Page 52 of Born of Blood and Thorns

"We need to be ready," Lore said for what felt like the twentieth time.

Alastair merely grumbled in agreement. His own sword clutched in his hand as we stood outside the keep nearest to the worst of the decaying vines—those closest to the moon. Which seemed to loom larger than usual, an eerie shade of crimson outlining it like a death omen ready to strike us all down.

I knew wolves were already turning and prowling the land around my village. The humans were tucked in tight for the night, knowing instinctively the dangers of a night like this. The vampires would be out, ready to take a new meal and maybe even a life. The night was just beginning as the sun set. The last moment of light sank into the distant horizon as the land plunged into darkness.

Fear sent a lance of trepidation and anxiety through me. My gaze flicked to Lore, expecting him to change into his dragon. He didn't. Instead, he was powerless on the full moon. Helpless against the coming attack.

I longed to reach out, to bridge the gaping chasm of his self-imposed isolation. Tonight was not the time. Foreboding crawled across my skin as the moon rose higher in the sky, and the sun and moon held the sky together for the briefest moments. We needed to be focused on the trials ahead.

Still, I ached to offer him comfort. I knew now I could never take Lore's life, curse or no curse. I would stand with him against the bitter end if need be. He was no longer just my captor—he had become my reason to keep fighting, my light in the darkness.

An eerie crimson glow spilled across the land as the last golden rays faded. The moon took its place high, swollen and bloody, seeming to bleed malevolence into the night.

Lore turned to me, features carved from stone. Under the surface, a storm raged in his wintry eyes. He stepped close, grasping my shoulders almost fiercely. His voice was gravel and smoke. "Stay near me." It was a command laced with barely restrained fear.

I covered his hand with mine, imbuing my words with all my heart. "Always."

He flinched at the contact, eyes sliding away. He still struggled to accept what shone so clearly to me. This was not the time to push.

In unspoken accord, we moved to the courtyard, weapons poised as we took our positions. The empty night stretched before us, silent and foreboding. We waited, united in purpose if not yet entirely in trust. The battle ahead would forge us, one way or another.

When the first ululating shrieks split the air, Lore's hand found mine, gripping fiercely. The horde approached. We would face them back-to-back. The curse's hourglass trickled down as the dead descended under the scarlet moon. May the goddess have mercy—for we would show none tonight.

With blades singing death's song, we charged forth to meet our destiny. If this was our end, we would greet it without fear.

Only what came over the wall first was not the undead that I had expected, but a different kind. It was my father.

CHAPTER 26

Bella

Roderick Val' Draco stood stark against the crimson moon, his figure outlined in the crimson light as he stared down at me from the wall. An odd mixture of irritation and relief flashed across his features.

"Daughter, Isabella. It is time to go home." He reached out his hand as if I would eagerly go to him. I swallowed hard and took a step back, shaking my head.

I stood shocked, rooted in place as I stared at him, my eyes wide and my mouth slightly ajar as time seemed to still. Shock surged through my veins, sending shivers down my spine. My heart skipped a beat, and my breath caught in my throat. It was as if the world around me faded into the background, leaving only this person in sharp focus.

My father.

"That is no home of mine," I spat, my hands clenching. The sword's pommel gripped in my right hand and bit into my skin. In my left hand, I felt my nails cutting crescent moons into my palms so deep I was sure I would bleed.

"Do you want everyone in the castle to die tonight?" he asked, and his demeanor became more threatening. "I came here to save you, my dear. Come with me. They are coming, and this cursed place is about to meet its end."

"I won't. You don't own me!" I screamed at my torturer. My father, the man who'd shown me just enough love as a child to keep me sane, only to twist it when he had lost everything and turned it all around on me. As if I should be grateful to him for my existence, I should be grateful I had half his blood. I should be thankful every time he hit and belittled me that I was still in this wretched world for him to do it. The past slammed into me, and I felt myself folding in on myself. I shook my head, taking another step back. "No," I repeated.

"You are the reason I lost everything," Roderick snarled. "My throne, my kingdom—all stolen from me because of your pathetic existence." His eyes blazed with centuries of festering hatred and vengeance. "The goddess wanted you. She wanted to destroy you for whatever reason and instead destroyed our kingdom! Now she and I have an understanding. I was given passage by Nyx herself to come here and take you home."

Lore looked over at me, fear flashing in his gaze as his eyes flicked from me to my father and back again as if, once again, the knowledge of who I was lodged between us like a knife point.

"You're Val' Draco? The son of Queen Isabella?" Lore stared at my father with loathing—the same loathing and hate he'd once looked upon me with. Now, as if he was again reminded that I was his enemy, he began to distance himself. I watched as his eyes closed off to me and then narrowed, his body turning a fraction away from me. Once again, we were enemies.

Roderick nodded. Though Lore had noted my similar appearance to Queen Isabella, he had not suspected how close of a familial relationship. I was only a small step from the throne, which seemed to change his demeanor.

His posture stiffened as he tore his gaze away, and his face hardened. His forearm muscles were tight, and they seemed to twitch as he gripped his sword tighter. I wondered if he was thinking of using it on me. He looked at me as if he didn't even know me, and then a sadness passed over his eyes like a storm cloud.

"It's not who I am!" I exclaimed, trying to draw his attention to me. All he did was tighten his jaw and refuse to look at me. "I tried to tell you."

His gaze snapped to mine. His nostrils flared as his lips twisted into a bitter smile. "You didn't, did you. You pretended this connection to the dead queen was nothing." He shook his head, his head dipping down as a low, anguished chuckle escaped his lips. "It's best if you leave anyways," he whispered so low I barely heard him. An average person without vampire blood wouldn't have heard it, but I did. "It'll be safer."

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