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This is for us.For Vesper and me.

“I’m not the snake,” she said and reached behind her to pull out a small dagger of her own. I could smell the magic on it. “I’mcleanup.”

I pulled out my own weapon. When she got a look at it, she let out a huff of laughter.

Cleanup.No wonder Vesper was so worried. She was protecting her own failure.It is kinda cute.But I could take it from here.

I had been running around in a panic since the wedding, freezing like a deer in headlights and falling into a hopeless spiral.

I wouldn’t be like that this time.

“Was that supposed to be for your stepmother?” she asked. “You’re really something else, aren’t you?”

I readied myself, recalling how Vesper attacked the night in my room. I was a vampire and had the upper hand, but they were trained in a way I never had been.

“It’s for you,” I said with a smile. “At least it is now. I just never expected you to move so fast.”

She shifted slightly, placing her feet apart and crouching. She was readying to attack.

“I gave your plaything a week, but after seeing the way she tried to out me, I decided to take matters into my own hands,” she admitted. “Pity—it was fun to see her squirm.”

She launched herself at me.I guess no more talking.

She was fast. Faster than Vesper. But I could use that and her own strength against her.

As soon as she was less than a foot away from me, I jerked to the side. Her dagger embedded into the post behind me. She’d swung so hard, she couldn’t pull it out right away. My free hand was on her wrist, my dagger hand pointing at her neck.

The smile on her face dropped when she realized what I was doing.

I opened my mouth wide and bit down right on the joint of her elbow. My fangs dug into her skin, slicing through it as easy as butter, until they hit bone. With one single bite, the bones cracked under my teeth.

Her pained scream split the air. I used her wrist to twist the broken arm behind her, while keeping my dagger at her throat. I got as close as possible to her face, a smile spreading across mine.

Her blood was sweet against my taste buds and sent a vibration through me. I was tempted to drain her just to watch her reaction.

It feels good.Her screams of anguish. Her pained expression. Knowing that I held her life in my hands.

It is addicting.

“How many others did you bring with you?” I asked. “And don’t try to say you just paid off my staff to mislead me into coming in here.How many?”

She let out a laugh.

“Not as dumb as you’ve been made out to be, huh?”

“How many?” I asked again. “Maybe if you’re honest, I’ll let you off easy.”

When she didn’t answer, I put more pressure on her arm. Her lips formed into a snarl.

“I take that back. Letting go of your own killer is a dumb fucking idea.”

I pushed the tip of the dagger into her throat. “I never said I’d let you go. But I could make your death less painful.”

There was no way she was getting out of here alive, but I needed to get more information out of her. I had to know exactly how many people in this palace were out for my head.

But what I didn’t expect was for her other hand to come out with another knife. I tried to jerk out of the way, but she pushed us both forward, causing us to fall on the bed.

I turned my head to the side as she brought the knife down to the mattress.