Page 97 of Bitten Vampire

“I don’t. I’m telling you the truth. After I turned and could hear her, she became my friend. My family.” My voice wavers as I pour hot water over the teabag; the teaspoon clacks against the cup. I’m not opposed to begging. “Lander, if you ever have the chance, please help her. Don’t hinder her and for all that is good in the world, do not hurt her. She is more than a wizard’s house.If you insist on hunting her, at least give her a chance—be kind.”

“I can’t promise that.”

“No, you can’t.” I wipe my eyes with the back of my hand. I shouldn’t let him upset me; people like him never change. I silently finish making the drink. “And that is why you are a horrible person.” Shouldering past him with Dayna’s milk-splashed tea, I leave the kitchen.

Valdarr looks up as I stomp into the living room. I shake my head. “I hate him,” I mutter, low enough for only my vampire to hear.

I hand Dayna her tea with a tight smile.

Dayna chats with Valdarr while she sips her drink, and Lander stares at me like a puzzle he’d solve with a scalpel. I shift so Valdarr stands between us.

“Right,” Dayna says, placing her empty cup on the side. “This won’t be pleasant. Would you like an explanation, or shall I just proceed?”

I’ve had days of knowing exactly what’s coming. This is going to be unpleasant, so I’d rather wing it. “I’m fine not knowing.”

“Lie down inside the circle, then. I’m just going to wash my hands,” Dayna says, nipping into the kitchen.

Lander gives Valdarr a wary look. “I know you want to be here for your mate, but for Dayna’s safety it’s best you leave. I realise it goes against all your instincts, yet I must protect my sister. I don’t need an angry vampire trying to rip her throat out.”

I frown. “He would never?—”

“I would,” Valdarr interjects. “If someone hurt you, I would.”

Images from the court hearing—and every vision in which things went catastrophically wrong flash through my mind: Valdarr stepping in front of me, shielding me?—

I nod.

“I’ll wait outside,” he concedes, and slips into the hallway.

Once I settle on the floor, Dayna’s magic threads through the wood, lighting the circle rune by rune. I feel the ward activate as each segment flares to life, like a switch being thrown. Then she unwraps a surgical packet containing an alarmingly long, rune-etched needle.

“Where’s that going?” I ask, voice tight.

“Your tear duct. If we went through the cornea, you’d lose vision.”

Tear duct! “Oh, great, how reassuring: a huge needle in my eye. Why is everything connected with vampires so bloody awful?”

Let’s hope all this will be worth it. If it’s not—if there’s nothing there but House’s magic—I don’t know what we will do. Run, I guess.

“I wish there were a simple spell. You were turned without consent, so it’s complicated.”

“She was murdered,” Lander mutters. “The wizard’s house magic did the turning.”

Dayna levels him with the same teacherly stare she gave James. “Winifred was turned without her consent.” Then her expression softens as she turns to me. “To prove your memories of your murder, we need undeniable, soul-bound, court-acceptable evidence. The signature sits in the lacrimal nerve cluster—both magical and biological.”

“Will it hurt?”

“Yes, it will hurt.” At least she doesn’t lie. “Your body will fight it. But the needle draws more than fluid. It pulls memory and lineage.Ethereal Memoryis the residue of formative, high-magic moments—trauma, turning, oath-taking—imprinted into a vampire’s aura and recoverable under warded conditions. If he turned you, his essence is there. If he murdered you, the memory will be there. If not…” She shrugs. “We will know.”

Lander places two fingers on my temple. “Do not move, Winifred.”

It takes everything I have not to aggressively flash my fangs.

Dayna states who is present, along with my full name, clan, and the time and date for the camera. Then she continues, “This Ethereal Memory Assay is conducted under the authority of the Ministry of Magic, pursuant to Accord Codes 101.4 and 311.2. For the record: the subject is unrestrained; no coercive magic is in effect, and all counter-compulsion wards have been checked and hold.

“Winifred Crowsdale, do you affirm that you understand the nature and risks of an Ethereal Memory Assay as defined in Protocol EM-7, and do you consent to proceed?”

“I do.”