Page 50 of Crown of Blood and Vengeance

Angelo,come to me.

A white light struck me, igniting the whole graveyard. One minute I was kneeling next to Dimitri and the next I was flying through the air. I slammed into something hard, knocking the breath out of me, then I slid down. Stars flung around me, and I shook my head, trying to focus.

The impact had been brutal—even with my vampire strength, I felt it deep in my bones. Her voice still echoed in my mind, raw with power and desperation. After centuries of existence, very little could catch me off guard anymore. But this... this was different. This was Serenity’s true nature finally awakening, and it had struck me with the force of a celestial hammer.

Enzo and Dimitri rushed over to me. Their boots crunched against scattered debris—her power had left its mark on the cemetery, scorching the earth and cracking several headstones.

“Well, that’s one way to get our attention,” Dimitri drawled, but the tension in his jaw betrayed his concern.

“Angelo,” Enzo yelled as he snagged my shoulder. “Are you okay? What was that?”

I stared up at his astonished face. Before I could answer, Dimitri cut in, his dark eyes blazing with a dangerous light.

“Let me guess—our little Nephilim just went nuclear,” he said, his casual tone at odds with the way his body had shifted into a predatory stance. “Because getting herself trapped in hell wasn’t dramatic enough.” But I could hear the undertone of fear in his sarcasm—he knew as well as I did what could happen to Serenity now.

I pushed myself up. “Serenity. Her power was unleashed. We’ve got to get to her before she’s drained.”

“Perfect,” Dimitri muttered, a lethal smile playing at his lips. “And here I was worried we wouldn’t have a chance to storm the gates of hell today.”

I looked around, fury building in my chest as I realized who was missing. “Where’s DuPont?”

Enzo shifted uncomfortably, guilt flashing across his features. After all, Steve DuPont was his creation, his responsibility. “I don’t know. He hid behind the crypt when Rose used the amulet.”

“Damn it.” The words came out as a dark growl. “Then we could have a corridor of carnage from here to Crescent Manor.” The thought of DuPont loose in the city, drunk on power and fresh blood, sent a cold current of rage down my spine. Another problem we didn’t need, not with Serenity trapped in hell.

Trystan transformed back into his human form, white fur disappearing, bones and muscles twisting. Pain and frustration etched across his features as he met my gaze. “Angelo. My shifters can’t storm hell.”

The words hung heavy between us, laden with both apology and barely contained anger. I could see the burden of commandin the tight set of his shoulders, the torment of having to hold his pack back when one of our own needed help.

I nodded. “I understand.”

It wasn’t that they were cowards. It’s because they weren’t powerful enough to storm hell. Demons would rip them to shreds on their own turf, especially after taking them down here. The very thought made my dead heart clench. I’d seen what demons did to shifters who ventured into their domain. Those memories still haunted me centuries later.

Rose held the bowl, but it had gone silent. No smoke swirled around in it, as if the healing power had subsided since everyone was healed. The ritual had taken its toll—her usual vibrant energy dimmed by the effort of healing an entire pack.

He bowed slightly, the gesture graceful despite his warrior’s build. “I’m indebted to you. Your spell healed my pack.” His voice roughened with emotion. “I’ll always remember that.”

I cracked my neck, the sound echoing around us like breaking ice. Running my tongue over my fangs, I tasted the metallic tang of power in the air—Serenity’s essence, still crackling through my veins, fueled my own power. Her divine energy burned inside me like a flickering candle, each pulse making my muscles coil tighter, my senses sharpen beyond their usual keen edge. The strength it gave me was intoxicating, but beneath that power lurked an edge of desperation. She needed me, and I wouldn’t disappoint her. The thought of failing her clawed at my chest with invisible talons.

The hair on the back of my neck quivered, an ancient warning system honed by centuries of survival. The urgency that flooded through me wasn’t just instinct—it was the bone-deep certainty that came from knowing how Balthazar’s mind worked. “We need to get back to Keir’s. Balthazar wouldn’t have been idle this whole time. He might have sent forces to attackKeir and rescue Dracula.” The name left a bitter taste in my mouth, like ashes and old blood.

Rose wore the amulet around her throat, casting a soft glow across her determined features. “I have the amulet and the potion. I’ll bring it with me just in case it could heal Valentin. I just need to shut the crypt.”

I wasn’t sure it could. The memory of those hellish blades flashed through my mind—the way they’d nearly torn us apart, their cursed edges gleaming with malevolent purpose. But the dark magic pumping through Valentin was ten times stronger, a corruption that ran soul deep. It would take healing magic, magic that Serenity possessed. The thought of her made my chest tighten with renewed urgency.

She put her hand on the stone wall, and the ancient power responded immediately. Strange symbols appeared, crawling across the surface like luminous insects, and the stone door slid shut with the grinding finality of a tomb.

“Angelo, I have to take my pack back home, but I’ll send two of my trackers to hunt down DuPont.” Trystan’s eyes were haunted by exhaustion and the lingering effects of the healing spell. Behind the weariness lay the fierce protectiveness of an alpha who’d nearly lost everything tonight. The pre-dawn light was starting to creep across the horizon, a reminder that we’d been fighting through the entire night.

“You’ve helped enough,” I said softly, recognizing the conflict in his expression—the desire to help warring with his duty to protect his own. “Take care of your family.”

Trystan nodded, his shoulders squaring with renewed purpose. He motioned to two wolves. “Find DuPont. Bring him back to Cypress.”

The wolves hurried over to the crypt, their noses low to the ground as they circled it. The scent they found must have beenstrong; they broke out into a mournful howl that echoed through the cemetery before following the trail into the awakening city.

Trystan met my gaze. “They’ll find him.”

“Thanks for finding that bastard. If he gives you trouble, hold him for me and I’ll deal with him myself.”

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