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He pulled the arrow from Layrr’s shoulder and his brother cried out in pain.

“The bitch spear gunned me, can you believe it,” Layrr shouted, crazy with pain.

“For that, you’ve gotta die, bitch!” he fired the gun at me but I saw it coming and moved out the way before his finger pulled the trigger. When I looked up, I saw that Lucca had fired his own weapon at Layrr, who was lying against the wall, stunned.

“No!” Lucca snarled at him, his face contorted with anger.

“It’s over, Layrr.”

He snapped cables on him and I went after Sunil, finding him cowering in the bathroom.

“I never wanted anything like this to happen!” he cried. “It was all going to be so glorious. An age of vampires, like never before!”

“Music and parties and mortals on platters for your enjoyment?” I asked sarcastically, pulling the cables extra tight.

I stood up and felt dizzy for a moment, when I looked down, I saw my entire stomach was drenched in blood. I stumbled back onto a bench and sat down.

“Vampire blood can heal you, you know,” Sunil said, a cunning look on his face.

“But you have to be careful, too much and you become one of us.”

I heard the others arriving, ready to take Layrr and the captured vampires out to the helicopters. Lucca came to check on me, “That looks bad.” His face was worried.

I nodded. “I think my wound opened up again,” I said.

He waited until we were alone, then he said in a low voice. “I’m going to give you some of my blood, Izzy.”

“I don’t know,” I said.

“Just enough to help you heal. Otherwise… you might not make it. There has been a lot of blood loss.”

I smiled sadly at him, “Maybe this is my time.”

“No!” Lucca cried out. “I couldn’t bear it!”

“We couldn’t be together anyway,” I said, sadly.

“Why not?!” Lucca cried out. “Who said that?! Why do you think the witch tried to kill you? She saw you in the castle, taking her place in my life. She couldn’t handle it. But that is what I want, more than anything!”

“Just a bit then,” I gave in, moved by his feelings for me.

I leaned back, feeling him coming closer. He cut himself and held his arm to my mouth. I tasted the warm, strange fluid and felt my lips close around the cut, sucking from its own accord. I wanted this, my body wanted this.

“You should stop,” I heard Lucca’s voice from far away. “That’s enough.”

But to my own surprise, I didn’t want to stop.

Chapter 24

Lucca

In the days that followed Loughlin Vale, our world changed shape again. I was only aware of this from a distance, taking little interest in it. Sunil and Layrr were taken to the Capital for trial and I was informed that the Council had met for another vote on its new structure. My name was put forward for Tempesto’s seat and I was unanimously selected.

Dominic travelled all the way to Castle Grey to inform me that I had been appointed Third Councilor. It was a highly prestigious position, I would be among the foremost leaders, with real power and resources to back up our decisions. Changes I had been dreaming of making for years, would finally not be an issue.

But all of this felt unimportant.

Not while Izzy was on the cusp of death.