A group fight was the one situation I had no answer for, and my mind kept analyzing the possibility of it happening and the variables of my survival. Either I would adapt and find a solution or be driven mad in the pursuit of it.
Better to present myself as forgettable for now. A mangy stray that no one would put a copper on. Let the big names fight one another so I could come up behind the wounded victor with a poisoned knife.
I choked down another ration bar before putting the finishing touches on my outfit. I tucked two blades in the pockets I’d sewn into this dress, then graced my fingers, ears, and neck with Ilyana’s gold. The fang bracelet stood out amongst the borrowed finery, but I’d discovered earlier that the braided grass band could be adjusted. I widened it and slipped it further up my arm, under one of the puffy sleeves.
I checked the stranger in the mirror one last time, then finished the look by staining my lips the darkest of reds. My satisfied smile included the sharp edges of fangs. There was no hint of tired, heartsick Sidney under this predatory mask.
I left my room and glided down the mostly empty hallway, following the sounds of murmuring women and swishing cloth somewhere below me. At the stairwell stood the doll-faced vampiress, whose eyes narrowed as she spotted my approach. She curtsied shallowly. “Lady Ilyana, per the regent, all contestants are required to line up before the ballroom’s second-floor entrance.”
She pointed down the stairs, in the direction of the estate’s main ballroom. I nodded and descended, making my way to the correct location. The line back from the designated entrance was already over a dozenvampiresses deep, most of whom were clustered like twittering, brightly colored birds.
Their gazes turned my way, ventured up and down my form, then flicked back to their companions. There wasn’t a male vampire to be seen. It seemed the Devotions of all these bloodsuckers weren’t here. If I had to guess, we were to be announced, and the devotees would be amongst the crowd cheering on their Beloveds.
I scanned the room for afriendlyface, but it looked like Felicity hadn’t arrived yet.
One of the vampiresses didn’t look away from me. She smirked in a self-satisfied manner, and said in a deceptively soft voice, “Good of you to finally join us, Krudelbach. Not going to hide in your room tonight, hmm?”
I recalled her from the Flask ceremony and the way she stood to relieve some weight off her right leg. Despite her immortal beauty and generous figure, she still had a small tremble in her left hand. She was one of the few contestants I was sure I could defeat in a fair fight.
I didn’t bother pretending to know who she was, instead curling my fingers to inspect my nails.
“You joined this competition to prove you’re not a weakling, and yet you can’t even look me in the eye,” she taunted.
I glanced over my shoulder at the next contestant to arrive, a beauty with her tightly curled hair pinned up in an elaborate style, save for wisps on either side of her face. She wore an emerald green gown. The color complimented her tawny complexion well.
“Did you hear something?” I asked her dryly.
The newcomer blinked her golden eyes in surprise before a hint of intrigue graced her lips. “Must’ve been the wind,” she answered.
“Just you wait, Krudelbach. I’ll show the whole Househow weak you are within a couple short nights,” said the off-balance vampiress.
I gave her my back. “Leave it, Fiorella,” one of her companions murmured behind me. “She’ll be dead the moment the first trial starts.”
Tahlia had mentioned this vampiress. She was the bloodsucker who’d taunted Ilyana into entering this competition in the first place.
The newcomer offered me her hand. “Emmeline Rodgerson. Of no importance, save for the Flask of Dominion’s approval.”
Rodgerson? Shit.That was the family name of Nemea’s inquisitor. If Emmeline had inherited even a fraction of that bloodline's gift for extracting truth, I would need to mind my tongue around her carefully.
“That just means you’re alive,” I remarked. “Ilyana Krudelbach.” I purposefully avoided saying thatIwas Ilyana, sidestepping a direct lie.
“I know. You’re already making waves, coming here without any devotees.” Her painted lips tilted further into a sly angle. “Some might be curious as to the real reason why. Was it truly…” She lifted her chin toward Fiorella, earning a scoff from me.
The gold of her eyes seemed to sparkle, and weight pressed down on my forehead. Only for a moment, but long enough for me to recognize her using some kind of magic on me.
“Stop,” I said under my breath, though my rebuke was steely.
After another blink, her eyes returned to normal. The magic receded along with it. “I was just curious about whether you were telling the truth.” She lifted her shoulder, unapologetic.
I swallowed, my mouth turned bone dry.Aetherius’s light.“Keep your magic to yourself,” I said flatly.
She tilted her head. “And we were getting along so well. I’m used to untruths. Everyone lies, Ilyana. Especially the vampires at court. No one asks for permission to use their magic, either.”
Emmeline may have said more, but Felicity arrived in a bustle of rose-colored fabric. Her face lit up as she spotted us. “So glad you two met. I thought you’d just be two peas in a pod,” she said cheerily. “Isn’t Ilya just the most brutally honest ray of sunshine?”
“I suppose. It’s a shame we metafterwe entered this drawn-out fight to the death.” Emmeline bared her fangs in a serpent’s smile.
I raised a less-than-impressed brow. Felicity thought I’d befriend the inquisitor’s daughter? That was an interesting conclusion, based only on the evidence of a couple conversations. Especially when I was the least honest “ray of sunshine” to attempt to grace these halls.
