Page 23 of Kiss of Blood and Sin

“It’s ready now,” Augustus said, holding out the flask. “Your blood was all I was waiting for.”

“Drink it,” Louise urged, rubbing my arm soothingly. “It will work, I promise.”

I took a deep breath. I trusted Angelo, Louise, and Augustus, and I was tired of being in pain all the time. With a shaking hand, I clasped the flask.

I lifted it up as if proposing a toast, my voice trembling slightly. “Bottoms up.” I sniffed the flask cautiously; the metallic scent of blood mingled with a delicate aroma of roses. At first, I took only a hesitant sip, but then the delicious taste instantly ignited a hunger within me. My fangs lengthened and I tossed the flask back, draining the rest in one gulp.

The potion burned as it slipped down my throat, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. For a moment, I felt a flicker of hope, a whisper of promise that the elixir might do as Augustus and Louise had said and heal the wounds that had left me broken and bleeding.

Then, without warning, my body betrayed me.

It started as a tremor in my hands, a subtle quivering that quickly escalated into violent spasms. The flask slipped from my hand, my fingers no longer able to maintain their grip. Everything seemed to go into slow motion, the flask tumbling end over end. The sound of shattering glasspierced the air when it hit the cement patio, a jarring cacophony that echoed in my ears.

I collapsed to the ground, my body now wracked with full-on convulsions. Every muscle, every nerve, every fiber of my being felt as if it were on fire, consumed by an agony I had never known before. My vision blurred, the world around me slipping in and out of focus as I gasped for air, my lungs burning and straining with each ragged breath.

Through the haze of pain, I dimly heard the flapping of wings, a sound that had grown so familiar to me over the years. A large bat swooped down toward the balcony, its form shifting and morphing as it approached. When it landed, it was Dimitri who stood before me, his eyes blazing with a mix of anger and concern.

“What the hell did you do to her?” he demanded, his voice furious as he rounded on the others. “If you’ve hurt her, I swear I’ll rip your hearts out and feed them to you myself.”

Despite the pain that consumed me, a flicker of warmth bloomed in my chest at the sight of him, at the sheer ferocity of his protection. He gathered me into his arms, cradling me against his chest as if I were the most precious thing in the world. His touch was so gentle compared to the fury etched into every line of his face—gentle enough that I relaxed and allowed my eyes to fall shut.

Chapter Fifteen

Dimitri

Blood was dribbling down the side of Gianna’s chin onto her neck, a crimson trail against her pale skin. Her eyes fluttered shut, and a jolt of something unfamiliar shot through me, a sensation I couldn’t quite identify. Before I could stop myself, I acted on instinct, lifting her into my arms with a growl that rumbled deep in my chest.

The moment my skin touched hers, a searing heat raced through my veins, unsettling and thrilling at the same time. I could feel the warmth of her body seeping into mine, the faint beat of her heart against my chest. The scent of her blood filled my nostrils, a heady, intoxicating aroma that made my own heart race and my muscles tense with primal urges I didn’t understand.

I shook my head, trying to clear the sudden fog that hadenveloped my mind. This was Gianna…the enemy…the one I absolutely did not trust. She was in league with my father who I swore was planning to hurt my brother again. It was only a matter of time for that, I was convinced.

And yet, as I cradled her in my arms, feeling the softness of her curves pressed against me, something in that split second irrevocably changed for me.

Then again, maybe it was all a trick.

Tearing my gaze away from her face, I glared at Augustus and Louise, my eyes narrowing on them dangerously. “Get out of my way,” I snarled, my voice low and threatening, barely recognizable even to me. My arms tightened instinctively around Gianna, holding her closer, as if to shield her from their prying eyes.

They looked at each other in surprise, their eyebrows rising and their mouths falling open slightly. But to their credit, they did as I asked, stepping aside with a mix of fear and confusion etched onto their faces. I could feel their gazes boring into my back as I strode past them, Gianna’s limp form nestled safely against my chest.

With each step, the turmoil within me grew, a battle raging between the strange, undeniable pull I felt toward the woman in my arms and the hatred for my father and anyone who sided with him that I had clung to for so long. I swallowed hard, trying to ignore the way my skin tingled wherever it touched hers, the way my heart seemed to stutter and skip in a rhythm I had never known previously.

I laid Gianna down on the couch. If anyone had hurt her, they’d pay with their lives. I’d make sure of that. But to myamazement, her body was still. The violent convulsions had subsided, leaving only the occasional twitch. I watched as the ugly purple bruise on the side of her face slowly faded and the scratches around her neck disappeared, like a twisted magic trick.

“I gave her a healing potion, Dimitri. That’s what I did to her,” Augustus said quietly. “Gianna had powerful wolfsbane elixir pumping through her veins. It kept her from healing.”

I met his gaze, my eyes narrowing. “Who gave it to her?” I seethed, my mind already compiling a list of people who needed to die.

“A witch concocted it, but we don’t know who,” Louise said, her voice quivering slightly. “However, according to Angelo, a wolf shifter injected it into her, paralyzing her, before he and his pack attacked her.”

I looked down at Gianna, taking in her features. The color was already coming back to her face. Her long, dark eyelashes brushed against her cheeks, and her lips had turned a tempting shade of ruby red. Even still weakened, she was stunning.

I glanced between Louise and Augustus, a muscle ticking in my jaw. My grip on Gianna tightened protectively, my fingers pressing into her soft skin as if to reassure myself that she was still alive, still here, still breathing.

“This wolf pack meant business,” I ground out through clenched teeth. “And my guess is that they’re going to try to attack her again.” I shook my head, a harsh, mirthless laugh escaping my lips. It was a sound born of anger and incredulity, echoing in the stillness of the room. “AngeloSanti’s wise decision was to have my father protect her?” I asked, my voice rising with each incredulous word. “Does he want his sister dead?”

My heart pounded in my chest, a frantic, erratic rhythm that echoed the chaos of my thoughts. I looked down at Gianna’s beautiful face, her features pale and still, and a surge of something intensely fierce and protective rose up within me, surprising me.

“Why would you say that?” Louise’s voice flared with fury.

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