12. Montana

I’d remained in my room all afternoon, having made my excuses once Miles had taken me back to the castle. He had returned to his pleasant tone during the journey, but I’d barely said another word to him when I’d realised he wasn’t going to tell me more about the mark or what would happen beyond the choosing ceremony. I didn’t like the way he and Warren had kept sharing looks, whispering words I couldn’t catch. This was bad. Really fucking bad.

I hugged my knees to my chest, thinking about Nightmare, which was now tucked under the pillow behind me. If Miles had found it, would he have been so lenient with me? If he had presumed I’d planned on killing him with that blade, would I have been at the mercy of the four royals now, torn to pieces by their rage?

I considered showing Erik my mark and hoping he might be reasonable, but I didn’t like my odds. And if I was killed, nothing was going to keep Dad out of the blood bank.

I warred with myself, reaching for Nightmare and gripping the hilt. I wondered if it could steer me in any particular direction. Insane as it was, I felt in the deepest regions of my bones that I could trust the blade’s judgement.

Have faith, Moon Child.

“Have faith in what?” I whispered, feeling foolish the moment I openly replied to the object.

Trust your heart.

I guessed that was as good of an answer as I was going to get, and I sighed, settling on a decision.

I hid Nightmare again and waited for Erik to come to my room like he usually did, but the hours ticked by, and he never came. As evening arrived, I decided to seek him out myself and make a request of him that would hopefully be enough to protect Dad.

Creeping into the hallway, I hurried along it, searching for the red door to his room. I soon found it and lifted my hand, readying to knock and trying to get my words straight in my head.

“Impressive, rebel, nearly a full minute without knocking. Should I be flattered?”

I turned in alarm, finding Erik standing there in the hallway as silent as ever, dressed in a navy suit with the crest of the royals on his breast pocket.

I dropped my hand, my mouth growing dry. Whatever expression was on my face suddenly morphed his amusement into concern.

“What’s going on?”

“I need to talk to you,” I said.

“Well, would you like to do it at a party? We’re all going out. Everyone’s waiting downstairs, I figured Miles had told you.”

“What? No, I can’t. I really need to tell you something.”

He stopped half a foot from me, his brow furrowed. “Go on.”

“Is my father free?” I asked hopefully.

He folded his arms. “Not yet. Wolfe has assured me he will be released by tomorrow.”

“I changed my mind,” I said suddenly. “I want you to let him go. Once he’s free, release him outside the Realms.”

Maybe this way I could keep my secret and still give my father a chance at freedom.

“That is a big ask,” he growled.

“Please,” I breathed. “Don’t bring him here, he’ll hate it. I just want him to be free, where he always wanted to be.” And maybe he’ll find Callie and they’ll evade the vampires together.

He shook his head. “Rebel, it’s not that simple. There are laws I must follow. We cannot just free humans.”

I reached for him, gripping his arm tightly. “Please,” I begged, desperation drowning me.

He stepped closer. “Your heart is pounding. Take a breath.”

“Don’t tell me to take a breath,” I growled, shoving his chest as anger tore through me. “What do I have to do to make you give me this?”

He stared down at me, an ominous aura spilling from him. “You’re asking me to go against my brothers and sister, to break our own laws.”

My shoulders fell as I realised he wouldn’t do this.

“The price of such a thing would be great indeed,” he said darkly, and I glanced up at him, my hope rekindling.

“Anything,” I breathed. “Whatever you want.”

My stomach knotted as I waited for him to make his ask of me, for the axe to fall upon my neck. But any sacrifice was worth it to see my father free, to know that he was far away from the vampires with a chance at finding Callie and securing a life together.

“I will think on the debt,” he said. “And if I can come up with something worth what you ask of me, then when your father is brought here, I will steal him away in the night, fake his escape and take him to the wilds myself.”

A sharp lump rose in my throat, and I nodded, moving into his personal space, driven on by what I needed from him, sliding my hand up his arm and gripping the back of his neck.

“You will find a price high enough,” I commanded. “You will think on it every minute you have spare in your eternal hours.”

“Montana...” he said in a dry voice, his fingers gripping my hips and drawing me closer.

“Say it,” I hissed.

“I will,” he said fiercely, his ashen eyes blazing with those words. “But understand this, any price I may come up with will likely cost you everything. Are you willing to lay your soul on the line for the sake of your father?”

“Yes,” I said, emotion coating my voice.

“Then I will make my ask of you soon,” he said, pulling me closer possessively.

I pressed my forehead to his chest, trying to make myself believe this deal would truly protect Dad.

I was so afraid. Afraid of what he would ask of me, afraid of this mark and what it meant. I was afraid for my own life and of what would happen if I chose wrongly at the ceremony. But most of all, I was afraid for the only people I cared about most in the world. Callie and Dad had to be safe, that was all that mattered.

Erik tracked his thumb down the rivets of my spine, causing a shiver to ripple through my body. Fire followed the line of his touch, and part of me wanted to move closer, to escape into that feeling and let it tame the wild fears of my heart. Even though he was the very one who stoked them.

I pulled away, unsure what had just passed between us, but it felt like some unearthly power had trickled into our veins, binding us with unbreakable tethers.

“You will accompany me to the party,” he said, his voice falling into that casually rude tone he preferred.

