I breathed a sigh of relief. “I’m a decent swimmer. There’s a small lake near my home. We go there when it’s warm enough. Kace took me and my siblings for the first time a few years ago. It’s a little further than we’re supposed to go.”
“Who is Kace? This isn’t the first time I’ve heard that name.” He slowly stood and leaned against a boulder.
“He’s the chieftain’s son in Neverglade and my friend.”
“He’s the man who approached the stage when you were declared ducai.”
Water spilled over the edges of my palm as I brought it to my chin. How did he know? “Yeah.”
“You told your father you would have said ‘yes’ to him. For what?”
The cool water washed down my throat, and I shook the rest from my palm. I thought back to the last time I’d gone to the lake, of jumping onto Kace’s bare back, wrapping my arms around his neck. He dunked us both under, and I let go. When we resurfaced he was inches from me, water rolled in rivulets down his handsome face. I’d stared into Kace’s rich brown eyes, silently asking him to kiss me. He leaned forward, our lips almost touched, then my brother jumped in next to us, water splashed over both our heads, ruining the moment. That part of my life was over now. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”
“You were going to marry him.” Vander raised a dark brow in question.
He saw too much, but I was going to be stuck at this man’s side for the foreseeable future, so why not get to know each other? “I likely would have.” I stood and slipped my glove back on.
“Is that what you wanted out of your life, Aesira?” The way he said my name was different than anyone else. He put moreemphasis on “seer” in Aesira. “To marry this man and become the future chieftain’s wife? To spend your days swimming in lakes, keeping a home, and probably have a couple children?”
I cleared my throat. That future was all but gone now, like smoke drifting away on a breeze. “I wasn’t really sure what I wanted, but that’s what I would have gotten.”
“I envy that life. The simplicity of it.” He crossed his ankles and watched the river run. The water almost seemed to put him in a trance. “I’m sorry you were taken away from your family and the man you love.”
I guess I did love Kace, although I’d never said that out loud. But was it real romantic love if we’d never even kissed? Part of me wanted to go back to what was familiar, but I would always wonder, what if...
“I think I would have been bored. I always felt like I was made for more. I know that sounds ridiculous. My mother always told me to be happy with the life I was given.”
He turned back with a small smile. “Youweremade for more, and your life will be far from boring now. You might find yourself wishing for boring.” A rustle disturbed the quiet somewhere behind me. Vander’s mask was back in place, and he was at my side in a breath. “It came from that cave over there. Wildlings like to hide in caves.”
I tugged up my own mask. “You think it’s a vampire?” I whispered, heart already drumming in my ears.
“We’re about to find out.”
Chapter 8
He stepped so softly I couldn’t hear it. I followed him, making myself as light as possible. I barely allowed myself to breathe. We pressed against the side of the cave’s entrance. Vander took the metal star from his belt and held it up to the sunlight. A beam reflected off the shiny surface into the dark cave.
Vander tilted his head, signaling me to come to his side. I pressed my shoulder to his and peered around him. The light shone on a figure huddled in an upright ball in the corner. Her long brown hair was matted and full of sticks and leaves. She swatted at the back of her head where the light shone, letting out a guttural growl that resembled a large wildcat. Smoke rose off her scalp from the sun’s reflection. With a sudden jerk, she turned her head and hissed at us. Her elongated canines glistened, pressing against her bottom lip.
My skin crawled, and I angled myself behind Vander once again. Visions of the vampire who’d chased me through the woods days before swam across my mind. I hadn’t seen his face, but if it was as terrifying as hers, I was glad I hadn’t. There was evil in the way her expression twisted unnaturally.
She turned back around and pawed at her hair, rocking steadily.
Vander replaced the pointed metal star on his hip. “Wait here.”
You’re going in there?I wanted to protest but clamped my teeth together. He knew what he was doing. Each step closer to her made my heart pound that much harder. I silently prayed she didn’t hear his approach.
He tossed a handful of dirt at the wall next to the vampire. She scrambled to her feet, and he was at her back with his arm hooked around her throat before she ever had the chance to turn. He shoved a blade into the side of her neck. Blood spurted out in a stream. So much I could hardly believe it. Then he dragged her limp body to the edge of the darkness. With masterful execution, he tied her hands and feet behind her back. I knew how to tie a knot, but it would take me a few minutes to bind someone up. He’d done it in ten seconds, maybe.
Drawing the dagger from his belt, he stepped into the light and held out the handle to me. “She’s going to wake up in a few minutes.”
Hesitantly, I wrapped my palm around the hilt of the dagger. It was made of smooth ivory bone, capped with a golden serpent’s head. I brushed my fingertips over the name engraved down the center of the silver blade. “VIPER.” It was superbly done. Beautiful.
I watched in terrified wonder as the neck wound on the vampire’s body began to knit itself closed, not fully but enough that her eyes flashed open. She bucked and hissed, struggling against the bonds. “Let me go!” she wailed.
Vander jerked her up off the ground and faced her to me. The vampire slammed her eyes shut and turned her face away from the sunlight.
“Shove that dagger through her heart,” Vander commanded.
