Page 140 of A Lord of Snow and Greed

But he did not. The vampire merely watched us, a hint of amusement in his red eyes, when Vale stumbled over and placed his body in front of mine.

“A drunk faerie and an unarmed prince-killer? What a waste to send so many of us.”

Stars. How many?

“How did you get into the castle?” Vale growled.

We’d always known it was a possibility—a distant one, but always possible. Still, it seemed that to be confrontedwith a weakness in his home’s defenses was too much for Vale. He had to learn how this vampire had done it.

“With a trail of blood behind us.” The assassin took a step forward. “If you step aside and let me have the prince-killer, I’ll allow you to live, Prince. They sent me to bring back only one head.”

“Never,” Vale growled as he lowered into a stance I’d seen many times while sparring. “Neve, remember escaping last time!”

I swallowed. Vale wanted to buy me time to escape out the window. To fly away.

“Escape?” The vampire laughed. “That won’t be happening.”

He rushed forward. Vale raised his sword. “Neve! Go!”

But as the vampire prowled closer, as Vale slashed his sword and the vampire dodged it, I remained frozen in place. Vale and I might never belong together in the way I longed for but leaving him was off the table.

I bounded over the bed, desperate to find a weapon, but as the vampire was between Vale and the armory, I had to get creative. Casting a glance around, I spied long, thick icicles out the window. They weren’t stakes, which had to be wood, but they were something to work with.

I darted to the window, opened it, and frigid air burst in.

“Fast!” Vale yelled beneath the clanging swords, clearly under the impression that I was leaving him.

Instead of launching out the window, however, I extended my wings, preparing them in case I slipped, placed a hand on the thick pane, and leaned forward.

The icicles hanging from the top of the tower had tripled in size since I’d last noticed them. I gripped one and pulled with all my might.

It didn’t budge.

“Fates, come on!” I hissed as Vale’s cry of pain sounded behind me. I tried again, this time engaging my wings to keep me from falling out the floor-to-ceiling window and grabbing on with both hands. Again, the ice held firm.

I swallowed down a lump in my throat. I needed to think of something else. I whirled, prepared to use any item inside Vale’s room as a weapon, and caught the moment the vampire’s blade sliced across Vale’s chest. As the prince was wearing regular clothing and not armor or chain mail, Vale cried out and shifted to protect his innards. The vampire took that moment to throw a punch that landed on Vale’s temple.

“No!” I screamed as the prince toppled, blood seeping into the fabric of his shirt.

“Time to earn my fee.” The vampire kicked Vale’s blade aside and prowled closer, an evil glint in his eyes.

Suddenly, my hands grew cold. I looked down to find them glowing—a silvery violet light. Was this a sign? Did I need to use this? My magic?

Desperate, I raised my arms, extended them in front of me, and hoped that something,anything, would happen.

Nothing did.

The vampire sneered. “Weak in magic too. How did you kill our prince?”

Any sensible fae would have lunged out the windowand flown to safety, but I couldn’t move. Not with Vale on the ground like that.

If I left, would the assassin decide to leave no witnesses and kill Vale? Would we both die here today?

Heart pounding in sharp, staccato beats, I tried to force something from my hands. Again, nothing poured out.

Tears pricked in my eyes. Was this my debt to be paid? If so, I hated the Fates, hated the Faetia, hated the very stars in the sky and the dead gods.

A motion behind the vampire caught my attention. Emilia was rushing forward, a stake in hand. I gasped, but the vampire was too set on me, too ready to win his prize.

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