“I don’t want to go to some party,” I said in frustration.

After this day, all I wanted was to be alone.

“I cannot arrive without my courtier,” he growled. “This is part of the tradition. The press will be there, and if they report me going without you, they will make assumptions about your absence. They will say you are not invested in the ritual, that you do not wish to choose a husband at the ceremony.”

“Which would be correct assessments,” I pointed out but I sensed I was going to have to go along with this.

Erik opened his mouth to retort, but a deep, male voice carried from his room, the tenor of it making my bones quake. “A circle of gold shall join two souls…”

Erik stiffened at the voice, and I turned to the door, a strange and haunting presence creeping over me.

“Who’s in there?” I asked, my skin chilling all over.

Something drew me toward the room, and though I knew I should turn away and retreat from that eerie voice, I found myself opening the door instead.

Erik followed me as I stepped into his room as if guided forward by the same lure.

Dark walls stared back at me. The space was vast with a huge four-poster bed at the heart of it, draped with blood-red curtains. Beyond the bed was a large desk piled with books, scrolls, odd artefacts, and a heap of neatly stacked journals.

I glanced over my shoulder and Erik watched me intently as I approached the desk, but he didn’t stop me. My heart drew me to something on its surface, and I scoured the names of the books, unsure what I was looking for. Odin’s True Path. The Prophets of the Norse Lands. The Wrathful Gods of Asgard.

As I searched for the source of the strange pull in my chest, my eyes fell on a silver hand mirror. The handle was engraved with flowers, running up and around the oval glass. It was captivating, more than just beautiful. Something about it called to me, almost like Nightmare did.

I picked it up and Erik darted to my side in a flash of movement.

“Don’t,” he warned, his hand falling on my wrist, but I didn’t know why.

“It’s just a mirror,” I whispered, though the energy tingling against my fingertips told me I was wrong.

Erik took it from me, his face etched with some unreadable emotion. “It is far more than that.”

His grip tightened on the handle and his eyes searched his mirrored gaze. As I watched, his reflection smiled, but when I looked up, Erik’s face was still, making my stomach lurch.

“What just happened?” I gasped, hoping for an answer, but he gave me none.

Erik placed the mirror face-down on the desk, his eyes hardening. “Forget you saw this.”

“How can I?” I asked in disbelief, the back of my neck prickling.

“I shouldn’t have let you come in,” he said tightly. “But their power can be undeniable…”

“Whose power?” I frowned, hugging my arms around myself as the room seemed to grow colder. “I heard a voice, Erik, who was that?”

He sighed, and I sensed a heaviness weighing on him, which I was sure had to do with that mirror.

“I have lived for over a thousand years, Montana,” he said, and shock rolled through me.

That long? It was impossible to imagine living so many lifetimes, seeing the world change through all that time. I had assumed a few hundred years perhaps, but this…it was inconceivable.

“The mirror is almost as old. Sometimes it speaks to me....in riddles.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, thinking of Nightmare. Did this mirror speak to Erik the same way the blade spoke to me? I knew I couldn’t ask too many questions without revealing my possession of the blade. It was too risky. But I longed for answers.

“Forget the mirror,” Erik said, capturing my arm and squeezing. “There are things in this world best left untouched.”

“But-”

“It is dangerous, do you not understand?” he said cuttingly. “I am trying to protect you.”

“You’re trying to keep me ignorant,” I countered, and his jaw pulsed in annoyance.

“Go to your room. Get changed. I will not ask twice.” He gave me a push towards the door, and I shot him a glare over my shoulder. But I could see this conversation was done.

I headed out of his room, throwing the door wide so it hit the wall and not bothering to turn back to shut it. I was offered an immediate relief as I left that mirror behind, its presence cold, unlike Nightmare’s warmth.

A feeling of eyes on my back made me glance over my shoulder again, and I found Erik stalking after me like a predator on the hunt. I refused to let him intimidate me, not quickening my stride even a little as I walked to my room. He moved to lean against the wall beside it, folding his arms and giving me an impatient look.

“Two minutes,” he said, holding his arm out to look at his glitzy watch.

I gave him a cool look, heading into my room and kicking the door shut behind me.

It felt like much more than a door parted us. An entire sea of secrets, and a fortress of enigmas.

It was tempting to cut holes in a dress, put it on, then smear lipstick all over my face, but I knew Erik would tie me to a chair and fetch Nancy if he had to. So I changed into a pale blue gown of soft silk, put on the lowest heels, and did my make-up as best I could, feeling more like I was donning war paint for my ongoing battle with my captor. My hair had curled a little from my time in the pool but it looked fine, and I didn’t really care either way. I was making the minimum effort possible for a night I was not going to get out of either way and was simply saving myself the harassment of being forced into dressing up like a doll.

“That’s more than two minutes, rebel,” Erik called.

I shoved the door open, stepping out and offering him an obviously false smile. “Oh, but I needed a few extra moments to make myself dazzling for you, my prince.”

He gave me a look up and down, biting down on the inside of his cheek like he was holding back a smile at my sarcasm. “Well you have done very poorly.”

“Gosh, whatever will I do? You’ll have to send one of your servants to whip me for my failure.”

“I think I could handle the whipping myself,” he said, his gruff tone setting my pulse hammering, and suddenly the game wasn’t so funny.

