Page 37 of The Vampire's Bride

“You are more than that, Valaric.” My heart clenches as I gently squeeze his hand. “I have seen it.”

“Perhaps I am now, but I wasn’t then.” He pulls his hand away from mine. “I dedicated my monstrous existence to searching for the ones who slaughtered my family, the ones who had turned me.” His nostrils flare. “I killed them all. Every last single one,” he grits through his fangs. “But then,Ibecame the hunted once again.”

“Why?”

“There is a code among Vampires. We are not supposed to kill one another. If we do, the penalty is death.”

“What did you do?”

“I found Damar,” he explains. “Or rather… he found me.”

Damar.I remember Elsie mentioning his name when I asked if there were other members of House Greyvale. “Who is he?”

“The High Lord of House Greyvale,” he replies. “The one who taught me to survive in my new and monstrous form. He protected me from the ones who called for my execution and convinced the High Council to spare me by claiming me as a member of his Great House.”

“What happened to him?”

“We grew apart,” Valaric replies, but from the saddened look on his face, I get the sense that there is more to it than this.

“Is he still alive?”

He gives me a tight nod. “It has been a while since I last saw him.”

I wonder how long “a while” is to a Vampire. “Do you… miss him?”

He sighs heavily, frowning as if gathering his thoughts before he replies. “Damar was a true Vampire. He wasborn, notmadelike I was. He was my mentor, and he became like an older brother to me. I would surely have died if not for him.”

“Why did you part ways?”

“Those who are born to this life consider it a privilege—an honor and a blessing from the gods. To them, humans are weak, an inferior species. And to be turned is to be given the greatest gift imaginable. Only one in three survive the change. Those that do are expected to forget everything of their old life and eagerly embrace the new.”

He clenches his jaw. “It was… difficult for me. I was fortunate that Damar took me in, but in doing so, as a Lord of a Great House, I had to take the oath of my sworn enemies.”

He lifts the sleeve of his tunic on his left arm, and I notice a faint silver rune on his shoulder. “It is the mark of the Noctva.” He looks down at his hands, curling them into fists. “This form is stronger. Faster. More powerful. It can be intoxicating at first to possess such strength. Most newly turned Vampires cast aside their humanity as easily as a snake sheds its skin.”

He clenches his jaw. “But I was a disappointment to Damar. I could never be the one thing he wanted me to be.”

“What is that?”

Valaric’s eyes meet mine evenly. “A Vampire who has forgotten what it once was to be human.”

CHAPTER 12

VALARIC

Juliet has only finished eating when the innkeeper knocks on the door. She bows low when I answer. “My Lord, given the nature of your”—she hesitates as if unsure how to continue, before finally deciding upon—“condition, would you like some thicker curtains for your room?”

“Yes.”

She dips her chin and then calls out to her husband. He walks briskly down the hallway, halting abruptly when he sees me, all the color leaving his face. His potent smell of sweat and fear floods my nostrils.

“Bernyd,” his wife says, and his eyes snap back to her. “Will you please hang the thicker curtains for our guests?”

“I—I’ll see to it right away.”

“If you’ll please forgive his nerves, my Lord.” Minda says as her husband scurries away. “I’ve met your man, Eben, his mother Elsie, and the others. We thought you were a Wolf-Shifter, like they are. Bernyd and I wondered when we’d finally get to meet the Lord of the castle.”

She glances at Juliet, worry easily read in her features despite her practiced smile. “And now we’ve had the pleasure of meeting your lovely new bride as well.” She gives me a pointed look. “See to it that you are a good husband and treat her like atruewife.”

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