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My venom was poisonous. My blood was the antidote.
“Let Ysabeau,” she said. “She won’t lose control.”
“I won’t?—”
“I’ve seen how you crave her,” Adora snapped, fire and fury in her eyes. Where my sweet, soft, intelligent woman had a quiet strength—the little bit I’d seen of Adora told me she was anything but. “You may love her, but her blood will be honey on your lips. I don’t want to toy with the one chance we have?—”
I stormed across the room. “I don’t know what you are, Adora. Dannika wouldn’t say, but it’s only because she loves you that I haven’t had the guards remove you yet, so listen carefully.” I towered over her, but she didn’t shrink away. “Dannika is my mate. Mine. If someone is going to sire her, it’s going to be me, because as much as I might want her blood, I would never lose control when it came to her life. I chose her. I will continue to choose her, over blood, over House, over anyone and anything that would come between us. So respectfully, Adora, I will only repeat myself once. Everyone, get the fuck out.”
Her lips thinned. She rose to stand. “If you fail, I will kill you.”
Several gasps lined the hallways. Ysa swore under her breath. “Okay, time to go?—”
“If I fail, you won’t need to,” I said softly.
The room emptied, but not fast enough. Her heartbeat was fading. Nova had already gone still. Our time was out. It was now or never.
Ysa had to guide Adora away. Kieran followed with them. At the door, she said, “If you need me, I’ll be right here.”
“Empty the wing. I don’t want to be disturbed for anything.”
“Good luck,” she said before closing the door shut. The sounds of people being sent away filtered through, but my thoughts had already turned away from them. From Adora and her assertions. From the fear and the panic and the desperation.
I knelt beside her, inhaling her sweet scent, oranges and peppermint, as I brushed the hair from her cheek. My lips pressed against hers one last time as I conjured a small blade. It was easy to press the blade into my wrist. Blood welled. I let it drip over her open wounds before pressing it between her lips. She didn’t gag or swallow, but I heard the liquid as it dripped down her throat.
As my wrist healed shut, I bent over and licked a spot on her throat. I sucked on the smooth patch of flesh, softening it to my bite.
“I’ve seen how you crave her…”
My fangs pressed against her skin. Gods. The smell. The taste.
“You may love her, but her blood will be honey on your lips.”
Honey was a poor comparison. More like ambrosia. Nectar of the gods. I groaned, burying my fingers in her hair.
Mine.
My shifter.
My love.
My Dannika.
It was because of that love, that protective possessiveness, that I released her. She was strong, I reminded myself. So strong. This had to work. Because if it didn’t . . .
If I fail, you won’t need to.
My vigil began.
CHAPTER 27
Dannika
Asharp pain broke through the dark fog. It started as cold. A frigid explosion so raw and deep that it burned. One spot was bad enough, but then the icy flames spread. It lit every nerve ending ablaze, ravaging my insides while it spread like a plague. An infection. A wildfire eating away at my core.
Hoarfrost settled over every inch of my body, crawling over every ounce of my flesh. It seeped into my blood, my bones, filling me with excruciating agony. But the intensity of the pain was the only thing that grounded me. It was my tether, stopping me from drifting away into nothingness.
And then it changed.
