Page 65 of Kiss of Blood and Sin

Right. Veils. Because that's what I should be focusing on. Not potential assassins, or magical puppets, or the fact that this wedding could be our death sentence. Just your average everyday wedding planning. With a side of mortal peril.

“Maybe yours truly should be at your side.”

She leaned over and kissed me, effectively shutting me up. “You can’t come. Bad luck for you to see me in the dress. I don’t even want you to drive me. Jacques is. You can stay here and relax.”

I crossed my arms and cocked an eyebrow. “With Angelo? That would be as relaxing as sitting next to a rattlesnake with anger management issues.”

“Well,” she said, rolling her eyes, “he wants you to drive him and Enzo to the church. Only the guards will be here.”

Perfect. Sometimes the universe does throw you a bone.

I was headed over to the garage to get the limo when Petar stopped me. “This is your opportunity to get the mirror. Almost everyone will be gone.”

I smirked. “Except for you—the ever loyal soldier.”

“Shut up. I know where the mirror is.” Petar couldn’t hide the excitement in his voice, his eyes glinting with malicious glee.

I narrowed my eyes, my jaw clenching with suspicion. “How did you find out?” I drawled, my voice dripping with skepticism.

He waved his hand dismissively. “Never mind. He keeps it in a secret safe behind a painting in his bedroom. It’s where all his magical objects are kept.”

I paced back and forth, my fingers drumming an anxious rhythm against my thigh. “You want me to enter the vampire mafia king’s sacred bedroom?” I scoffed, my eyebrows shooting up. “You must have fallen on your head. Multiple times. From a very tall building.”

“Shut up,” Petar hissed, his face contorting with anger. “Or your brother pays the consequences.”

I felt my fangs itching to descend, but I forced a smirk. “He’s going to know someone from the inside stole it. Andthe newest person is little old me. Spoiler alert: I like my head attached to my body.”

“No, he won’t,” Petar sneered. “He’s going to think a witch got it. I’m leaving some breadcrumbs.” He clasped my shoulder, his fingers digging in painfully. “Don’t disappoint me. You know what will happen if you do.”

I shrugged off his hand, my skin crawling where he’d touched me. He was about as trustworthy as Blackbeard the Pirate. God, I was going to end up walking the plank. If I even got that lucky...

“Just get back here and steal the damn thing,” Petar growled.

I shook my head and rolled my eyes, a humorless chuckle escaping my lips. Saying this fucking sucked was the understatement of the century. I wanted to tell Angelo about Petar’s plan, but why would he believe me? And Petar could still have a change to use the Malefic Puppets. So dear old dad had me right where he wanted me—caught between a rock and a homicidal hard place.

“Fine,” I spat, my voice laced with venom. “I’ll add suicidal cat burglar to my ever-growing list of terrible life choices. Anything else? Want me to juggle stakes while I’m at it?”

Petar ignored my sarcasm, his eyes darting around nervously. “The guards patrol the house every fifteen minutes, but I’ll make sure I’m on watch when you get back. His door will be open.” He leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. “The spell to open the safe is AperioArcanum. Repeat it three times while touching the painting of a castle.”

I raised an eyebrow, unable to resist a quip. “Aperio Arcanum? Sounds like a rejected Harry Potter spell. Let me guess, if I say it wrong, I’ll turn into a toad?”

“This isn’t a joke, Dimitri,” Petar hissed. “Get it right, or we’re both dead.”

I rolled my eyes but committed the spell to memory. “Aperio Arcanum. Got it. Any other magical words of wisdom before I go off to my potential doom?”

“Just get it then meet me in the garage.”

“Why the garage? You’d better not be setting me up.”

“Not at all, lover boy,” Petar sneered, patting my cheek with mock affection. I fought the urge to bite his hand off as he strolled away, looking far too pleased with himself.

I pulled the limo out of the garage, my knuckles white on the steering wheel. Fear and anxiety churned in my gut like a particularly nasty cocktail, and I did my best to shove it down to the soles of my shoes. Angelo and Enzo were like bloodhounds with PhDs in paranoia, They’d sniff out my unease faster than you could say busted.

“Come on, Dimitri,” I muttered to myself, plastering on my best everything’s peachy smirk. Just channel your inner Thomas Crown, I told myself. Suave, sophisticated, and about to pull off the heist of the century. Except instead of priceless art, I'm stealing a magical mirror and a ring. And instead of Pierce Brosnan's charm, I've got vampire speed and a tendency to piss off everyone I meet. Close enough, right?

As Angelo and Enzo climbed into the back of the limo, Icouldn’t help but smirk. “Off to see the wizard, are we? Or just a run-of-the-mill priest?”

As soon as they disappeared into the church, I was on the move. Time to add master thief to my ever-growing resume of questionable life choices.

---