Page 72 of The Ballad of the Vampire Prince

I nod silently.

His conclusion dispels the shadow of doubt at the back of my mind.

It’s not him,I repeat Shade’s words softly in my heart.

I pray to the gods that he is right.

Part II

The Elf Queen and the Vampire Prince

Chapter 10 Svenn

“That kill was mine.”

I’ve been tracking Carver for five fucking days. The Grimsbane has completely disappeared over the face of the earth. My keen senses detected a hint of his scent today. It traces back to this tavern and to this bastard in crimson cape, drinking his ale blissfully at the counter.

“Where is he?” My voice drops to a dangerous growl.

“What is this about now?” Red asks, not even bothering to answer my question. I know immediately that the assassin is dead.

“You stole my hunt.”

Patience has never been my strong suit. I want to skin this bastard alive. It may not be as satisfying as crushing the skull of the Grimsbane who hurt Nel, but it will be enough to sate these beasts raging inside me.

Red raises a brow as he glances at me.

“I overheard him bragging at the bar about how he made my queen bleed,” he says in a deceptively calm voice. “I know Her Highness wouldn’t want me to hurt people for her sake, and Ialmost walked away. But the Grimsbane had to blurt about how he…”

The bastard pauses his last speech. I can see the rage building behind his eyes. “It was personal. My cause for killing trumped yours.”

Yes, Carver has a certain smell to him. It tells me that he is the type that preys on the weak and those who are unable to fight back. Han once made it his personal cause to rid the world of people like him. Maybe Red does have a better claim to his flesh.

“Did he suffer?” I ask.

“Long and slow. Just the way his victims did.”

Some of the elves in the tavern are giving me a strange look as they pass. Men have looked at me that way in the past and did not live past morning.

Red seems to notice their stare too. “You look like you’re about to murder someone. Lighten up.”

I do. That someone is him.

“How about I buy you a drink?” he says, unruffled by the threat to his life.

He still orders for me when I don’t answer, winking at a barmaid as he does it. Not one of them suspects this charming, so well-put-together knight is the fucking devil.

“Come on. I’m not acquainted with any necromancer who can revive the dead Grimsbane for you to torture. This is the best I can offer.” The bastard keeps talking, unaware he’s living on borrowed time.

“Why don’t we talk about this over there?” He jerks his head towards a booth at the back with a window overlooking the outside. “Rhianelle usually passes by that bridge after their city hall meetings. This spot is closer than your usual haunt, the rooftop.”

At the mention of her name, my claws retract. This red cloaked fucker should be taking the Grimsbane’s place. But thetemptation of stealing a closer glance at Little Fawn in daylight outweighs my desire for violence. Once again, I find myself bending another rule for Rhianelle.

Red places one of the pewter cups right across him, expecting me to take the seat. I don’t know how I’m going to sit with him there without putting a hole in his chest. I rein in my temper and settle quietly.

“Elven ale is a rather poor draft but it’s all we got around here.” The male draws from his tankard.

I don’t touch mine.