Page 115 of Diamond Kisses

“His death belongs…to the jewels,” I gasped, glowering at my brother. “Not you.”

Scowling, Q paced around Victor. He eyed up Victor’s bloody ankles and shot me a look with a raised eyebrow. And then his gaze landed on my shredded back. The mess that was left of me.

He went still.

His face filled with questions.

They fired at me like bullets, demanding answers.

But I had no energy to tell him anything.

Once again, my gaze was drawn to a shadowy part of the garden where a fire had burned out and a few jewels huddled around something on the ground.

The fact that they hadn’t come to watch the show. The fact that they’d stayed there, heads bowed, hands linked, tears glimmering on their dirty cheeks.

Where’s Peter?

Where’s Ily?

A godawful stabbing arrowed right through my fucking heart.

No…

Victor wasn’t telling the truth.

He can’t…

I crawled.

I staggered to my feet and wrapped my arms around my waist, trying to hold all my pain together. “Ily…”

The jewels sitting around the two denser shadows on the grass reminded me so much of a vigil, a funeral—

No…please, fuck no…

I broke into a wobbly run.

“Give the knife to the jewels,” Ben said behind me. “Like Henri said, Victor’s death belongs to them.”

I didn’t look to see if Q obeyed.

But then the sounds of Victor’s screeching tore through the moonlight as the crowd of jewels fell on him, delivering him the same mercy he’d shown them.

“This is for Rebecca,” someone hissed.

Victor howled.

“This is for Bet.”

Victor screamed.

“This is for Dane.”

Victor shrieked.

The beast inside me wanted to watch. It wanted to participate and tear Victor limb from fucking limb, but…

I couldn’t stop the calling, the command.

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