Page 122 of Vervain

The other, with light blue eyes, a shaved head, and tanned skin, looks me up and down, grimacing. “Darkovish Feeding Ground?”

I lick my cracked lips, reminding myself of how I used to do things before entering the Undercity. Don’t show my fangs and keep my glamour in check. “Yes… I… There were these⁠—”

“Enter,” the one who asked says, nodding his head. “Talk to reception.”

I blink slowly, digesting their disinterest.

I take a moment before my body moves in response to my mind. I nod, and when I do, both look at each other and scoff with a mocking laugh. Humans are beneath them. Humour in the eyes of the elite.

The cathedral entrance has stained-glass windows on either side. Patterns and shapes form objects. A shield. A bow and arrow. Weapons with white flames, made from triangles and squares.

Mother’s light?

As I move down the narrow hallway, my gaze lingers on the last one on the right. A sword with vines twisting around the hilt. Vervain flowers bloom down to the tip.

“Hey!” the slayer at the entrance snaps. The scar across his brow crinkles as he glares at me. “Reception, then you can fucking gawk, human.”

Human. They act like nightwalkers.

Entering the cathedral, I gasp at the high ceiling. Rows of windows line the walls, layered over one another, reminding me of a glasshouse. There’s a fountain in the centre of the space, sculpted as what everyone perceives Mother to look like, with a river of tears flowing from her eyes. Children sit by it, coloured coins between them, playing a game. They’re dressed in white, with plastic wrapped around their wrists.

People walk around, but the mean look in their eyes tells me not to stare for too long. They’re slayers on a mission. Then, a spark of fear trembles in my bones as I realise the slayer who shot me will be here. He is Jax’s brother. Why wouldn’t he be? The last time he saw me, he didn’t hesitate to put a bullet in me.

Fuck.

CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT

FIXATION

Saya Claymore

Beyond the water fountain sculpture of Mother, there’s a woman seated behind the marble table. Her eyes glaze over at the sight of the man in front of her. He trembles like a leaf, completely covered in dirt.

I move around the fountain where the children flip coloured coins. When two of the same colour touch, they clap in excitement. Looking away from them, I follow the red velvet rope.

The prayer sanctuary has an unsettling vibe. Remote and detached, even. Aside from the children and the trickle of water from Mother’s tears, there is no sound. No one speaks. They move in an orderly fashion, as if they have somewhere to go.

They remind me of the Bleeders in Darkovish Feeding Ground. Controlled. Robotic. Lifeless. All of it is so different from the nightwalkers in the Undercity.

I wrap my arms around my body, soothing myself, as if that would help.

“Next!” the woman shouts. I step forward with the other two. The woman in front of me rolls her shoulders and runs her hands through her curly brown hair as she sighs.

I pick at the fabric of my gown as a group of three slayers walk past me. My heart races at the sight of light brown hair. My throat closes, and with each step they take, my heart thuds lower into my stomach. They turn around, looking towards me, and I let out a sharp breath at the unfamiliar face.

“Next!” she says, and I take another step forward in the line.

The group of slayers enter the lift, and as the doors close, my attention settles on the doors next to them. A prayer place. Is that what Serun was talking about? Does he want me to go in there?

“Why are you here?” the woman at the counter asks.

“You hired me,” the woman before me drawls. “Eleonora Yener, though most call me Nora.”

Nora? Every hair on my body stands on end at Manni’s words in the feeding ground. “It was just me, Nora, and our mum for a while.”

No, that is too much of a coincidence. It can’t be Manni’s Nora, can it? I stare at the back of her head. Soft brown curls, warm skin, but that could still be anyone. Many people have curly hair and warm skin. This means nothing.

“Right, the human nightwalker hunter. They are expecting you on G4.” The woman at the counter slides a white card across. “The lift is in the hallway to the right, behind the church.”