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“Of course not.” I spin around, unable to face the worry in his eyes. Brushing my thumb across the wine-stained bodice of a once-beautiful silk gown, I try and fail to steady my heartbeat. “I’m just a bit… nervous you’ll change your mind about all this, about me.”
“That’s why your heart is fluttering faster than a hummingbird’s wings?” he asks softly.
My mouth twists to one side. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to my body giving away my emotions so easily.”
“Let me ease your worries.” His footsteps on the hardwood floor draw closer to me. A strong hand gently clasps my shoulder as he turns me around and tilts my chin upward. “I couldn’t change my mind about you if I tried, Rory. You may feel nervous about many things once we flee from here—meeting my kindred, diving into a world of the unknown, surrounding yourself with vampires—but you do not need to feel nervous about me or my thoughts of you.” His starry eyes are brilliant in the candlelight, reflecting the truth in his words. “That is my vow to you.”
The thrill of his vow sends sparks through me as I draw up on my tippy toes and kiss him. His arms wind tight around my waist, tugging me flush against him, and I revel in the way his body melts into mine.
When I pull away, I whisper, “To hell with all these useless belongings. I don’t want to bring the past with me as I step into my future. Let us leave here and never look back.”
Quill peppers me with kisses as he helps me dress in a simple gray gown and black velvet cloak. Then he scoops me up and carries me through the terrace doors. He climbs onto the balcony railing, and my stomach lurches from the thought of falling from this height. From up here, it’s hard not to feel on top of the world. He chuckles, and the vibration wracks through his powerful chest as he steps off the terrace. I squeeze my eyes shut as air whooshes by. As swiftly as the movement occurs, it’s over. He lands soundlessly, and he sets me on my feet, pausing to kiss me once more.
Heaven and stars eternal, we’re really doing this.
He laces his fingers through mine and leads me around the manor to the backyard. “The wards should still be broken back here. It’s how I got through earlier.”
The hem of my cloak dampens as I race to keep up with him. He isn’t moving as fast as he can as a vampire, and I hate to think I’m slowing him down.
“Before we leave for the Shore of the Damned,” I say, rushing across the wet lawn, “can I warn Cress to leave Adelphi immediately? Father will punish her for my disobedience.”
He cuts me a sideways glance. “You don’t need to ask me permission to do anything, Rory. You are free to make your own choices, and my kindred and I will support you in any way you need.”
My heart lifts toward the starry sky.
You are free to make your own choices.
“Thank you,” I murmur. “Will you tell me more about your… kindred? I’ve read many books about creatures, but I’m not familiar with that term.”
“You wouldn’t be. Most vampires have covens or clans, but I have my kindred—Carver, Risna, and Eivor. They’re more to me than merely other vampires I live with. They are my family.” He bumps his shoulder into mine and gives my hand a gentle squeeze. “They’ll be your family, too, if you’ll have them.”
His words are sweeter than any wine, calling out to a secret part of me. I can’t stop the hope that’s fluttering beneath my ribcage for whatever the future holds for us.
For so long, I dreamt about what it would be like to live and grow old. I’ve always found signs of a long-lived life—wrinkles, laugh lines, loose skin, and scars—so beautiful. For me, they are notions from a fairytale, something far from real life. Since birth, like every other sacrifice, I’ve only been granted twenty-three years. The king claims the number twenty-three holds great power. It not only signifies new beginnings for the sacrifice—death—and transformation for the Chosen One—ascension—but it is the age when legends say the First Hunter came into her powers.
And here I am, twenty-three and almost free from this burden I never asked for.
All because of Quill and whatever fancy he’s taken with me.
The hydrangea hedges lining the edge of the property near, and I’m only mildly embarrassed at how sweaty my palm has grown while clutched in Quill’s hand.
“Something’s wrong,” he whispers just as a swipe of silver slices from the shadows and scores his wrist.
He hisses and flings me behind him. Panic blazes beneath my skin at the sheer number of hunters pouring out of the darkness like demons from the gates of hell. My heart thunders in my chest as someone grabs me from behind, fingers digging into my arms.
“Quill,” I yelp.
He spins around and lunges for me—
Right as another hunter loops a silver chain around his throat and jerks him backward. The searing pain is evident in Quill’s widened eyes, yet he thrashes against the restraint, reaching for me regardless of the leash.
Stupid, foolish vampire. The hunters might punish me for this betrayal, but they’ll kill him. He has to get across the property line. It’s the only way he’ll be able to escape to his kindred.
More hunters pour into the backyard.
This just went from bad to worse.
I have to help him.
