Page 85 of The Vampire Curse

“Well, what do we have here?”Cassius strides through the door, straightening the sleeves of his jacket. When he spots me, a devilish grin crosses his mouth.

Victor lifts his chin and shakes his head once. The black veins recede, and his eyes return to normal, save for some lingering black past the pupils. Then he turns toward Cassius as if he wasn’t attacking me only seconds ago.

The hold of his compulsion lessens. My body is mine again. I should stand and leave the room, but all I can see is red.

How dare he take my blood and compel me. How dare he touch me at all.

I reach for the dagger in my pocket and swipe at the vampire as I stand. The tip of the blade cuts across the side of his leg. My movements are slow and uncoordinated. I slice deep, but not deep enough to kill or slow him.

Blood wells up immediately, soaking the material of his trousers.

Victor rounds on me, hissing and baring his teeth. He lifts a hand high, ready to strike. I flinch, expecting the resounding pain, but it doesn’t come.

My breath escapes my lungs in a whoosh. Cassius stays Victor’s hand.

“Let me go. I will kill her. The little bitch drew blood,” Victor snarls.

Cassius raises a single brow. His expression changes, but I don’t understand. My fingers tighten further on the hilt of the dagger. I will not let either of them kill me without a fight.

“Wrap your leg,” the vampire orders. He releases Victor, and I think he might ignore Cassius and attack me anyway.

Cassius approaches with slow movements. He takes my wrist and removes the dagger from my grasp. I don’t want to give it up, but if I resist, he might break my hand taking it. Cassius sets it atop the piano, never taking his eyes off me.

Any positive thoughts I once had about either of them go up in smoke. I know them for the bastards they are.

This will end badly. I’ll be lucky if I get a somewhat quick death.

He shakes his head as if he’s disappointed. “I really wish you’d taken my offer, little bird.”

I want to ask him what he means when two new voices draw closer. The talking ceases as soon as they step inside the room. Della takes in Victor, his leg, and the sliced drapes, her gaze drifts over to where Cassius and I stand next to the piano. Lawrence glares at me.

“It seems,” Cassius starts, turning to face the three other vampires. “Our dear friend Alaric has not yet fully claimed his pet.” He reaches out and grabs my wrist, pulling me forward so I can’t hide behind him, or reach for the dagger while his back is turned.

No one speaks, no one so much as moves or twitches a muscle.

I straighten my spine and square my shoulders, wincing at the pain of the bite. A warm trickle of blood still seeps from the wound.

I might be surrounded by predators that don’t care if I live or die, I might not have Alaric’s full mark to protect me from their compulsion, but I refuse to cower.

“You know that even attempting to compel another’s marked human is forbidden,” Lawrence says after a long moment.

I’m shocked by his defense.

Cassius smiles. “Ah, but she is not marked.” He faces me, his eyes roaming up and down my body, lingering on the flesh of my shoulder for a long moment before turning back to the others. “Not fully.”

I try to think back on our previous encounters. Cassius had known since he found me in the hall after my first night terror. As fas as I can tell, he hasn’t said a word until now. Is this… payback for rejecting his offer?

“You wouldn’t know without trying to compel her,” Lawrence shoots back.

Cassius presses a hand to his chest in mock offense. “It was not I who compelled her. However, that doesn’t matter now. We all know the truth.” He takes a deep breath and sighs. “Unfortunately, she has drawn first blood, and according to Elizabeth's law, it is within Victor’s rights to demand a fight to the death.”

The world sways under me.

“Look at her neck,” Della says more to Lawrence, though we can all hear. “She’s bleeding.”

“You know feeding doesn’t count as an attack—otherwise, all humans could try to kill us when we drink,” Cassius says before Lawrence can respond.

“Then we will wait until Alaric returns and then this mess can be sorted,” Lawrence says.