Page 148 of A Debt of Darkness

“This has taken centuries, Henry. You won’t take this from me now. I’ve given too much to let it slip through my fingers. I’ve sacrificed too fucking much and all it took was one fucking prophecy. One pathetic prophecy your mate fulfills.”

“She’s mine, Marcus. My mate. My equal. MY. WIFE.”

Silence rings out as time freezes, shocked into suspension by Henry’s declaration. Vampires from both covens stare in disbelief as Henry tracks Marcus’s movements, stalking toward him painfully slowly as the seconds stutter and try to find their rhythm.

“You’ve lost your fucking mind,” Marcus snarls.

“Pots and kettles, asshole,” Henry snaps back, closing the distance.

“You can’t expect your coven—any coven—to accept a human as their master. As their equal. This is insanity, Henry. You need putting down to spare us all from this wretched disease.”

Henry snarls and his fangs descend further, making my heart leap. I don’t know if it’s in joy or terror and I don’t fucking care, either. I’m alive and Henry’s readying to unleash all he is on the cunt who’s tortured me all night long. My fingers curl around the bars of my cage and I haul myself onto my knees, ignoring the pain singing from my bones or the agony clawing up my muscles.

“Silence.”

A voice whispers a muffled warning, a hushed promise of hope, and the quiet sounds of safety. I know its timbre and its inflection. I recognize its owner, slowly turning to the priest standing beneath me, certain Damon’s beneath its cowl.

He draws a heavy breath and the fabric of his cloak ripples with irritation as I defy him. I snap my head back up, paying attention to the two vicious predators circling each other, dipping and weaving as they look for an opening and trade insults.

“Things would be simpler if you did as you were told, sweets.”

I smirk, aware he’s chosen his words with care. Damon rarely makes a mistake and considers all eventuality and his coded message is clear: don’t fucking run, stay the course, and fight like your fucking life depends on it.

Marcus launches at Henry, and they tussle as all hell lets loose around us. Bursts of light fire across the room as streaks of blue and green and orange wrap around smoke and shadows, conjured from adversaries I’m struggling to distinguish. The Brotherhood battles against itself for its future, and both sides are determined their vision will come topass. Chemical fumes explode as Henry roars and Marcus cries, both taking and giving damage in equal measure. They’re moving so fucking fast that punches blur and strikes merge, making it impossible to track who’s winning or how close one comes to defeating the other.

Sparks sound near my ear and I snap my head, startled as the metal ignites in bright white flames. It’s burning as something exerts itself on the lock, forcing the pins and levers to move as Damon stands unmoved, reacting to nothing and observing everything.

The cage door opens of its own accord and I shuffle toward it, ignoring the pain screaming in my tired, cramped muscles. I’m stiff from my confinement and it’s hindering my progress, but I won’t let it stop me. Not when there’s the chance of escape and Damon’s got a plan.

He’s got to have one.

He always does.

Only an imbecile would turn up at a moment like this without one, and there’s nothing simple about Damon.

He lifts his hand, offering me the slightest assistance as I free myself, lowering myself with little stealth. But everyone’s eyes are on the drama in the middle of the room, watching with bated breath as Marcus and Henry grapple with each other, trying to inflict a mortal injury. Their snarls and grunts deepen and their strikes harden, and it’s the cover I need to make it onto the ground in one piece.

Damon steps closer and tilts his head, effortlessly grabbing my attention. My muscles tense and I wait, counting every breath and the beat of my heart that coincides with it as Emmanuel steps forward, unleashing a burst of light so furious it extinguishes the life of several rebellious priests.

“You’re the cause and effect, Ivy. You’re the choice that’s made and the act that follows. You are this prophecy and thisis all you are. Don’t fear it. Few will pay the price of agency and most lack the courage of their convictions.”

His head turns and his irises blaze into my soul, a peculiar shade of purple and grey, communicating something I barely begin to grasp and have no time to understand.

“Try not to lose these this time.” He smiles and slides both daggers into a belt that’s appeared around my waist. “You’ll need them.” His smile widens. “Hearts or heads, sweets. Both if you’re feeling vicious.”

I exhale and only now do I realize I’ve been holding my breath. My hands tremble, my fingers shake. My legs are wobbly but my resolve isn’t and I step forward, unsure but certain of my choice.

It’s binary.

To act or not. To run or not. To let others control my fate or to determine it myself. To show strength or choose weakness. To command and control or acquiesce and submit.

And I’m done with playing nice.

Henry lands a blow on Marcus and he hurtles back, bracing his legs against the force as he slides across the floor. He surges forward, catching Henry around the chest, slashing violently as he hammers home his advantage, inflicting wound after wound dangerously close to Henry’s heart. But Henry recovers, slamming his fist into Marcus’s jaw and sending him reeling, chasing behind him and kicking his legs out from under him.

Marcus pivots, leaping forward and tearing at Henry with his fangs. Henry snarls and smacks his teeth out of the way, pounding his fist into his face, obliterating its sharpened features. Blood drips onto the flagstones beneath them as they slip, staggering as their wounds take their toll and their fight approaches its end.

One of them will make a mistake. One of them will seizethe opportunity it affords. Both of them are tiring, but neither of them are conceding an inch of ground. Both still vicious, both still violent. They’re holding the room in their thrall as the covens stare in awe as their leaders fight for dominance.

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