Page 17 of Blood & Bones

“Do you think she can come back from where she is?” Camille asked, her voice soft.

I knew she was asking whether we could redeem Vera, but like a dog who becomes a chicken-killer, once a vamp went over the edge, there was little chance we could change their behavior. I shook my head. I didn’t want Delilah and Camille to question their actions.

“No, once a vamp jumps the shark, there’s no real way to bring them back. I was lucky—you caught me before I killed anyone on my way home. And yes, I’ve taken out a few creatures since then, but I have had the time to develop restraint. I’ve managed to keep a conscience.”

“Should we wait here for her? Do more research on her?” Delilah asked.

“We need to stop her as soon as possible. Given she’s out there, somewhere, means that she’s looking for another victim. If we wait here until she returns, I’ll be cutting it close myself. Let’s head out and look for her. We know where her lair is, and she won’t be able to move during the day, so if worse comes to worse, you can come in and stake her tomorrow.” I didn’t want my sisters to have to do it, but it was a solution should we not be able to locate her.

“All right,” Camille said. “Can you lock the door again so she doesn’t suspect anything?”

Delilah took a picture of the letter, then tucked it back into the envelope and put it back. “Let’s go,” she said.

I checked the lock. Yes, I’d sprung it, but I hadn’t damaged it. “I can set it to lock when we leave—” I paused, listening. “I hear something,” I said.

Camille and Delilah also listened. A noise echoed from the stairwell. Someone was coming down the stairs. It might just be one of the tenants, but we couldn’t count on it. As it drew closer, I motioned for them to hide behind the furnace as I slid into the shadows near Vera’s nest.

A moment later, she appeared, tall and ghostly, dragging a drunken man behind her. It was Vera, all right. And blood trickled down her chin. The man was mumbling, his eyes glazed over. I poised, ready to spring, as she neared the door.

CHAPTER EIGHT

As she dragged him toward her lair, I slipped out behind her and grabbed the man by the arm, pulling him toward me.

Vera swung, her eyes crimson red, and she let out a hiss. “What the fuck⁠—”

“Time to give it up, Vera,” I said, pushing the man away.

Camille raced out from behind the furnace, grabbed the man by the arm and dragged him toward the stairs. Delilah swung out, carrying a crowbar. It wouldn’t work as a stake, but it could make a nice dent in the head. But I knew that, as strong as she was, Delilah wasn’t strong enough to handle a vampire. I let down my fangs and gave a little hiss in return. Hissing was more of a rogue vamp thing, but I wanted Vera to know who she was dealing with.

Vera held my gaze, and she tilted her head. “Sister, don’t interfere.”

“I’ll give you one chance,” I said. “You know that rogue vampires have a low life expectancy, so stop now and I’ll get you help. I’ll take you under my wing and help you find support while you learn the life.”

I wanted to give her that—I’d had it. I’d been sent home a rogue, and I’d managed to come through. It wasn’t Vera’s fault she’d been turned, so I couldn’t blame her for that. But now she had a choice to make, and I prayed she’d make the right choice.

“I didn’t want this,” she said, her voice strangled. “I never wanted this. I just wanted justice. I wanted to take him to court, to make sure he was punished for using me. I thought he was different, but all he wanted was the one thing I wasn’t going to give to him. He said he wanted to fund my work. I’m an artist, for the sake of the gods.” Bloody tears began to trickle down her face. “When he said he wanted to meet, to discuss my future, I thought he meant he wanted to sponsor me.”

Her strangled voice told me more than I wanted to know. “And when you met…”

“He got hands-on busy with me. I told him no. I pushed him away. But I’d invited him in. He told me I reminded him of his wife, that he missed her. I tried to run out my door, but he stopped me. He…wouldn’t let me go.”

I watched the bravado crumble as she melted to the floor. From one hundred to zero in ten seconds, I thought. I wanted to go to her, but I wasn’t sure yet whether she was playing a part, or whether I was actually watching her breakdown. As a newly minted vampire herself, Vera was likely standing on the edge of the whirlwind.

“You have two endings to choose from,” I said. “Make the right one.”

Vera hesitated for a moment, doubt crossing her face. “I didn’t ask for this,” she said. “He wanted to take me with him—to make me his mistress. When he was finished, he drained me and turned me. But I was so angry, and when I came to, he was laughing with his buddies, and I was lying there like a rag doll. He told me that I didn’t have any more excuses. That he’d teach me.” She was crying in earnest now, angry tears of blood splattering down her face.

“What did you do?” I asked, having a feeling I knew exactly what she’d done.

She rose again, standing tall. “I picked up the nearest sharp object—a pair of scissors—and before he could say another word, I staked him. As he turned to dust, his men were so in shock they didn’t make a move. I ran out into the streets. And now, here I am. A bounty on my head and nowhere to go.”

I wanted to argue that we could find her a safe space to stay, that we could help her acclimate. “No, you didn’t have a choice. But it happened, and now it’s up to you what you make of the rest of your life. I didn’t ask for it, either. But like it or not, we have to face reality. I can help you, Vera. I can help you choose to make a life for yourself. Don’t take what happened to you out on anybody else.”

Vera paused, piercing her lip with one of her fangs. I could tell she was considering what I said. “I don’t want…” But then, the feral light returned to her eyes, and she leapt at me.

I met her midair, colliding with her. She was tall and strong, but I was stronger—both thanks to my Fae blood, and to the time I’d been a vampire.

I caught her midair and rolled to the ground, spinning her beneath me. She raked at me with her nails—vampires had long nails that stayed ever-sharp, unless someone cut them, and very few people had that opportunity. I dodged her attack, spinning in midair to clip her on the chin with my stilettos.