Chapter 32 · The Crown Breaks

The weapons don't fire.

Fifty blessed blades. Twenty crossbow bolts. All hanging in the air. All pointed at Adrian's heart.

Waiting for my word.

I can feel every single one. Like they're extensions of my own fingers. The bond screams in my chest—Adrian's terror bleeds through so sharp I taste copper.

He can't move. Can't speak. The command I gave him ten seconds ago still has him locked down.

He's just standing there. Waiting to die.

"Do it." Victor's moved closer to the throne, one hand on the armrest like he already owns it. "Finish what your father started."

My father.

The words crack something open. Three years I spent hunting the vampire who killed him. Three years I believed he died protecting me.

But he wasn't protecting me. He was trying to turn me into this.

"Lynn." Rachel's voice breaks. Marcus still has her by the throat, blessed blade pressed to her collarbone. Blood runs down her neck in thin red lines. "Lynn, please—"

"Quiet." Marcus doesn't look at her. He's watching me. They're all watching me.

I look at Adrian.

His eyes are locked on mine.