He caught my arm, tugging me tight against him and guiding me down the corridor.

Nightmare was strapped to my thigh once more, and it seemed to growl in response to Erik. It was a strange sensation, but I was definitely in agreement with the angry vibes it was giving out. Though it was weird that the blade seemed to emit feelings at all.

“Fabian will be there tonight,” Erik said, dragging me back to reality. “You will listen in on his conversations if you get the chance. Which you will, because you will make sure of it.”

I realised he was agitated, which was only apparent because of the way he kept pushing his hand into his hair.

“Alright,” I agreed. “You look like something’s on your mind, Erik. I really hope it’s not giving you crushing anxiety you can’t escape from.”

“Hm,” he grunted at my jibing instead of giving it back, letting me know there really was something keeping him distracted.

Clarice waited in the hall below us, dressed in an incredible black gown that hugged her narrow waist and pushed her tits up to high heaven. Beside her was Joshua with his huge muscles straining against the suit he’d been dressed up in, his copper beard trimmed and styled neatly, the man looking far more relaxed than when I’d first met him. He stood beside Clarice, his eyes skipping to her regularly like he was enamoured with her, though she didn’t pay him much attention in return.

“I sent the others ahead,” Clarice announced, tossing a golden curl over her shoulder. Her eyes snapped to Erik. “Miles took Brianna with him, she looked a bit disappointed.”

“She’ll get over it,” Erik growled, gripping my arm tighter. “Montana would have missed the party if I hadn’t fetched her.”

Clarice shot me a look, then arched an eyebrow at Erik. “Well we wouldn’t want that, would we?”

Erik pursed his lips and said nothing more.

“Erik and I actually went for a walk together, that’s why we’re late,” I said, and Erik frowned at me in confusion. “He took me all around the grounds of your fancy castle. And we would have made it back on time, only…” I bit my lip, glancing at Erik as if I shouldn’t go on, and he gave me a gesture to continue like he was curious to see where this lie was going.

“What happened?” Clarice asked.

“Well, I don’t like to say. But Erik stepped in a huge racoon shit. It splattered everywhere. The splashback even got him on the face, right on his mouth.” I shook my head sadly as Clarice burst out laughing, and I glanced at Erik, who was not scowling like I expected but grinning in amusement. Joshua seemed unsure how to react, chuckling along with Clarice, then quieting when he glanced Erik’s way.

“I was only trying to point it out to you because collecting little animal turds in jars was your favourite hobby back in your Realm, wasn’t it?” Erik nudged me and a laugh caught in my throat. Motherfucker.

“Wow, well…that’s an interesting pastime, Montana.” Clarice straightened, smiling at me like she had actually believed that. “Come on, the car’s waiting.”

She took Joshua’s arm, and we followed them toward the entrance hall.

“Bitch,” Erik murmured into my ear.

“Prick,” I muttered back, suppressing a smile.

Clarice led the way out of the castle, and we were swallowed by darkness as we followed, moving down the steps.

Two black cars awaited us on the road and Erik promptly steered me toward one of them, opening the door and sliding in beside me. Clarice and Joshua headed off in the other vehicle, and our driver sped after them across the grounds.

I understood the concept of a party from what Dad had told me, but attending one was something else. I had no idea what to expect as we carved a path through the flood-lit streets of New York, gazing out of the window in search of our destination.

We arrived on a brightly lit street, and I spotted a crowd of vampires on the sidewalk behind a red rope. A row of guards kept them back, large swords strapped to their bodies as if they expected trouble. The crowd’s faces were skewed with anger, and they held signs in their hands which highlighted the cause of their protest. The words written on them made my stomach churn.

We have the right to bite!

Let us chase the human race.

We won’t abstain from the vein!

“Who are they?” I asked, turning to Erik in horror.

He scowled out at them. “Rebels. They don’t want human blood provided to them. They want to hunt for it.”

My stomach dropped. Since Fabian had mentioned the rebels, I’d assumed their cause was just anti-authority. But the reason for their rebellion made me sick. They wanted to hunt us? It struck me that the laws the royals had decreed protected our kind from that fate, but I wasn’t going to start thanking them for it when their alternative was caging us and keeping us in squalor. Still…

My breathing hitched and Erik reached out, resting a hand on my wrist. “It’s just a bunch of fanatics. My family and I would never allow it to happen. Well...most of us anyway.”

“Fabian?” I guessed as nausea gripped me. “He supports them?”

“Not openly. But I have my suspicions. They have been more organised lately. My guess is that someone more powerful is leading them.”

He didn’t say more, but I was left with a sense of deepening dread over the fact that I was to be handed to Fabian like a rabbit on a platter. What if he wanted to feed from me directly?

The car rolled up opposite the crowd beside a grand building on the corner of the street. It was a gigantic square tower of cream stone with an impressive entryway. Flags of red, white and blue hung from a balcony over the doorway, fluttering in the breeze.

A guard hurried forward to open the car door and Erik stepped out, pulling me after him by the hand.

The crowd started shouting as they spotted the prince, chanting, “We have the right to bite!” over and over until the words were drilled into my head and left me feeling sick. They were staring right at me, hungry eyes burrowing into my skin like they saw me as nothing but food waiting to be devoured.

