Soon, Sasha would be in the sunroom with Aiden, learning how to play chess.
Soon, Charlotte would be in the arms of her vampire king.
She couldn’t help but smile.
“All assets formerly belonging to Renault Duchanes have been seized,” Gabriel continued, “including the witches who now stand accused of treason. They will be interviewed and taken prisoner for further questioning at the behest of the king.”
A slow clap started at the back of the room, and all heads turned toward the sound.
There, from the darkest shadows of the deepest corner, a figure emerged, his clothes covered in blood and ash, his eyes wild with malice.
“Quite a speech, brother,” Malcolm said. “I knowI’mfeeling inspired. Anyone else?”
“Malcolm,” Dorian warned, but before he could utter another word, Charley felt the heat of Malcolm’s cruel glare and knewexactlywho his target was.
Her.
She saw the blur of him.
Felt the rush of air on her skin.
Scented the foulness of his presence.
After that, there was only pain.
His vicious fingers, shoved deep into her back.
Her heart wrapped in his fist, beating only because he allowed it.
And across the space of the club, the man she loved let out a roar that rattled the windows, and she knew, in that moment, it was over.
Her brief immortal life had come to its end.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Dorian’s heart fuckingshattered.
It was all he could do to stand upright, to give voice to the words inside.
“Back off,” he called out across the club. “All of you.”
At once, the demons and allies surrounding him retreated, leaving him to face the monster alone.
Between them, the woman who owned his heart gasped for breath, her eyes never leaving his, even as the tears fell down her cheeks.
Dorian could hear the faint beat of her heart, struggling in his brother’s grip.
“Malcolm,” Dorian said, his voice a broken whisper, his own tears spilling freely. “If you do this… You cannotcome back from this, brother.”
“Brother? Wait, are you speaking to me?” Malcolm made a show of glancing around the room, as if Dorian’s plea might’ve been directed at anyone else. “As I recall,brother,you banished me from House Redthorne. I’m a free agent now. Just…Malcolm. Nice ring, don’t you think?”
“Malcolm, please… I was wrong. The title is yours.Mytitle is yours. The crown. The manor. The cars, the artwork, the money. All of it. Just…release her!”
He shifted slightly behind her, and Charlotte gasped, her eyes wide with fear. She was utterly paralyzed. One wrong move, and it would end her.
“You would give up all that power just for this human?” Malcolm asked.
“You know I would.”
