Page 19 of To Crave Truly

"Yes, you will. Let's not pretend otherwise. You will do as you're told, or Jasper will die." I wasn't in the mood for playing games. I needed her on board, and she needed to know she couldn't escape.

Lori looked to the floor, her teeth worrying her bottom lip. "Fine," she said as her gaze snapped back to mine. "But no harm will come to Jasper while I'm away. Swear it to me. Swear it on Elspeth."

My heart gave a sudden lurch in my chest. "How do you know about her? Who told you?" I barked.

"No one told me. I shared your dream." A look of disgust passed across her face, and she squared her shoulders. She knew what Elspeth meant to me and she must have felt how much in the dream judging by that reaction.

"Fine." I wasn't happy about being backed into a corner. "I swear on the memory of Elspeth, no harm will come to your vampire until you return. Happy?"

She nodded. "It will do."

I snorted. Did she even realise how much of a power she had over me with that single name?

"What do you need me to steal?"

I patted the spot next to me on the bed. "Sit with me, and we will discuss it." Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "I won't hurt you. I need you alive, remember?"

She hesitated for another moment but eventually sat next to me on the edge of the bed, keeping as much distance as possible between us.

"Now, it's a small item but very powerful. Have you heard of the lapis lunae?"

"No. What is it?"

"It's just a stone. Very small." I grabbed her hand and held it open, tracing a small circle around it. "About the size of your palm."

She snatched her hand away with a scowl. "What does it do?"

"You don't need to know that."

"But—”

I held up a finger. "Ah-ah. Don't interrupt, little one."

She glared at me. "Don't call me that. I'm not your little one, and I am more than happy to gut you if you call me that again."

"I'd like to see you try," I replied with a smirk. "Anyway. Moving on. It's located in the vault beneath the mountain. It's a perfect spherical white stone. You will steal it for me and bring it back here."

“Perhaps it isn’t there anymore?”

I didn’t miss the faint trace of hope in her voice. “Sorry, it’s definitely there and it’s the only thing that will stop me from killing everyone you love.” I tapped my chin. “That’s quite a list of people now, isn’t it? So much choice for little ol’ me.”

“You’re an asshole,” she snapped bitterly.

I shrugged my shoulders. “I’m a villain, love. Pretty sure it goes with the title.”

She gave a fierce growl and launched at me, her claws extended and aiming for my eyes.

I didn’t even give her a chance. I caught her wrist and used her momentum to role her beneath me, pushing her face first onto the bed. I pulled her arm up her back and settled my weight on her as I straddled her hips. Her legs wriggled uselessly behind me.

She screamed into the bed in frustration and tried to throw me off her. I pushed her arm higher up her back and she immediately stilled.

“Have you quite finished your tantrum, little one?” I asked soothingly.

“Fuck you!”

“Mmm, tempting but we don’t have time for that. You’ve got an appointment with a witch to keep.” As soon as I realised that she was strong enough to beat my compulsion, I knew I had to find a different way to imprint my command in her.

“Why?”

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