Page 115 of Brushed By Moonlight

But all he did was shake his head and mutter, “Unbelievable.” Putting his hand over his heart, he turned to Baumann. “I take full responsibility. I have my people run background checks on all my escorts, but clearly, they missed something.”

So many parts of that statement were offensive, I didn’t know where to begin.

“Escort?” I finally sputtered.

Useless hussy,his glare said. Rolling his eyes, he turned to Baumann. “They all convince themselves it’s love, don’t they?”

Baumann patted his shoulder, like he’d suffered the same problem. “It happens. Don’t blame yourself.”

That meant blamingme, which they did with cool calculation.

“I can assure you, she’ll be dealt with.” Henrik stepped toward me.

I shrank back, too frightened to say,What about dealing with you, you traitor?

Marius moved to block Henrik. Much as I appreciated it, I didn’t like being sandwiched between an angry dragon and a backstabbing vampire. Unless Henrik was faking it in an attempt to salvage this operation.

But that would require loyalty and a sense of teamwork. So, no. I really doubted it.

A slow-motion reel of my life flashed before my eyes, and a tragic soundtrack played in my mind as I thought of Clement. He had never sparked emotions in me as powerfully as Marius, but boy, would he have been the safer bet. We could have lived quietly (if not happily) ever after in the French countryside with two children, a dog, and a humble home purchased with whatever I could salvage from the château. The building itself would slowly crumble, and if my grandchildren ever asked why I gave up on generations of family history, I would admit I hadn’t had the heart to try.

Bitterness pooled in my stomach. Was that really what I wished for?

I straightened my shoulders. No, it wasn’t. And I would not give up, dammit. Not even now, when things looked bleaker than Munch’s dreary landscape.

I tightened my grip around the painting, calculating who to swing it at first and which direction to escape in. Henrik made a good target, distracted as he was. His eyes kept darting to the inlaid box. Had he double-crossed us for that?

I raised the Munch, ready to smack him, then the nearest guard.

But Marius came to his senses and backed off, growling into my mind to do the same.

I like your thinking, but no. We’ll wait for a better chance later.

I blinked, surprised by how clearly his thoughts reached me.

Fated mates,I remembered my grandmother sighing.You can hear every word. It has its pluses and minuses.

“Obviously, they were in this together,” Celeste announced.

I bared my teeth, though she was spot on the money. Marius and I were in this together — but so was Henrik, dammit. How was he getting out of this so easily?

The room grew suffocating, and a hint of red shone in Henrik’s eyes.

“Truly a piece of work,” Henrik grumbled, meaning me. “She had me fooled. And now she’s gone and disrupted this lovely evening.”

Fucking vampire,Marius cursed into my mind.He’s enthralling them.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Baumann reassured him. “My men will take care of this issue.”

I glared. A clogged toilet was anissue. This was my life he was toying with, dammit!

“But there’s no reason to ruin a wonderful party,” Baumann concluded smugly.

Celeste cozied up to him, shooting Marius a triumphant look.

“You’re too gracious,” Henrik assured him. “All I can ask is that you leave her for me to deal with later.”

Baumann snickered. “Oh, I’m sure you will.”