Page 118 of The Vampire's Bride

I press a finger to his lips to silence him. He’s worried I don’t trust him after Raine’s comment about keeping things from me. But I’m not going to let the prince divide us. “It’s all right.” I cup his cheek. “I trust you. Completely.”

Something—an emotion—flits briefly across his expression, but it’s gone too quickly for me to know what it was.

I glance again at the Vampire prince. I don’t know what Raine did to my husband earlier, but I do not trust him. And I hate the idea of leaving Valaric alone with him.

Removing his cloak, Valaric drapes it around my shoulders and presses a tender kiss to my lips. I’m vaguely aware of the prince and the others watching us curiously, but I ignore them. He drops his forehead to mine. “Stay close to Eben,” he whispers.

I nod, and he slowly pulls away. He turns back to Raine and the Vampire guards escort Alayna and me back inside the manor.

CHAPTER 50

VALARIC

Guilt sears my conscience as I track Juliet’s retreating figure as she walks back to the manor, side by side with Alayna. Raine’s guards and Eben trail behind them. She believes in me with a ferocity that tears at my heart. I am so unworthy of her trust and devotion.

A crunch of gravel behind me announces Raine’s approach. “Such trust she has in you,” he says, voiced tinged with awe. “But I wonder if perhaps it is misplaced.”

I clench my fists. Taking a deep breath to calm my anger, I force my expression into a mask of icy indifference and turn to face him. “You wanted to speak to me. Now, tell me what you want.”

“Is that any way to speak to your crown prince, Lord Greyvale?” Raine taunts.

I ignore his baiting and remain still, studying him warily. The echoes of remembered pain ripple through my body as I recall how he tried to dig through my mind, searching my memories.

I managed to resist, but not before he found the memory of when I was turned. Even now I can feel the searing agony of the change as if it just happened—the rending of my flesh and bone as wings formed on a body that was never meant to have them.

“I always wondered what the change was like for those who are made.” He cocks his head to one side. “Your transformation was quite painful. And somehow it is linked to a curse.” He pauses. “Tell me why. Explain to me how you became cursed, Lord Greyvale.”

“You’ve been in my mind,” I grind out. “Shouldn’t you already know the answers to these questions?”

His smile is all sharp edges. “A truth for a truth. How about that?”

I bite back a snarl as he asks this as if I have a choice.

“Contrary to what you may think, myvocaripowers are rather limited. Your mind is unusually strong.” He studies me as if I were some sort of puzzle for him to work out. “It takes great concentration to read someone’s thoughts. You’ve witnessed the physical effects my ability has upon me.”

I’m surprised he’s being so candid. Then again, this could all be a ruse. All I know is that I don’t trust him.

“I’ve shared a truth,” he says smoothly. “And now it is your turn. Tell me: how did you become cursed?”

“I wanted to walk in the sun again. So, I made a deal with a blood witch and became ensnared in her curse when I could not keep my end of the bargain.”

It’s not the whole truth. I don’t tell him that the reason I needed immunity to daylight was so I could exact revenge upon the ones who killed my family and my village.

“And what are the terms of your curse?” he asks. “How can it be broken?”

“Why do you care?”

“Because I do. Now, tell me.”

I glare at him, refusing to answer.

“You refuse to share?” He growls in frustration. “Fine. Here is what I know: your bride does not know of your curse. And yet, I sense that her fate is somehow tied to it. Am I correct?”

My jaw tightens. The truth is a dangerous tool in Raine’s hands—a weapon I’m not willing to hand over.

His eyes gleam with triumph. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

Instead of answering, I change the subject. “You still haven’t told me why you wished to speak with me.”

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