Page 20 of Nyte

Thorne drew near and placed a hand on Cy’s shoulder. “You’ve no need to fear me, vampyre slayer. Our interests align. If you find what Haven’s hiding, I will set you free. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

“You’d set free a known member of the Veritas? Why?”

“One human is no threat to me. Even a so-called ‘vampyre slayer.’ Make no mistake, Cypress. The Veritas poses no threat to the Dominion. If setting you free gets me the information I want, I’ll do it. I see it as akin to allowing livestock into the wild to survive on its own. It won’t last long, but it may as well try.”

He held his hand out to Cy, his fangs glittering. “Do we have a deal? Your devotion for your freedom?”

Swallowing, Cy took his hand. He’d play by this vampyre’s rules if it meant finding freedom. But as they shook and Thorne’s eyes sparkled mischievously, Cy feared he’d fallen headfirst into the world’s most deadly game of chess.

CHApTER FOuR

Cypress

Sirene escorted himback to Haven’s chambers. Dark, brooding, and ever silent, she held his chain taut and didn’t look at him or address him the entire walk. He glanced her way once or twice, attempting to discern her mood. Every vampyre in Alnwyck seemed to have the same hungry look in their eyes. Like it would take only the slightest of provocations to make them snap.

When she stopped their trek outside Haven’s room, Cy cleared his throat. Despite working the door open, her eyes snapped to his face.

“He sent you away,” Cy said. “Why?”

Sirene’s lips pulled tight as she looked away and opened the door, ushering him into the darkness. The room was empty. No Haven.

“Where is he?” He tried again.

She grunted, stepping into the room to latch his chain to the bed. Then she turned to illuminate several candles along the edges of the room.

The space that came to light was tidy and elegant. A four-poster bed sat up against the wall, framed by a desk on one side and a nightstand on the other. Bookshelves lined the walls, and in the corner was a small reading chair swathed in velvet. It looked cozy and well-worn. Cy could imagine Haven sitting there, his nose buried in a book.

God, what a mess he’d gotten himself into. Trusting a vampyre to help free him from the vampyres. And all because he looked like someone Haven had once known?

Thorne’s words resonated in his head. “You’ve no need to fear me, vampyre slayer. Our interests align. If you find what Haven’s hiding, I will set you free. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

He couldn’t trust Thorne. Aside from the fact that he was a vampyre, there was something off about him—something sinister. Cy needed to be wary, to keep his guard up and continue looking for ways to escape on his own. In all likelihood, Thorne wouldn’t come through with his promise; he’d kill Cy whether or not he delivered.

So, in the end, it didn’t matter. What mattered now was finding out what little information was available to him—even if not to give to Thorne, to take back with him to the Veritas when he eventually got free.Ifhe got free. Piece by piece, he would unravel this mystery. He settled in and waited for Sirene to leave.

She didn’t.

With a grunt of displeasure, she leaned against the wall, staring directly at him. Watching his every move. Well, this was inconvenient. Perhaps he could annoy her enough to make her leave.

“How long have you been with him, then?”

She ignored him, instead examining her nails, flicking at them with a dagger she’d procured from her belt.

“I know you can speak. I heard you outside the cabin on the train. Talking to Haven.”

“LordHaven,” she grunted. The woman was a brick wall.

“You were talking toLordHaven about not drinking enough. Thorne said the same thing to him. It’s something he refrains from often, then?”

She huffed, a sound that might have been a chuckle had her expression not seemed carved from ice.

“You care about him, don’t you?”

She paused, glancing up at him finally. After a moment of contemplation, she tsk’d and said, “Keep talking if it pleases you. It matters not to me.”

It was Cy’s turn to groan in dissatisfaction. Sliding down to the floor, he buried his head in the space between his knees. He rubbed his temples and sighed. He was getting nowhere.

“At least tell me—” He stopped when he heard a key screeching in the lock and sat up as Haven stepped inside.

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