Page 33 of Serpentine Valentine

Only a handful of old friends still spoke to me, and only a few of those were brave enough to ask me the very same question. They all seemed horrified that I should want to return to the place of my death. Obviously, they didn’t understand why ghosts haunted the scene of the crime. They were tied inexplicably to the injustice of the acts done against them, hovering in wait for someone to bring them peace through vengeance.

The only difference between me and a ghost was that I intended to do my own dirty work.

“This was my dream,” I said. “I alreadylost more than I can say to what happened. I won’t lose this. Which is exactly the reason I didnotassault that guy.”

“What were you doing last night?”

This time it was me who claimed a mean smile, mine curling like the edges of a villain’s mustache. I sat back in my chair and cleaned beneath my already clean nails.

“Didn’t they tell you? I have an alibi.”

“They did not. You will tell me now.”

I shrugged one shoulder, flicking my gaze up to lock on hers so I could watch her reaction. “I went to dinner with my sisters at the Maenad, and then I went to Mathieson Library to study.”

“Can anyone corroborate you were there?”

“Apart from the access pass system and the security cameras in the lobby, I believe one person can for sure, yes.”

Mina’s jaw ticked like a bomb counting down to detonation. I wondered if her nails had cut crescent wounds into her palms.

“Who?”

“Oh,” I drawled, bringing up my Virginia roots. “I thought you’d know. It was your daughter, Luna.”

Shock again, this time blowing her pupils wide. “She saw you.”

I laughed, but the sound was more of a purr. “Yes, she saw me. She was with me for almost an hour.”

Pleasure unfurled in my belly, warm and heavy.

They say you should rise above, be the bigger (wo)man, take the higher road.

Well, no offense to those people, but fuckthat.

I subscribed to an entirely more elemental system of ethics.

An eye for a motherfucking eye.

And I was coming for both of Mina’s.

“Why would my daughter have anything to do with you?” sheground out, cheeks flushed with fury.

Luna’s had been flushed like that last night too, but from something much softer than fury. Her arousal had stained her lips, cheeks, and neck like wine. I’d wanted to lick up every inch of that stain and see if it tasted just as heady as it appeared.

And I had, in a sense. Biting her had been spontaneous, calculated to intimidate her as much as seduce her.

Unfortunately, it seemed to affect me much the same.

“I know you have selective memory, but you used to enjoy spending time with me too, on occasion,” I reminded her dryly. “In fact, that first time, when Agatha introduced us in Richmond, and we had lunch at that little place that smelled like garlic, you spent three hours talking to me. Maybe it’s a case of like mother like daughter?”

“Shut your mouth,” she whispered, trying to control her rare show of fury.

I smirked. “You were the one who asked.”

“Stay away from my daughter.”

“Okay,” I agreed. “But I can’t promise she’ll stay away from me. I seem to have some kind of charm. Even when I don’t want attention, I get it.”