Erik ignored them, pulling me toward the building, but I glanced over my shoulder to look back. Some bared their fangs at me, openly salivating, and one pointed at me, then carved her finger across her neck in a vicious threat.

“Erik, give the humans to us! Their blood belongs to everyone!” that same female vampire cried, looking desperate to move past the armed guards.

Erik drew me over to a savage looking guard, murmuring something in her ear that I couldn’t catch. The guard bowed her head, then prowled out into the crowd of rebels, grabbing the one who had addressed Erik and pulling her away by force until I lost sight of her.

“What did you do?” I whispered, but he didn’t answer.

Erik’s jaw ticked as he led me up the steps, but I couldn’t look away from the baying rebels. A shadowy figure caught my eye among the crowd, standing rigidly with no picket in hand. He was huge, built with muscle, and something about him screamed familiarity. Though his hood was pulled up and his face was shrouded, I was certain I recognised him as memories crawled into my mind. The night I had seen that beast of a vampire kill one of their own kind on the grounds of the castle. It was him. I was sure of it.

I pulled away from Erik, but the crowd surged forward, hands reaching my way, jeers pouring from their mouths. The figure was lost among them, and I looked left and right, trying to spot him again, but it was like he had never been there at all.

Erik caught my hand, pulling me back to him. “What are you doing?” he hissed.

“I…”

“Rebel?” he questioned.

“Nothing,” I said.

If there was a monstrous vampire out there hunting his own people, it was none of my damn business.

“Come on then.” Erik guided me up the steps, and I tried to shake the anxious feeling crawling up my spine.

As we approached the door, I spied a name above it written in golden lettering on the frosted glass. The Plaza.

“What is this place?” I asked, thankful for the distraction.

Erik slid his arm around my waist, drawing me flush to his hip. “It’s a hotel, a place people stay when they’re visiting from elsewhere.”

“Are we staying here?” I frowned.

We hadn’t exactly come far from the castle. What was the point in it?

“No, we’re using some of the rooms for the party, that’s all.”

“Right.”

We stepped into the entrance hall, and my thoughts abandoned me. An ornate floor sprawled out before us, decorated with painted red roses on swirling golden vines. A huge table at the heart of the room was topped by an elaborate arrangement of white flowers that screamed opulence.

Vampires milled about the space in elegant clothing; the women wore sparkling dresses and high heels which they walked in with impossible ease, and the men were dressed as finely as Erik with long-tailed coats and bright waistcoats glinting beneath them.

Erik dropped his mouth to my ear. “Feel free to interrupt if any of these ass-kissers try to inflate my ego too much.”

“If your ego gets any bigger, Erik, it will need a castle of its own to live in,” I said under my breath.

“I rather like that about you, rebel. Zero ass-kissing. When you say things, you mean them.”

I hunted for the insult in the compliment but came up short.

I could sense people’s eyes on us, taking me in with curious looks, the first courtier Erik had ever chosen for himself. If only they knew I was just a new pawn on his chessboard.

He led me through the room with purpose and vampires turned to him, bowing low or offering comments of praise on his royal attire. He nodded and replied politely, playing a part he had clearly played many times before. He seemed at ease, welcoming, friendly. Everything he wasn’t behind closed doors. I played along, smiling when necessary but most of the vampires didn’t speak to me directly, like I was just a pet to be cooed at.

I spotted Clarice surrounded by a group of male vampires, all keen to get closer to her, but she didn’t seem to be entertaining any of it. She shot me a small smile as we passed her by and Erik guided me up a beautiful white marble staircase, following the line of a golden railing as it led us to the balcony above the room.

We trailed along side by side, and I whispered, “I counted eight ass-kissers back there. How’s your ego doing?”

“It’s reached its maximum, I think,” he murmured, leaning in so close his cool breath skated over my cheek. “Are you planning on behaving this evening?”

“I’m still debating it. Or are you planning on blackmailing me into behaving?”

“I believe you’re the one who tried to play the blackmail card,” he whispered. “I’m surprised it didn’t come out again this evening during your request. Though I have to say, I quite enjoyed seeing you beg.”

I bit my tongue on a stream of insults, remaining silent instead. I hadn’t threatened to expose his plan to Fabian for the sake of what I needed, because I couldn’t risk Erik calling my bluff. And if I exposed myself as Erik’s spy, who was really likely to take the fall? I doubted it was the hot, dead son of a bitch walking beside me. More like the blood bag who could be easily disposed of.

Erik’s hand pressed into my spine as he offered two female vampires a polite smile, but I didn’t copy him. I felt like I was in a snake pit, so many piercing eyes turning my way, the glint of fangs within those hungry smiles.

“Don’t you have anything to say to that?” Erik pushed.

“I have plenty to say, but it involves a lot of cursing and would be best delivered with a punch to your smug face, so I’ll save it for after the party.”

“Sounds like foreplay.”

I shot him a glare.

“Ah, Prince Erik,” a squat man in a rich brown suit came over, puffing out his chest before bowing low.

“Roger,” Erik said, giving him a curt nod.

“I wanted to congratulate you on your fine selection.” Roger took me in with appraising eyes and I had the urge to take a step back. “Such a delightful specimen indeed. Have you sampled her yet?”

“No,” Erik said, and my skin crawled all over as I realised what he meant.

