Page 59 of Club Blood

"Don't worry, Cecelia," I said as I turned and smiled at Warren returning with his bounty of stakes, "It will never come to that. I will always be here to protect you. No matter the cost."

"Mercy, you damn well know how to be the dramatic one in this coven," Warren rolled his eyes as he entered, mocking me by returning my words. The break allowed us all to breathe a sigh of relief. He continued to place each stake in their designated spaces, almost as obsessive-compulsive as I was in this room's organization.

"Cecelia," I said quietly. Her eyes lit up at my mention of her name as if she was waiting for it. "This room is close to yours if you haven't noticed. I'll have a key delivered to your room if it'll help make you feel safer."

Warren's eyes bulged, surprise crossing his features. He hid it in an unsuccessful clearing of his throat. It was not often I extended an invitation to this place, it was sacred to my coven.

I realized I needed to reward her trust in me with some shaky trust of my own. Myneedpaced back and forth between my temples, uncertainty creeping over me. I shook away the thoughts before they could change my mind.

"Please," I implored to her already nodding head, "don't make me regret this."

"I wouldn't ever try to harm either of you with these," she gestured towards the stakes, which sat menacingly above us on the walls.

"It's less you harming us," I reminded her, "and more you harming yourself." Another brush of red flooded her cheeks, and I touched a finger to them, relishing in the warmth emanating from it.

"What are you doing to me?"

Cecelia had no answer for me— even as I wanted her to.

"One session will not be enough," Warren interrupted, clearing his throat again and tapping his fingers along the doorframe, "You did well today Cece, but it is not close to where you need to be to defend yourself properly in this war."

He looked to me and tilted his head wordlessly. I could feel my muscles tighten in my shoulders, not sure how willing I was to let go of that much more power. I growled at the man standing before me, frustrated, but knowing that once again, he knew me better than anyone.

"Mercy, she needssomething. You know you will be expected to make a statement, prove that Narcissa's leaving has not left you unfit to rule. I'm not necessarily the person everyone is going to expect to replace her, either."

Cece looked at him in surprise. Sometimes I almost forgot just how little she knew about our coven.

"Warren, in all of his gold, is not favored among our kind," I supplied, trying my best to answer her questions while giving him a bit of privacy. "Some find him too…”

“Vampires don’t like me,” he said with a note of finality. I watched as anger flitted across his face.

“My point still stands, you can’t expect to be around Cecelia twenty-four seven.”

My fingers tapped on my chin, trying desperately to find any other solution, but coming up short. I groaned, taking another look at my weapon filled walls.

I walked over to the stakes Warren had just put away, fingering them with featherlike touches until I came across the one I’d noticed he first pulled for her.

Nullus metus, nulla deditione.

“Cece,” I said, pulling it from its holster. It was one of my firsts, given to me from the family tree so far back that I couldn’t even remember who it originated with.

The ash wood amplified the calligraphy, and I hoped it would give her strength when it goes missing from her life.

“Please take this.”

“Take it?”

“It’s yours.” Warren nodded in obvious approval. His hands clapped together wildly, breaking up the tension once again, “A gift for you to protect yourself. It is my word, my promise that you have our trust. It marks you as an official member of our coven.”

I wasn’t sure if they were the words she wanted to hear, but they were true. The loss of control was hard to manage, I could feel the rumblings from myneedthreatening to escape. I swallowed the uncertainty, and held the stake out for her to take instead. Fuck what it made everyone else think. As long as Cecelia wanted to be in this estate, she was welcome.

We would just have to get through this war first.

32

CECELIA

While I didn’t wantto admit it to myself or anyone else, I knew exactly what Mercy was offering me by handing me that stake. Every logical part of me screamed at me for being stupid, to remember why I was there in the first place, but humans weren’t always logical. Our beating hearts and gentle emotions were always a weakness, a place to strike— I was no different. Arguing against what I was feeling was futile.

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