Page 7 of Crown of Blood and Vengeance

His fingernails traced down my back, slow and deliberate, each scratch a promise of what was to come. I shuddered, hating how my body betrayed my fear. Centuries of being the most powerful creature in New Orleans, and now I was reduced to this.

Vlad stepped away, his boots echoing against the stone floor. I strained to look over my shoulder, dread pooling in my gut as I saw the table. Tools. Instruments of torture laid out with surgical precision. Each one designed to break not just flesh, but spirit.

He picked up a cat-o’-nine-tails, the leather straps dancing in the dim light. The first slash came without warning, tearing across my back. I clutched the bindings, the links digging intomy palm, pride the only thing keeping my scream locked in my throat. The second strike ripped flesh from bone, each tail of the whip finding a new path of agony. My legs gave way, leaving me hanging by my wrists as wave after wave of torment threatened to drive me mad.

I clasped my bindings, pulling myself up despite the vicious lashes that had turned my back into ribbons. Each movement was agony, but I managed to stand, my legs trembling beneath me. Through the haze of pain, one thought kept me anchored: Serenity. Her sacrifice wouldn’t be in vain. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of breaking me.

Chapter

Four

Enzo

Dimitriand I left Keir’s sprawling Garden District estate, the Court of Thorns, its wrought-iron gates creaking shut behind us. It had been three days since the battle at St. Christopher’s Church and graveyard. We’d been beaten and were exhausted. I wanted to search for Angelo, but our injuries ran deep and we had to secure the fallen. I hoped I hadn’t made a mistake. With Angelo gone, the responsibility was mine alone to bear.

The ornate mansion loomed against the darkening sky, its white columns stark against walls that had aged to the color of bleached bone. Somewhere inside those walls, Valentin lay fighting for his life, Rose’s pale fingers surely entwined with his as she maintained her vigil. Even from here, I could sense the heavy darkness of old magic working through the vampire’s wounds.

Ancient oak trees draped in Spanish moss lined the circular drive, their branches creating dark archways that seemed to watch our departure. None of us spoke—what was there to say? I was leaving one of our own behind in an Unseelie king’s domain.Even with Rose at his side, and even though vampires were notoriously hard to kill, the decision sat like lead in my stomach as I walked away with Dimitri and Gianna into the humid Louisiana night.

Keir’s healer could keep Valentin alive, but not for long. His wounds were too great, even for the Unseelie healer to cure. His only hope was Serenity, and who knows where the demon Balthazar took her. I suspected she was in hell, far away from our help. But not all hope was lost; there had to be a way to rescue her.

“At least Valentin’s safe with Keir—that’s the only good news in this mess. My father’s probably already started his purge at Crescent Manor, working his way through Angelo’s loyalists one by one.” Dimitri’s dark eyes met mine. “You know how creative he gets when someone refuses to kneel. And he’s had years to perfect his methods.” He ran a hand through his hair, a rare show of agitation. “The real question is how many are left alive to torture.”

Gianna frowned. “You don’t think he would hurt Elena, do you?”

My jaw clenched as acid churned in my stomach. Elena. She’d found me at my darkest moment after being turned, showed me there was more to being a vampire than bloodlust and violence. The only mother I’d ever truly known. If he laid a single finger on her...rage burned through my veins, my hands curling into fists until my knuckles went white.

Dimitri stopped and lifted her chin. “My father’s a monster, Gianna. He’s obsessed with being king, and anyone who stands in his way he would cut down without hesitation.”

“She’s like the mother I lost.” Tears slid down Gianna’s cheeks.

“I know.” Dimitri gathered her in his arms. “We’ll protect her. I swear.”

The tenderness between them led my thoughts to Joy DuPont. Ever since Angelo first assigned me to watch over her, I’d been captivated. Night after night, I’d followed her through the streets of New Orleans as she searched desperately for any trace of Serenity. She had no idea I existed, no clue that a vampire enforcer lingered in the shadows, making sure she stayed safe. The determination in her emerald eyes, the way she refused to give up hope of finding her friend—it stirred something in me I thought had died centuries ago.

Now she was out there somewhere, probably terrified, possibly hurt. And she still didn’t know me, didn’t know I’d been the one protecting her all those nights. The thought of her in danger while I dealt with Petar’s political games made my fangs ache with frustration.

Maybe if I freed Angelo and Serenity, I’d find her too. At least then she’d finally understand why I’d been there all along.

But first I had to save Elena. She wasn’t just a mother to Gianna. She was Mother to all of us. If Petar hurt her…

“We need to go.” I didn’t wait for them to follow as I drew on my vampire speed, becoming nothing more than a breeze to human eyes.

I whirled through the streets and down Bourbon, my chest tightening as Crimson Stakes came into view. Memories sliced through me like silver blades—Joy’s tenacious face as she handed out flyers in front of our casino, her voice trembling with hope as she asked about Serenity. Then the deafening explosion had erupted from within Crimson Stakes, sending glass and debris hurling outward as flames engulfed the structure.

I’d thought she was safe outside when I rushed in to investigate the fire. That was the last time I’d seen her. My throat burned with guilt. I shouldn’t have left her alone, assuming she’d stay put. Some protector I turned out to be.

My steps faltered at the sight of Crescent Manor. This was my home—where Elena had taught me to control my bloodlust, where I’d finally found peace within these antebellum walls. But now...

The guards’ movements made my skin crawl—rigid and precise, like dancers trapped in a music box. When I caught sight of their black eyes, bile rose in my throat. Possessed. These weren’t strangers—they were my brothers-in-arms, my family. Lorenzo, who’d spent countless nights training with me. James, who always had my back in fights.

My hands trembled with fury and dread. How could I fight through my own people to reach Elena? And how many more waited inside, their bodies puppet shells of the friends I’d known? My fangs descended as I struggled to keep my rage in check. Elena was trapped in there with the hollow shells of our family.

I sensed Dimitri and Gianna behind me. I shouldn’t have brought her. Angelo would kill me if something happened to her. “Dimitri, you and Gianna should wait. I’ll handle your father.”

“Like hell you will,” Dimitri appeared beside me, his usual smirk replaced with a hard line. “He’s my father, my mess to deal with. And in case you’ve forgotten, I’ve had years of practice handling his particular brand of crazy.”

“Gianna—”

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