“You haven’t given your prince a donation?” Roger balked, looking to me in astonishment. “It is the least you could offer him in gratitude for the envied position of a place in the royal ritual.”

My throat became too tight, and I had no answer to give him that wasn’t full of fury, so I had to swallow my tongue, sure I was going to choke on it. I’d given blood donations all my life, but hearing it spoken about directly from the mouth of one of the monsters who would happily drink it was something else entirely.

“We’re saving it for the wedding day,” Erik said, pulling me closer, like he sensed I was a flight risk.

Roger laughed. “You’re confident she’s going to choose you then?”

“How could she not?” Erik said, then bid him goodbye and towed me along.

I glanced around for the nearest exit, wanting to run and never stop running. A door to my right beckoned and I lurched away from Erik, making a dash for it and finding myself stepping into a grand office with no exit.

“Fuck,” I breathed.

The door clicked shut behind me and I wheeled around, finding Erik there with his brow drawn low.

“I can’t do this,” I blurted. “I hate it here. I hate the way they look at me. I hate that fucking asshole who thinks I should give you my blood. I never felt it belonged to me, Erik, but here it’s worse than that. It’s like I’m in an oven, slowly cooking while hungry eyes watch me from the outside.”

“Roger is a cunt,” he said frankly, and my lips parted in surprise. “I hate these events. I hate the rich bastards who squabble over which of them I like best, when in reality I would not spend a single minute more in their company if I could get away with it. I will not ask for your blood, rebel. I have an endless supply of it – which I am sure makes you feel disgusted at the thought. But that is the way of the world now. It was the best-case scenario in the long term.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“We had sired too many vampires, and when the war broke out among men, it quickly descended towards the end of the fucking world. The vampires saw no need to hide anymore, and with so much blood being spilled daily, there were too many frenzies happening. The humans were annihilating one another, and the vampires were picking off the last of them, to the point where we could see there would be no humans left. No blood. And that would lead to something too horrifying to imagine. An eternal life in starvation. So between my brothers and sister, we made a plan. We reclaimed control of our kind, and we turned them into soldiers of our own, commanding them to corral the last of the humans and keep them alive. We crowned ourselves rulers of the land and protected the most vital resource that had come so close to being extinguished.” He stepped towards me. “You hold value untold. The vampires are weak without the humans. We are only kept sane by your blood, but if you could see us starved…” He shook his head, horrors crossing his eyes that told me he had lived that reality. “If the people out there aren’t kept fed, then the glamour, the civility, the etiquette-” He snapped his fingers. “It vanishes just like that, and our base nature returns.” He plucked at his suit jacket. “This bullshit is for them, but it’s for us too. I have painted myself as a royal and I play that part every day, every moment committed to the act. Because I have seen what I become without laws and restriction to guide me. So I occupy myself with the quest for power, dominance, total control in this tumultuous world. But we are all one slip away from falling into anarchy and bloodlust.”

“Why are you telling me this?” I asked, my heart hammering from all he’d said, and I hated that I could see the logic in it. At least from their point of view.

He glanced at a clock on the wall, gazing at the second hand ticking on and on incessantly.

“I don’t know,” he murmured. “Perhaps because you are the only one I can say it to. Perhaps because it is refreshing to speak to someone who despises this world as deeply as I do. My siblings seek the best in it, though I fear we are all lying to ourselves, afraid of each other pointing out the cracks in our perfect façade. So I don’t, I sell the lie as well as they do and hope it buys them peace of mind.”

“Even Fabian?”

“Yes, even him,” he said quietly. “But that does not change our power struggle. I’m not sure where it ends, but I am on this path now and don’t intend to turn from it.”

I nodded, my attention moving to the desk beside me as I grazed my thumb over the grain of the wood. My thoughts fell on the Realm, how hunger had turned people feral, desperate. Sometimes fights would break out over the rations and blood would spill. Other times, the savagery was quieter. A thin woman slumped in the street, coughing and wheezing, the life trickling from her until one day she’d be found dead with half the clothes stripped from her body. We were animals too when it came down to survival, but the difference was, the vampires had placed us into that nightmare. We had never caused them to starve, but they had caused us to. But then I thought of Realm A and the pretty lie most of them probably believed about how we lived. Perhaps it wouldn’t have been so bad if that was the truth of it. It stopped the vampires hunting us, like those rebels wanted to. And that kind of world didn’t bear thinking about.

“What are you thinking?” he asked.

“I think your solutions are imperfect and you should look closer at them,” I said. “You say the Realms aren’t your responsibility, but if humans are so valuable to you and your kind, then I suggest you make them your responsibility.”

His brow creased and I could see he was actually listening to me for once, but I didn’t want to push him too far in case he dismissed me again. “Perhaps we can work together on that. But I cannot step on Fabian’s toes without him lashing back at me, so I will need some leverage on him.”

“The kind a spy could get,” I said, lifting my head to look him in the eye.

“Exactly,” he said, then offered me his arm. “Come back to the party with me.”

“Alright,” I agreed, stepping forward and taking his arm, feeling like a fragile alliance was forming between us.

We exited the office and Erik guided me into an elevator further down the hall, the two of us moving to the back of it as a group of vampires filed in behind us. Some of them tried to catch Erik’s attention, but he ignored them, angling himself towards me.

