma demands. “Can they put her back in her prison?”
This is something I don’t know, and the lack of clarity grates. Loviator is free and has been for almost two days. Yet she hasn’t attacked this territory, which leads me to believe that she’s either powerless to do so or too busy evading the white wings to have the opportunity. The terms of the deal that the white wingsmade with Loviator are clear—if the curse is broken, then she’s obligated to allow the white wings to fortify her prison. She’s obligatednotto fight back.
But Micah and Christian intervened. They hauled open the gates and set her free. Did that nullify the deal? Did it act as a loophole?
I have no idea.
I glance across at the three disheveled women that are Orina’s closest friends. The dark smudges beneath their eyes communicate their lack of sleep. She isn’t here to counsel them and tell them to rest. It’s up to me to do that for her. “You should freshen up and eat something. You’re no use to anyone if you collapse.
“You didn’t answer my question,” Padma bites back.
“Because I don’t have an answer for you. I don’t know what the white wings can do. I don’t know what their plan is.” I hate to say it. Hate how useless it makes me sound, but I owe them the truth.
“But you knew that Loviator being free was a possibility,” Padma presses. “So you must have had a plan for that eventuality.”
She’s astute, and she’s not wrong. But the plan isn’t one I can share. Not now. Not yet. Because sharing it will make it real, and I…I’m not ready to face that possibility. Not yet.
So I lie the best I can. “The white wings should be communicating with the Order, and subsequently me, soon. We will be briefed fully on the situation.” Something that should have been done by now. It’s been two days, after all.
“You must knowsomething!” Padma says.
I shoot her a level look. “I know that Loviator can’t leave Dracul territory.”
“The wards?” Holly says.
I arch a brow her way. “You felt them?”
She nods. “As soon as Loviator broke free. I felt…something, and then when we surfaced from the underground chasm, I knew for sure.”
I’d been packing up my workshop in Old Town when I’d felt them too.
“There are wards around Dracul?” Padma’s eyes narrow. “Just for Loviator?”
“No.” I shake my head. “For everyone. No one gets out. No one gets in. It’s a failsafe we put into place centuries ago. Loviator may be free of her prison, but she won’t make it out of Dracul.”
“And all the people here?” Merry asks, wide-eyed. “What happens to them? What happens if the white wings can’t force Loviator back into her prison?”
I swallow the lump in my throat because once again we’ve circled back to the plan that I prefer not to think about. “I’m sorry.”
“Fuck this,” Padma says. “There has to be something we can do. Some information that can help us put that bitch back in her box…” Her eyes light up. “Jacqueline will know something. She can’t get out of Dracul, so she has to be hiding somewhere.”
“You want to go after her?” Merry asks. “What about Orina?”
