Page 90 of Filthy Rich Vampires: For Eternity

“We are all vampires,” she murmured, her eyes swept over the floor, searching for the words she needed to explain. “The Mordicum only wants to see that all vampires are treated equally.”

“Equally?” I repeated. “Good luck.” It wasn’t in a vampire’s nature to worry about things like that. That was especially true the older a vampire was.

“Things have to change,” she hissed, abandoning her wine glass to lean closer. “Especially now that magic has awoken.”

“I don’t see how that affects you.”

“Why, because I’m a Switch?” she asked coldly.

I lifted one shoulder. “Like it or not, magic is diluted from generation to generation, especially if you’ve been turned.”

“And that’s your problem.” She jumped to her feet, her shoulders shaking slightly as if her rage might consume her entirely. “You want to tell us what to do, how to live, but as far as purebloods are concerned, we’re not even real vampires.”

“I never said that.”

“You might as well have,” she hissed. “Now more than ever, vampires need to be united.”

“That’s what you’re trying to do?” I asked.

“You might want to rethink your tactics,” Lysander added.

“We haven’t had a choice. The Council ignores us. The Queens have hidden away. And we’ve been left to die.”

I sat up, staring at her. “Die? What do you mean?”

“As if you would care,” Berit spit back. Her eyes slanted, twin shards of blue glass that sliced through me.

I gritted my teeth. My hands clenched into fists, digging into my palm and drawing blood. “Tell me.”

“Something is hunting us. Something even worse than you.” She lifted her glassy gaze to mine and beneath the cool blue, I saw the storm raging inside her.

“What?” I asked. “How do you know this?”

“The body count,” she said grimly.

“Vampires die,” I reminded her.

“Not like this,” she said, her tone cautious. “Whatever is killing us is a monster.”

“I’ve heard nothing about this.” I turned to my brother and found his face as puzzled as mine. He shook his head.

“The Council knows,” Berit told me. “Ask Maggie.”

We both looked at her, and she took a deep breath. “It’s true. The streets are not safe for Switches.” Maggie shot an apologetic look at Berit. “No offense.”

“I don’t care what you call our people,” she said. “I care that we’re being murdered and no one is doing a damn thing.”

“And what would you have us do?”

Maggie sighed heavily, the sound echoing in my ears. This wasn’t about a bribe at all. She sympathized with them, but could I trust what Berit was saying?

Berit’s face twisted with disgust, but she answered me. “Listen to us. Join with us before it’s too late.”

“If there was a threat—” Lysander started.

“There is,” Berit stopped him, “and when this monster finishes with us, it will come for you.”

“You can’t know that,” I said.

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