Nightmare warmed against my thigh, pulsing angrily like it could sense the group of vampires around me.

Erik and I were pressed close to one another in the small space, and I found my eyes locking with his, unable to tear my gaze away. There was such a sharp energy between us that it raked at the inside of my chest. I wanted to dismiss it as hatred, but my mind shifted to the kiss we’d shared in my room at the castle, the explosive heat that had passed between us which should never have existed. I didn’t want it to. Because the truth of that lust cut me raw. If it was just his allure, then why was it only him? Why didn’t the rest of the royals make me feel this way, like his touch alone could set me alight.

The doors opened and the vampires stepped out, chattering in low voices about Erik and I but their words were drowned by the music pounding through the room.

We followed them into a low-lit bar with glinting crystal chandeliers hanging above the space. Several vampires were dancing, grinding up against one another, kissing and pawing at each other without care. It was primal, like all their politeness had been left at the door and they were giving in to the call of the music and their want for those around them.

Erik led me through the crowd, keeping me close as he forged a path between the vampires. He took my hand as we emerged in a seating area with black sofas and chairs surrounding small tables. I spotted Fabian chatting with a group of men in suits; Paige and Brianna were sat across from him, talking in low voices.

Fabian’s gaze fell on us and his easy smile slipped from his face, a flash of menace in his eyes before he smothered it. My pulse picked up at witnessing the small crack in his facade, his hatred for his brother clearer than ever.

Erik leaned down, his mouth grazing my cheek as he muttered, “I’ll fetch us drinks,” before disappearing into the crowd and leaving the feel of his mouth on my skin.

I dropped down beside Paige with an impossibly wide smile, and she immediately gripped my arm.

“Isn’t it beautiful here?” she cooed, her blue eyes widening.

I nodded, taking in her silver dress which sparkled like moonlight. She seemed…happy. Ecstatic actually, and one glance at Brianna told me she was feeling pretty relaxed too. What the hell had changed?

“How was your day with Miles?” Brianna leaned forward, brushing down the folds of her crimson gown. “I think he’s my favourite. He’s so easy to talk to.”

My heart sank a little as I recalled my time with Miles. “Yeah...it was okay.”

“Just okay? The man is a delight,” Brianna said.

“I thought you hated it here?” I said in confusion, and her smile faltered.

She shifted closer to me on her seat, glancing around like she was worried someone had heard. “I did,” she whispered. “But this life is better than anything I’ve ever known, Montana. I was hesitant at first, but surely you’re enjoying all the food, the lifestyle?”

“It’s like a dream,” Paige agreed. “And we can bring our family here once we’re married.”

“At what cost?” I hissed. “They’re going to turn us into them.”

Brianna winced a little but looked to the sea of dancing vampires, then back to me with a guilty look. “It scares me, but…just look at them. They have everything. Anyone in my Realm would jump at the chance to seize this life from me if they could.”

“It’s not right,” I growled. “You wanna drink blood? The blood of your own people?”

Paige grimaced, shaking her head violently. “I don’t want to think about that part.”

“We’ll want it once we’re like them,” Brianna said darkly. “It won’t matter.”

“Won’t matter?” I snapped. “How can you say that?”

“You can judge me all you like, but we don’t have much choice here,” Brianna whispered, taking my hand and squeezing. “Your morals aren’t going to save you from reality. It’s this or return to being a blood bag who doesn’t know when its next meal is coming. I’d rather be the predator than the prey.”

Paige nodded sadly. “She’s right, Montana. Fighting it doesn’t change it. We’ve gotta see the good in this.”

I sat back in my seat, falling quiet, and the two of them shared a look of concern.

“Who are you going to choose?” Paige asked to change the subject, her fingers knotting in her skirt.

I glanced over at Fabian who had returned to his conversation. His hair was neatly tied back by a coil of black silk as dark as the suit he wore and there were plenty of female vampires close by trying to draw his attention.

“I’m not sure,” I answered honestly, exhausted by the situation I was in.

Miles would keep my secret, but choosing Fabian ensured Erik kept his promise. So what the hell was I supposed to do? If Erik didn’t make his request of me soon, and make sure Dad was released before the ceremony, I was pretty much fucked.

“Imagine if we all picked the same brother! We’d all be sharing a husband,” Brianna said, seeming sort of excited by that idea. “Who do you like best, Paige?”

“Erik’s nice.” Paige threw a glance over her shoulder and my stomach knotted as I followed her gaze, spotting Erik by the shiny black bar. At his side, clad in a glimmering green gown, was Valentina. Her hand was curled around his arm, and they looked intimately close as she spoke to him. My gut clenched further. He spoke with casual familiarity, the two of them clearly used to being that close to one another.

“Nice?” I scoffed. “I wouldn’t call him that.”

“I don’t know…” Paige trailed off, biting her lip. “There’s something about him.”

“So you’re really okay with this? Both of you?” I looked between them. “Because we’re talking about vampires here. Marrying them, fucking them.” I was getting angry, and I couldn’t hold it back.

Paige flinched and Brianna sighed.

“It’s not the worst fate,” Brianna said. “Just look at them. And I don’t think they’re as bad as the ones from my Realm. They’re not interested in hurting us.”

“We’re their captives,” I said in disbelief. “And you’re falling for their lies.”

