Page 89 of Club Blood

“You little witch,” he said through his gritted teeth.

“Not a witch, but a filthy bloodsucker just likeyou. Do we have a deal?”

Carlisle looked like he wanted to strangle her. I was on edge myself, giving my knees a slight bend to not be caught off guard. I would destroy him if he so much as laid a finger on her. Finally, he dipped his head in recognition.

“You have yourself a deal, little princess,” he said. I wouldn’t have believed him, if Henrik had not sighed in relief. I looked toward Henrik, and watched as his stance loosened up significantly, finding myself mimicking him. Warren followed my gaze, but his eyes held only worry. I didn’t know how I had missed his feelings for the man that had so often shared his bed. For the large guard that had saved us in more ways than we could ever express. We would have to watch him, protect him from the repercussions of his actions. I knew Carlisle would not let this go without punishment.

Could it really be over in so many words?

Carlisle looked at me with fangs bared, “Mercy, you should keep a better leash on your pet.” I could only laugh at the absurdity of it all.

“She is not a pet,” I said confidently, “She is a fucking Queen.”

47

CECELIA

I stormed backinto the compound, heading straight to the refrigerator for blood. It didn’t taste as good cold, the bitterness more apparent as it slid down my throat, but my hunger was insatiable and was only perpetuated by the absolute shitshow that was happening in the Petrova coven.

Warren and Mercy followed, Henrik slinking in behind them with trepidation. He wasn’t sure where he fit in yet, and it was a feeling I knew was mirrored in my own heart.

Mercy made her way to the sofa, burying her face in her hands, elbows resting on her knees. She looked defeated and I didn’t like seeing that—Mercy was definitely not weak, and I hated that she didn’t believe that.

It didn’t stop me from being really fucking pissed at that stunt she had pulled.

Henrik sat at the edge of the sofa, watching us with wary eyes. Warren and I stood together at the fireplace, throwing glowery looks like daggers towards Mercy.

“So,” Warren said, finally breaking the silence, “You gonna tell us what the actual fuck that was about Mercy? Do you have any idea how shitty that felt?”

Mercy sighed and dropped her hands, looking at us with teary eyes. “I don’t know, okay? I don’t know what you want, Warren. I don’t know who the hell I am right now and I feel so fuckingpowerless. All I could think about was living without her,” she said with a glance towards me, “And I couldn’t do it.”

Warren growled, smacking his hand against the wall. “Bullshit! You are aqueenand you’ve dragged yourself through hell to get here. There is nobody with your kind of power and you need to get your shit together. We need you, Merc.”

He walked around the table and dropped into a seat. His voice broke, “Ineed you, Mercy. How could you make a deal like that without even telling me? Do you know how it felt to find out you wanted to die?”

This time, Mercy did meet my eyes and she didn’t try to hide the tears that fell down her cheeks. “Yes, I know how it feels.”

“Then you shouldn’t have been so fucking stupid,” I found myself saying. “You have a whole family here, people who love and rely on you. People who serve you and are loyal to you, who look to you to lead them. Giving up on that because of me,forme, is stupid. I am one person; I don’t matter more than them.”

“You matter more than everyone. That’s why we’re in this mess.”

“You both are absolute idiots, you know that?” Warren shouted, leaping up from his seat. He pointed for me to sit and, not willing to upset him more, I did as he asked. My thigh brushed Mercy’s, and the contact sent lightning pricks through my leg. I pulled away without looking at her. She didn’t need to know how confused I was about my decision.

Henrik coughed, catching our attention. “Warren is right. These decisions were stupid and selfish. You both are too important to die so easily.”

Warren looked at him carefully, head tilted in consideration. He opened his mouth to save something but shook it off, turning back to us both.

“Ice-man is right. You both are loved, important and needed. This weird fucking suicide pact y’all have going on really needs to end. We have more important things to worry about. Clear?”

Mercy and I looked at each other, silently communicating that we would house the discussion until a later date. We turned back and nodded in unison at Warren who merely rolled his eyes, unimpressed with our lack of vocality.

“Good. Oh, and I should note, if either of you try to leave this planet without at least having the decency to clue me in that my heart is going to shatter, I’ll be eternally pissed. Have some decency, assholes.”

Henrik snorted, which was weirdly comical coming from someone who looked like he was born a statue. I couldn’t help but smirk, even if there was a darkness brewing in my mind and under my skin.

“Okay!” Warren clapped his hands together loudly, a sound which hurt my still-new and extremely sensitive vampire ears. He grimaced and mouthedsorrywhen he saw me flinch. “Next order of business; Mercy, you need to kill your little bitch below.”

Just like that, the darkness washed over me like a storm cloud. Narcissa was a plague, a disease threatening to destroy us all. At the mention of her name, a flip switched in Mercy. She straightened her back and a fire lit behind her eyes.

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