Page 52 of A Vow of Shadow and Blood

Amabel steps to one side, gesturing for the group huddled inside to leave the wagon. They move cautiously as they shuffle out, never taking their eyes off the vampires surrounding them. At least twenty people leave the wagon. More than I realized. Mothers and fathers clutch tightly to their children, as they bury their faces in their bodies. My heart pounds inside my chest.

They line up outside the wagon, fear etched across their features. Amabel walks the length of them, eyeing every individual in the same manner she does when she is assessing us before a night of feeding. Her eyes scrutinizing every move. She dips down in front of a child, smiling as she looks at him. Tears make his brown eyes shine against the night as he looks back at her from within the folds of his mother’s cloak.

“Come, little one.” She beckons him forward, but he doesn’t move, his eyes rising to his mother for confirmation first.

“Please don’t hurt him.”

Amabel’s face twists in disgust as though the mere thought of someone believing she would hurt a child is insulting.

“You have no need to fear me, child.”

A long pause fills the air, and then the mother nods. Slowly, the child slips from her grip, taking slow footsteps toward Amabel. He stops when he’s at least a foot away.

“What is your name?” she asks from her crouched position.

He looks back at his mother again for permission. Her pale skin flushes red as she looks down at him in reassurance.

“Danay,” he whispers, his lashes so long they curl to touch the light brown skin of his eyelids.

“What a lovely name,” she coos. “And how old are you, Danay?”

“Seven.”

Her eyes flash up at the mother, a quiet rage brewing in her irises. She is no doubt wondering how his mother managed to keep him hidden all this time. She turns her attention back to the boy.

“My name is Amabel. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

She holds out a hand to the boy, and he takes it awkwardly as she gives it a shake. An unfamiliar expression crosses her face. I have only ever known her to be stern and cruel, but something about seeing the children is bringing out an oddly softer side to her, yet I’m not foolish enough to think she will extend that kindness any further.

“The father?” she asks his mother.

“He’s dead.” His mother’s eyes briefly meet with one of the vampires circling us. “He was killed by avampire.”

“Unfortunate,” Amabel says before looking down at the boy again.

“Do you know why you were in this wagon, Danay?”

“Mama said we were going to a special place. Somewhere safe.”

His mother tenses at his words.

“Well, she was right. You are going somewhere special.”

Her words seem to surprise us all, as does the gentle smile that touches her lips.Is she really going to let them go?

No, she is not. Keep your guard up, Adina, and be ready to fight,Athriel warns.

I give a silent acknowledgement as my eyes meet Tori’s. I send a warning with my eyes, and she gives a subtle dip of her head.

“In fact, all the children will go there to join you. How would you like that?”

The boy’s lips part in an excited grin, but fear knots my stomach. “I’d like that very much. Did you hear that, Mama? The lady is going to take us to the special place.”

Amabel stands up, brushing the dust from her coat. Her gaze lingers on the boy’s mother, and as she rubs her hands together to rid them of the dirt, she suddenly moves—a blur I almost miss. In an instant she is behind the boy, racing toward his mother with a speed no human could possess. The world slows around me, and I watch in horror as Amabel seizes the woman’s head, twisting sharply until a sickening click cracks through the air.

The body falls to the ground with a thud, and it takes me a minute to realize what has happened. Amabel killed her. She’s a…

Vampire,Athriel finishes, disbelief coating his voice, too.