Page 39 of Entombed By Blood
I let my eyes meet his again, letting him read whatever he will from them.
“The place at my side has been empty since your absence.” He pauses, but I don’t make the mistake of thinking he’s inviting me to speak. “You’ll need to earn it back.”
“I’ll do anything you wish, sire.”
The knife appears in his hand faster than I can blink.
I know that blade.
It’s one of a set of five which changed my life forever. Even centuries later, it retains its gleaming, polished sheen and the keen edge.
“Kill your thralls.”
I take it without question, moving past him towards the door.
This is a bluff. He won’t waste them like this. No. Cain will let me get close, then stop me.
The true test will come later, when I’ve let my guard down enough to form true bonds. When I care for them. Only then will he ask me to execute them.
This is just a power play.
I open the door without thinking, my vampiric speed making the action swift and soundless. I catch my first glimpse of the corridor that leads out of this damned apartment.
Unremarkable, with a single window at one end and steel doors at the other.
My thralls are in a line against the far side. An unbreakable, wary wall of males, waiting for what will happen next.
I go for Vane first. The hybrid is the biggest threat. I warned him this would happen, but his eyes are still surprised.
Thud. Thud.
I bring up the blade, waiting for the command to stop.
The steel gleams in the dim light.
Thud-thud. Thud-thud. Thud-thud.
Silas’s eyes have barely begun to widen with shock as the blade kisses his brother’s neck.
Thud-thud-thud-thud.
The scent of his blood—heady, powerful and so damned good—perfumes the air as the blade slices through the first layer of skin.
If I hadn’t just fed from Draven and Gideon, I wouldn’t be able to resist the tiny beads springing from the wound.
“That will suffice.” Cain hasn’t even bothered to leave the living room and his voice drifts down the hall, toneless with boredom. “Evelyn, come. The rest of you may take some time off. Under no circumstances will you return until I say so.”
I flick the blade back into my sleeve, barely resisting the urge to lick it clean. A perfect red stripe decorates Vane’s neck. Neat and tidy. Already healing.
The hybrid didn’t move for the entire ordeal. His heartbeat might have raced slightly, but otherwise, he seemed completely unaffected by the promise of death at my hands.
Either he trusts me—doubtful—or he’s as aware as I am that this is a test.
My thralls don’t spare me a backward glance as they head for the metal doors at the end of the corridor. I wish I could say the same. I stare at their retreating backs, silently pleading for them to remain for a moment, before I drag my feet as I walk back to my sire’s side.
The living room door slams behind me with an ominous kind of finality. Cain has returned to his seat, and he gestures for me to sit on the one opposite with a lazy wave.
“Come. Sit. Have a drink.”
