The warmth of his body and the blaze of our kiss fades out.
“Get up, Miss Vega,” he growls lazily from somewhere in my mind.
My lashes flutter, and I look back up at the crazed vampire leaning over me. It’s a conflicting feeling, even as I know what I’m about to do.
I don’t want to hurt him, I thought he was my sister’s protector.
But I won’t hesitate, I’ll kill him for everything he did.
My hand flings out, and it’s like I knew where I left it all along. Or maybe my senses are better than I realize. Damp grass slides over my fingers before I grab the sleek object around the middle like a makeshift weapon. The red bottom of my stiletto is in my hand in an instant and fling it forward, hard. His scream accompanies his thrashing as I sink the pointed heel deep into his neck. His black leather wings spread wide, but never lift him up. Dark blood trickles out as his fangs flash out with a gravely hiss.
His teeth drag across my throat, but I hold him back.
Just a little longer!
His mouth is hot across my flesh and his teeth are sharp scratches that keep scraping closer and closer.
Until…
My hand comes down hard once more. A cutting breath leaves his lungs and blood slides down my fingers as the heel sinks deep into his chest.
Just over his heart.
His shining starlit eyes stare down on me.
“Cuishle,” he whispers oddly.
My heart stumbles as I gasp for a solid breath for the first time in what feels like an eternity. And then I shove him off. He hits the ground at my side with a heavy thud.
Gentle hands wrap around one of mine and Aston steadies me carefully as he pulls me up against his side. His hands hover around my face, but he doesn’t touch me.
He’s always so careful. So aware.
So…
I wrap my arms around him in an instant and he lets me. He holds me hard, and my body sings from the feel of it.
I just killed a man.
I’m a literal vampire slayer.
And all I want is to be held for a little while.
Twenty-One
Kira
“You tried to kill a High Councilman!” Zavia’s red lips purse harder and harder every time she speaks. “You’re lucky I don’t deal with you personally!”
Pavel and his assistant Nicco stand quietly behind Zavia. Prey kneels before me and attends to my wounds with a wet cloth. He doesn’t try to meet my gaze, not even once. He keeps his attention averted in a respectful way that eats at me with each passing second.
“You’re lucky I was able to get to Rival before the blood settled in his heart.”
My teeth grind.
“You saved a killer then.” I square my shoulders as I look up at the one woman I was told not to talk to.
“Rival Royale is no killer.” Her deep green eyes blaze with authority.
“Acessa is dead!”
“We do not know what happened between them tonight.”
“We will by dawn,” I say and Prey’s hand pauses. His pretty gaze drags slowly to meet mine. “I called Creature Control.”
Zavia’s eye twitches.
Pavel looks to Nicco and I hear the young man whispering loudly to repeat what I just said. “Kyra called Creature Control to investigate the High Council.”
“Oh, Zavia will not be happy about that,” Pavel announces so loudly that Zavia’s eye twitches all over again.
Aston’s lips part and I just faintly hear a curse whisper out from the corner he leans in.
“You called Creature Control?” Her voice lowers to a deadly tone.
“They’ll be here at sunrise to collect Royale.” I don’t know why I challenge her so hard. It feels good though. It feels good to force justice into this world where they were so happy to just toss a victim into a used grave and forget about her entirely.
I won’t let that happen, though.
Zavia’s jawline tightens as she swallows hard before turning on her high heels and storming to the stairs.
“And someone go find the Prince! I leave this house for one week and literally all Hell breaks loose!” Her young assistant chases after her, scribbling notes furiously in a little worn notebook.
Nicco holds out his hand and assists Pavel into croft number two. The old vampire is laid to rest and Nicco seems relieved once the lid to the coffin is finally in place over his master. Nicco’s heavy sigh follows him as he too heads upstairs.
Prey continues to wipe the dry blood from my hair, but a new and familiar scowl is lining his face.
“You’re an idiot for attacking him,” Prey grunts as he runs the cool rag delicately across my cheek.
“She’s a badass,” Aston says with a smile.
“Can she still be a badass if she’s dead? Because that’s what Zavia will do to her if Creature Control investigators riffle through our house and Rival turns out to be innocent.” Prey’s head shakes back and forth like the good little prep boy he is.
“And you’d rather she died without a fight in the cemetery? You’d want to bury her just like you did Kyra?”
My mouth falls open.
“You buried Kyra?” I ask, gripping his wrist in an instant to stop him from his busy work with my fucking face.
A scent like smoke and sugar explodes right next to him. The vampire swings without thought. His fist and wet rag collide with the hard jaw line of a mysterious demon prince.
“Yes, do tell how you buried Kyra in a used up hole in the ground without so much as a goodbye Lassie from her family.” My Prince leans against the croft I’m sitting on and rests his head against his hand, ignoring the light drip of blood slipping from his lower lip.
“Stop trying to get Kira to kill me next,” Prey whispers with a hard pull of his down turned lips. “Rivale asked me to bury her. And really… I didn’t like the
