Page 33
He is disgusting. A mockery of everything a vampire should be. No grace. No poise. No cock. One eye. One hand. No tongue.
A human broken the way my brother broke this one is unfit to join the ranks of the undead.
But I don’t need Steven to be an asset.
He is a test.
He is Luna’s worst nightmare dug out of the dark and repurposed, so that everything which was terrifying about him when he was a human is now tangible.
Like this, he is the physical embodiment of what he was to her all along.
When I release him on her, she will have no choice but to fight him. To finally use what she was born with. Because the terror she feels will unleash a power she hasn’t even dreamed of.
And then she will finally know what it feels like to be invincible. And when she knows how that feels, I won’t need to persuade her; she’ll come to my side willingly.
Lucien will follow.
And I will have them both.
“You want this?” I ask, nudging the box with my foot.
Steven lurches as far as his chains allow. His fangs must be so very desperate to pierce flesh. Since I turned him, all I’ve allowed him to consume is blood bags from the hospital. It must be like an itch he can’t scratch. A painful ache deep inside him that is driving him insane.
More insane, that is.
“Now, now,” I tut. “We’ve discussed manners, haven’t we?”
He is trembling with desperation.
I open the box so he can see what’s inside, and study him closely. Does he not smell his own self? Does he not recognise his own cock? His own heart?
He is drooling, desperate to consume the parts of himself I’m offering up.
“Do you remember how this happened?” I ask conversationally, nudging the box closer still. “Luna? The woman you claimed to love but whose life you made a misery? Do you remember how my brother stopped you from hurting her?”
Steven’s head jerks up at Luna’s name.
I push the box far enough forward that he’s able to dip in his head and devour what’s inside. He doesn’t even hesitate. Unable to use his arms, he gnashes at his own body parts like a dog eating kibble.
“She’s grown stronger since you saw her last,” I continue. “Stronger than you could imagine. And she still wants revenge for how you treated her, Steven.” I move to crouch beside him, dropping my voice to a whisper. “But I am here to help you, my broken friend.”
I take a dagger from my jacket and let him look at it. He tilts his head, transfixed. Blood is dripping down his chin and I can see the strength pumping into his veins from the thrill of consuming real, if a little putrid, human organs.
From my pocket I take a scrap of fabric that my men lifted from Luna’s house. Her scent still clings to it. I hold it to what remains of his face and let him breathe her in.
“Find her,” I command, pressing the dagger into his hand. “Find her and kill her. Enjoy yourself.” I unfasten his chains and stand back. “Make me proud.”
I sound like Darius.
Steven doesn’t move at first. He stares at the cuffs on his wrists, at the blade. It does not occur to him that I might be lying. That he could kill me instead. That he could simply run. His mind holds a single thought now…
Kill Luna. Kill Luna. Kill the bitch who made me like this.
“Go,” I say, gesturing to the stairs. “Your revenge is waiting.”
That word – revenge – makes him bolt for the stairs, and within seconds he’s gone. Cerberus barks loudly as he disappears. He wants to play, too. But I’m not letting him anywhere near Luna tonight. She will be too dangerous.
Tonight, she will learn what it means to be terrible, and magnificent, and unrestrained.