“My eyes are wide open,” Brianna growled. “And I still choose this.”

Paige leaned between us, patting Brianna’s knee and giving me an imploring look. “Let’s just agree to disagree.”

“Are you going to choose Erik?” I asked Paige, keeping my expression neutral, trying to ignore my twisted stomach.

“No,” Paige sighed, leaning in closer. “He told me not to.”

My lips parted in confusion. “What, why?”

“He told me the same thing,” Brianna announced with a shrug.

Paige observed me closely. “I think he has his eye on you, Montana.”

A hollow laugh rolled from my throat, but I said nothing of the truth which only I was privy to. Especially as Fabian was right there, able to turn his attention to our conversation any time he liked. I was Erik’s little puppet, and he was the last vampire I’d be choosing at the ceremony.

“He‘s always looking at you,” Brianna agreed. “But Miles is the only one I even slightly trust in this place.”

I frowned, knowing Miles’s secret, that he was lying to her about his real intentions, but I didn’t open my mouth to tell her that truth. That his heart belonged to someone else, and he wouldn’t be any kind of real husband when they got married. Maybe that would be better for her anyway.

“I wouldn’t trust a word out of his mouth,” I said icily.

Paige glanced around at the vampires, waving her hands to hush me. “Don’t say that.”

“Why? What are they gonna do? Drain me?” I glowered, though she probably had a point. Talking openly about my dislike for the vampires probably wasn’t the best idea in a place full of them, but Erik had said himself I was valuable. What could they really do to me?

“So who’s your choice then, Montana?” Paige pressed.

“I don’t know,” I insisted. “Are you going with Miles too?”

She pursed her lips then her eyes drifted to Fabian. “Well, Erik was my first choice, but he isn’t a bad second.”

“Do you actually like him?” Brianna interjected before I could, and Paige blushed.

Picking him was an awful idea and Brianna obviously sensed that too. But I wondered why, considering I was probably the only one privy to the knowledge that he ran the Realms. If I hadn’t known that, Fabian wouldn’t have frightened me the way he did.

Erik reappeared, planting a glass in my hand, and I gazed down at the pink substance swimming in a glass that was shaped like a Y.

“What is it?” I asked him, sniffing the pink stuff suspiciously.

“It’s a raspberry martini,” he said.

“Oh, is that a ducktail?” I asked, excited by witnessing something my dad had told me about in his stories.

A cruel grin grew on Erik’s face. “What did you say?”

“A ducktail,” I repeatedly confidently. “My dad told me about them.”

Yeah, Erik, I’m not totally ignorant to the world.

“It’s called a cocktail,” he said.

“What?” I snorted. “No, it isn’t.”

“Are you sure about that, little human?” he asked, sniggering.

“You’re trying to make me look stupid. Why would it be called a cocktail?” I argued, looking to Paige and Brianna for backup, but they seemed clueless.

“Why would it be called a ducktail?” Erik shot back.

“I dunno, because it’s wet and colourful like a duck’s tail?” I guessed thinking of the ducks I’d seen on the lake in the castle grounds. “How is it anything like a cock?”

Erik barked a laugh, and our little argument caused eyes to turn our way, including Fabian’s.

“Is he bothering you, love?” Fabian called.

“He’s just being an ass,” I said.

Paige sucked in a sharp breath and Brianna sat up straight like she expected danger to descend at any moment.

“No change there then,” Fabian said, then beckoned me with two fingers. “There’s always a seat for you over here.”

Erik stepped in front of my chair, blocking any passage to him even though it seemed like a decent opportunity to spend some time listening in on his conversation.

“Try your ducktail then, tell me if you like it.” He brought the glass to my lips, my mouth fully in line with his crotch as his hand slid into my hair and gripped tight. He tugged to make me tip my head back and my heart stuttered as our eyes met and he tipped the drink between my lips. I felt stares on us from every direction, but I couldn’t look away as the sweet, fruity drink spilled over my tongue, making my tastebuds crackle. I swallowed, a sharp burn following the drink as it spilled down my throat, and Erik’s gaze bored into me as he watched.

“Well?” he asked in a low voice. “How does it taste?”

“Sweet at first, then it burns,” I said a little huskily.

His hand was still tight in my hair, and the way he controlled my movements made heat pour through my core. I couldn’t focus on anything else in the room but him, the way my pulse was thrumming, and the heat of Nightmare against my thigh.

“Good, that’s how it should be,” he said. “The fruit hides the alcohol. Don’t drink too much of it or it’ll make you forget yourself.”

I was pretty sure I had already forgotten myself because I had just let him pull my hair and pour a drink down my throat in front of a whole audience.

He released my hair then placed the drink in my hand, catching my wrist and yanking me out of my seat. In a flash of movement, he took my place in my chair, then tugged the back of my dress sharply, so I dropped down onto his knees. He steadied me, making sure not a single drop of the drink spilled, and I found myself looking at Paige and Brianna who weren’t even trying to hide their shock at what they’d just witnessed. Fuck, this was not exactly helping my case. I’d been arguing two seconds ago about my horror over picking a vampire to marry, and now here I was in the lap of one like a good little whore.

