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“I can sustain off animal blood—”
“Then I’ll bring you several live animals.”
“That will keep me alive, but I’ll remain weak and emaciated—”
“Good.” I walked off, dismissing the prisoner. “I have no other use for you.”
“If I have no ship, I have nowhere to run, so I’m not a threat to you or your people—”
“I will never grant you the opportunity to come near my daughter again,vampire. You used her enough, and I won’t give you the chance to use her again—especially for her royal blood.”
His arms rested on the rungs as he looked at me. “I would never do that.”
“Because your honor means anything.”
“I was starved on the journey home, but never once was I tempted. I didn’t leave her side to feed on an animal because I feared for her safety more than my own lack of nourishment.”
“My daughter can take care of herself.”
“Not without a sword, which she didn’t have—”
“I will spare your life, but I will not grant you freedom. You will send for your kin to fight for us, and the war will happen while you’re trapped in this dungeon. Once the war is over and we’re victorious, you may leave with your people.” I turned and walked off again, finished with this nuisance.
“Harlow will vouch for my character—if you ask her.”
I stopped again and slowly turned to face him. “I’m sure the woman who threw you in here has nothing but nice things to say about you.” I was proud my daughter was smart enough to manipulate this asshole and lock him up under the castle she slept in every night. She didn’t feel indebted to him for rescuing her, not when he’d abducted her in the first place. She had a good head on her shoulders—and she would make a brilliant queen one day.
“Ask her.”
I walked off.
“Ask her.”
23
HARLOW
Once my father returned to the room, I broke free of my brother’s hold and rushed to him. “I told him I wouldn’t kill him—”
“And I didn’t.”
My face was probably red and puffy from resisting my brother the last few minutes, and I was sure I still looked pissed off, even though I’d gotten the outcome I wanted. It took me a second to withdraw my rage. “What happened?”
“He’s a vampire.” He walked past me and returned to his seat at the head of the table. “Distant relations of the Teeth, beings that feed on the blood of humans.”
I watched him sit down, and I took a moment to process what he said.
His arm rested across the table, and his fingers curled up against his lip as he became lost in thought.
We returned to our seats at the table, and I thought about what Aurelias had said to me, that if he remained locked in that cage, he would die. Because he couldn’t eat the food the guards served—only the blood in their veins. A shiver ran down my spine, because I realized I’d been alone with a monster on several occasions, had slept beside him, completely vulnerable to his bite.
My father continued. “I spared his life because he offered his people in the upcoming war. He’ll write a letter, and our sailors will deliver it to their domain, requesting their assistance in this battle. In exchange, I’ll release him when the battle is over.”
Atticus digested the information in silence. “A vampire…I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“Nor have I,” my mother said. “The world is bigger than we know.”
I was stunned into silence, feeling like a bigger fool for having such a heated affair with him. He wasn’t even human, and I’d had no idea. “He’ll die if he doesn’t feed, so we can’t leave him down there.”
