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“Is that something you want?” Wrath asked, his tone carefully neutral. “Reestablishing your House?”
“Until I know the full story and regain my memories, I don’t want to make that decision.” I bit my lower lip. “Is that something that would cause a complication for us? My sister seems to think it would.”
“No. I would never stop you from doing anything you wanted. And as long as Vittoria leaves you to your own choices and respects your wishes, I don’t give a shit what she does or who she prays to or starts a war with. There’s already a price on her head. Greed wants her dead. So do Envy and Pride. Lust and Gluttony can both be swayed easily if it came to war. And Sloth will not go against the majority. I am the only one standing in the way of her total annihilation. And if she takes you against your will again, I will hunt her down. I will hurt her. Slowly. And painfully. Her death will be so brutal, so vile, it will serve as a warning for anyone who dares to touch my wife. Once I’m through, there will be nothing left for my hounds.”
A tremor went through his body. I’d been wrong. Wrath’s reaction wasn’t mild at all. He was desperately trying to keep himself under control formybenefit. I thought of what I’d learned tonight, about how Wrath reacted once the curse began. How he’d nearly killed his brothers in his mad search for me. All he’d found was some blood and torn-out hair. Of course he would have thought his brothers had schemed. A curse would have been the last thing on his mind.
I couldn’t help but wonder if there hadn’t been any strife between the princes before then. As much as they fought and tried to outmaneuver one another now, there still seemed to be some familial affection. Some loyalty. Maybe one day those wounds could heal, too.
I nestled against my prince, laying my head on his chest. His heart beat like a war drum. Mine marched along to the same haunted rhythm.
If Wrath decided my sister was a true threat to me, he would not hesitate to remove her. I had little doubt that, even as an immortal goddess, he would succeed.
As terrible as things seemed with Vittoria, I was still clutching at hope that there wassomeredeemable part in her. Some way for me to reach what had once been warm and kind when we were mortals. I wanted to believe that Vittoria’s goals of breaking my spell-lock and granting me my full power were solely because she wanted what was best for me, but I worried it had more to do with her current plan.
If she wanted a powerful ally and hadn’t gotten one with the demon princes, maybe she wanted to unlock my power for her gain. And if Wrath was correct—if there was a chance I might not survive the removal of my heart—I understood why Vittoria’s insistence would push him to remove her as a threat. He’d had someone take me against my will before.
I was still fighting my way back to my true self. If our roles were reversed, I would destroy anyone who threatened our happiness, too. I would murder without regret or remorse. Just as I’d done to that Umbra demon. But this was my twin, and it wasn’t so simple or black and white.
“I can sense your emotions,” he spoke quietly, “but can’t read your thoughts.”
“I’m thinking about my sister. Vittoria is…” I sighed and glanced up at him. “She’s no longer human. I’d like to believe I’d retain my morals, but I’m not sure that’s possible. Especially now. Our House wasVengeance. It seems to fuel us both. Even before I knew what we were, my initial response to Vittoria’s ‘death’ was simple: revenge. Deep down I know that my sister is hurt and that this is the sole way for her to express it.”
Wrath regarded me closely, a deep crease forming in his brow. “Everyone has choices they make. Your sister is using her immortality as an excuse to do unforgivable things. She could alter her path, forge a new one easily. She doesn’twantto. And therein lies the issue. She is a monster by choice, not birth.” He bared his teeth in a smile that promised untamed violence. “As we all are. But she’s not the only one who can discard moral code to accomplish a task.”
I held his gaze for a few beats. Nothing but pure determination and icy promise shone out of his eyes. Once he set his mind to it, he’d move the entire underworld to accomplish his goals. Vittoria was very close to becoming his number one task to eliminate. Nothing I could do or say would dissuade him. I knew that for certain because that would be the path I’d take. And no one would stop me. We truly were a match made in Hell.
“Regardless of the methods used to accomplish it, I learned a great many things this evening.” I rolled onto my back and stared up at the ceiling. “I don’t believe Vesta is dead. It’s the one question my sister refuses to answer—she goes out of her way to avoid it, actually. If she were guilty, I don’t see why she’d have any trouble rubbing it in Greed’s face. She hates demons, princes of Hell especially. If she truly wishes to start a war, why not admit such a large triumph as slaying someone as important as one of their commanders? Especially if Vesta was as special as Greed claimed. Vittoria hasn’t been shy in boasting about any of her other conquests. Why maintain silence now?”
Wrath exhaled. “I also questioned why Vesta had sought out Pride. He’s hiding something, but I don’t believe it has anything to do with her potential disappearance.”
“What do you believe, then?” I rolled onto my side again, facing him.
“I think he’d been after information and thought he was using Vesta.” His mouth almost lifted in a smile. “Once he realized he’d been outmaneuvered, I think his pride took another hit. Which was why he seemed surprised and annoyed. He thought he’d been the hunter, and he discovered he’d fallen into another trap. He’s been overly sensitive about that sort of thing since your sister trampled all over his carefully crafted image.”
“Did he care for her?”
“Your sister?” Wrath’s attention slid over me as I nodded. “I’m not sure. But he certainly puts an enormous amount of effort into seeing her destroyed. Though that could simply be because he hates himself for letting his pride get in the way of telling his wife the truth.”
“Which was?”
“As far as I know, Pride and Vittoria never did more than kiss. He had his reputation of a debauched prince to uphold, which was why he’d allowed everyone to think he was bedding her.”
“You’re certain he never bedded Vittoria?”
Wrath considered my question carefully. “I don’t think anyone except Pride and Vittoria know the full truth. He’s certainly not shared any details from that night.”
And if Vittoria had grown feelings for him and they were unrequited, that certainly could have added fuel to her current “destroy demons and witches” mission. I mulled over another theory. “Do you think Greed sent himself the skull?”
“I wouldn’t rule it out as a possibility. If he is convinced your sister is to blame, it would give him a clear motive to attempt to create evidence to prove his theory.”
It was precisely what I’d been thinking, too. “Without having complete access to Greed’s lands, there isn’t any way for us to prove where the skull originated from, correct?” My prince shook his head. I turned over a few more thoughts. “The Duke of Devon mentioned that Vesta’s family wasn’t from here…”
“Are you considering the blood left at the scene?”
I nodded. “We obviously don’t know the circumstances that brought Vesta here, but we know that she’d been inquiring about Pride’s portal and the blood scenting. If her family was from somewhere outside of Greed’s domain, even outside of the Seven Circles, perhaps she used the portal to return home. With the mixture of blood we found, perhaps she even sneaked some other type of demon here to help her?”
And if that were true, then perhaps she hadn’t been the victim at all, but the actual murderer. If she was as unhappy in Greed’s court as the duke had claimed, perhaps she had killed someone who stood in her way, leaving the mutilated body behind before making a great escape?
