Page 23 of A Touch of Madness

“Convenient timing,” I say, unamused.

He chuckles softly, but there’s no warmth in it. “I hear the Unbound weren’t particularly cooperative.”

“They stormed out,” I reply, my tone clipped. “You’d know even more had you been there.”

He waves a hand dismissively. “I know all I need to know,” he replies. I have no doubt his second-in-command, Tobias, informed him. Still, he should have been there as the leader of the Ascendancy. “The Unbound are little more than feral dogs, barking at their own shadows. Let them run wild. They’ll burn themselves out soon enough.”

“And take half the world with them in the process,” I say. “Surely you do not want our region to be in the spotlight.”

His smile fades, and for a moment, the pretense drops. His gaze sharpens, cutting through the air between us like glass. “Surely not. However. This isn’t about the Unbound, Lucian. I’ve not come here to chat idly about old rivals and our inner faction turmoil. I’ve come here to discuss something somehow more disheartening.”

“And what, pray tell, is that, Viago?”

“You and your human slayer witch.”

My jaw tightens. “There’s nothing to discuss. She believed herself to be a human mere months ago.”

“Oh, but there is plenty to discuss.” He leans forward now, his voice lowering, carrying the weight of centuries. “The Solstice Society is stirring again, and I find it curious—no,suspicious—that their interest seems to align so perfectly with your newfound...entanglement.”

I force myself to hold his gaze, though the mention of her sets every nerve alight. “The Society has been hunting us for centuries. This has nothing to do with Sylvie.”

He perks up at the mention her name. “Sylvie,” he says, letting her name roll off his tongue. “What a sweet name.”

“Your point, Viago?” I inquire, growing angrier by the second.

“I believe the current Solstice issue has everything to do with her.” His words are a serpent’s coil, tightening with every syllable. “The girl’s bloodline is a flame, Lucian. She’s a spark in a room full of kindling, and it’s only a matter of time before someone lights the match.”

“You will never touch her,” I say, bending closer, my voice low and edged with warning.

Viago tilts his head, amusement flickering in his dark eyes. “Touch her? No, Lucian, I have no need for such crude methods. But her bloodline... it’s unique. Precious. Power like that doesn’t simply exist without consequence. Do you think the witches won’t come for her, too? Or that Solstice won’t bleed her dry in the end? We can use her to our advantage in the war against the Society, Lucian. We need to be smart about this, their dark magic is not to be played with. Sylvie will be useful to us.”

“She’s not your concern,” I bite out, every muscle in my body taut.

“But she is yours,” he counters smoothly, his smile curling like smoke. “And that makes her my concern. Tell me, Lucian, how far are you willing to go to protect her? Would you bleed for her? Kill for her? Die for her?”

The words hang between us, heavy and deliberate.

“I’ll do what I must,” I reply, and I hate the way the truth of it tastes on my tongue.

Viago leans back, folding his hands in his lap like a man utterly in control. “Of course you would. That’s what makes you so... dependable. Ever a Midnight Alliance fellow.”

His eyes gleam as he shifts the conversation. “But enough about her. Let’s talk about the debt you owe me. I can sense you’re getting a little…” He trails off for theatrics, although he already knows the word he wants to use. “Tense.”

My hands curl into fists under the table. “I paid that debt decades ago.”

“Oh, Lucian,” he says softly, shaking his head. “You and I both know that’s not how this works. You owe me your life—your existence. And now, I’m here to collect.”

“What do you want?” I ask, though I already know the answer.

He leans forward, his voice dropping into something more intimate, more dangerous. “War is coming. The Unbound’s continued rebellion has thrown the factions into chaos, and the Solstice Society is exploiting that chaos for their own gain. The council is weak, divided. But together, you and I... we could join forces for the betterment of all—or most,” he says with a sneer. “Join me, Lucian. Stand by my side, and we could end this war before it begins. We could build something stronger, something lasting. We take out the Unbound and the Ascendency and Midnight Alliance unite as one. We conquer the Solstice Society and live freely again without looking over our shoulders at the dark cult they are.”

“And if I refuse to go to war with the Unbound?”

The smile that spreads across his face is slow and venomous. “Then you’d best hope the girl’s blood tastes as sweet as it smells coming from you. Because when the war begins, no one—human or vampire—will be safe. Not even her.”

I stand abruptly, my chair scraping against the floor, but Viago is already rising, his movements as fluid as smoke.

“Think about it,” he says, brushing an invisible speck of dust from his sleeve. “I’ll return soon for your answer.”

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