Erik’s hand pressed to my knee, his other capturing my chin and turning me to look at him. “Try mine.” He swiped a glass from the table beside my chair where he had apparently left his own drink, the glass the same strange shape as mine, but the liquid inside was clear with a strange green vegetable floating in it.

“What the fuck is that thing?” I pointed at it.

“An olive,” he said. “It’s just for presentation.”

“I don’t like the look of it. How can you even drink this? It’s not blood,” I asked, confounded.

“We can drink other things, we just don’t need to for sustenance,” he explained.

I spied the array of chalices and glasses in the hands of the other vampires in the room, realising he was right. They weren’t all drinking blood, though some of the ducktails looked like they might be mixed with it. Which was somehow a whole other level of gross.

I took a tentative sip of his drink, then promptly spat it back into the glass. “That tastes like shit.”

“Oh my God,” Brianna gasped at what I’d done, but there was no undoing it now.

Erik looked down at the drink I’d ruined in amusement, his fingers tightening on my knee, his touch sending an electric charge up my thigh. “You spoiled my drink.”

“If I slit my veins and let my blood fill up your glass, you’d drink it readily. Surely you don’t care about a little spit,” I goaded him, and his eyes flared with the challenge I was presenting.

“You want me to drink it?” he asked gruffly, then tugged me close to whisper in my ear. “Will it give you a kick, rebel?”

“Seems like a punishment too small for what you deserve. But yeah, I think it would brighten my mood,” I murmured, my head turning towards his so the glass was squashed between us and our lips were all too close.

He let me lean back, shrugging his shoulders. “So make me. If you dare.”

I shot a glance at Brianna and Paige who were giving me looks of warning that I didn’t plan to heed. I pushed my hand into Erik’s perfectly styled hair, scrunching my fist up and pulling tight. He pressed his tongue into his cheek, watching me and spreading his arms over the back of the seat.

I brought the glass to his lips the way he had done to me, and he let me pour it between his lips, swallowing every last drop of it. His gaze was full of a dark want that crept into me and tainted my soul, because I felt it too. This pull between us which, if surrendered to, could destroy me. He was the worst kind of bad, a living drug that was made to make addicts out of human souls, and I was letting him ensnare me.

I took the olive from the glass, balancing it on his head and grinning. “For presentation.”

“Montana, would you like to dance?” Fabian’s voice made me jump, and I turned to look at him, catching a deep growl rumbling through Erik’s throat, the olive tumbling to the floor as he sat up straighter. But he didn’t try to keep me, in fact, his palm pressed to my spine in encouragement to go with his brother, and I suddenly realised that entire show had been for this very purpose. He had played this whole game to capture Fabian’s attention, and shame crept over me at how readily I’d fallen for it.

I slapped a big ass smile on my face, shoving down the embarrassment I felt at not realising sooner that this had been Erik’s plan.

“Sure,” I said, taking Fabian’s hand and Nightmare burned hotter. Kill him, strike true.

I ignored the blade’s demand for death and let Fabian pull me off of Erik’s lap and guide me away. I didn’t look back, steeling myself and preparing to do what needed to be done.

Fabian gently slid an arm around my waist, starting to sway me to a slow song that warbled through the room.

“Listen, love, Erik won’t offer you what I will,” Fabian said in a low tone. “I know he seems charming now, but when the ceremony is over, he will use you and discard you. That’s how he is.” His upper lip curled back slightly, and I caught sight of his fangs.

My throat dried up as I nodded, moving closer into the arc of his body. Erik was using me already and Fabian had no idea.

“You don’t like him,” I stated, and Fabian’s eyes darkened.

“It isn’t about like or dislike. We have different visions for what the New Empire should be. He doesn’t agree with me, and I don’t agree with him.”

“What do you have in mind?” I asked, curious for myself as much as I was for Erik. He was technically my ruler after all. And if he gained full power, would things get even worse for humans?

Fabian’s eyes lit up as he answered. “This world needs a single leader. The four of us are too different to rule together eternally. I wish to take on that responsibility and steer our country toward greatness.”

“How?” I whispered, a prickling feeling crawling up my spine.

“We need to colonise more of the world. More vampires, more strength. That is my sentiment.”

A male vampire suddenly grabbed Fabian’s arm, his eyes darting left and right, and I recognised Roger, the one who had questioned whether Erik had drunk my blood yet. “Your highness, a word please.”

“Not here, Roger,” Fabian snarled at him. “I told you to keep your distance.”

Roger muttered an apology but didn’t leave. “It’s important.”

Fabian schooled his frustrated expression, turning to me. “Sorry Montana, I’ll find you later.”

He released me, pushing the man ahead of him as they moved toward the bar, tension lining Fabian’s shoulders.

I stood stock still, unsure what to do, but my legs urged me after him. Whatever it was Roger wanted to say was clearly important, and if I was going to keep my promise to Erik, I had to try and listen to their conversation.

The throng of bodies kept me concealed as I moved after them, and I positioned myself a few of feet from Fabian at the bar, behind a woman in a hat so enormous it was arguably an umbrella.

“-is everything under control?” Fabian hissed.

“Yes, sir. But...” The vampire glanced around nervously again, and I shrank back into the shadow of the hat.

“Come, let’s talk about this in private,” Fabian said, and they started moving through the room again.

My heartbeat stuttered as Nightmare grew hotter on my leg, seeming to whisper follow.