Page 12 of How to Entice a Fiend

“If it got out that there was something that could kill vampires this easily, there would be mass chaos… I can’t imagine what would happen,” I comment.

“This is why it cannot get out, and why I’m not thrilled you’ve found out. It doesn’t seem like any of the other council members know and I’d like to keep it that way,” Marcus says. “Please be aware that we know that aside from us and the council members who made it out that day, you are the only outsider who knows about it. If it gets out, I know exactly who spoke.”

I smile at him. “I won’t say a word. Not even a peep.”

Marcus is clearly suspicious of me, but that’s fine. I’ll win over his trust.

Looking down, I see something sticking out of the dead man’s pocket. Something that sticks out just enough to catch my eyes but is still tucked in the folds of his trousers.

“I feel awful for Rylee. Like imagine being a child and having no idea when you’re really ever safe?” Finn says.

I glance over and see that they’re all fixated on something Finn is doing. Marcus and Alexei, the two who I feel are the most observant, are facing away from me. It gives me the time I need to slip the cylinder right out of his pocket. I quickly slide it into my own before standing and moving away from the body.

“This is just wild,” I comment. “I just… how could this have happened? I know you’re concerned about me spreading this around, but there’s absolutely no reason I’d want anyone aware that there’s a way to kill vampires with this much ease. There are no signs of a struggle or anything, right? It doesn’t look likesomeone was brawling them one at a time or anything… I’m not exactly a forensics expert, so I could be totally wrong. This is definitely more your expertise.”

“No, you’re right,” Finn says. “Something like this must have been almost instantaneous, and that’s terrifying… especially when it’s in the wrong hands.”

CHAPTER FOUR

ENDER

My door creaks and my eyes snap open. I’ve always been a light sleeper, trained long ago to be wary of every noise. It’s not like I fully trust Orin, and I have no idea why he’d even remotely trust me beyond the fact that Rylee does and he seems to really like her. It would make more sense for him to agree to keep me here before running off to tell the VRC exactly where to collect me.

Of course I don’t have to worry because it’s only Rylee trying to sneak into the room.

She’s so loud that I’m not even sure she could sneak into a human’s room and get away with it. She scuttles over to the bed and stares at me as I pretend to be asleep in the hope that she will just go back to bed.

Instead, I can hear Rylee breathing over me… she doesn’t evenhaveto breathe and still she’s going to loudly do it over my head and think I won’t notice?

I pretend I don’t hear her and continue to feign sleep, hoping she’ll justgo away.

Seemingly satisfied… for some reason, she backs off. Then instead ofleaving, like I’d expected, she proceeds to lie down on the rug like a dog.

That’s fine. If she’d rather curl up on a rug instead of a nice bed, she can have at it. I won’t lose any sleep over it, that’s for sure. She has her own bed with plush blankets just next door; there’s absolutely no reason for me to care. So with that, I try to drift back off to sleep.

Rylee flips this way… and that way… and rolls, and then when she finally falls asleep, she starts muttering things in her sleep.

Like what the fuck is she doing? Summoning demons in her dreams?

Itryto sleep, but every time I begin to drift off, she flips and flops some more.

Fine, then I will sleep inherbed.

I quietly get up and slip out of the room before heading over to the other bed. I climb in and close my eyes, thrilled to be free of that nonsense and finally fall asleep, just in time for the door tocreeeeakopen. Rylee shuffles overagainand heavily breathes over meagain.

“Rylee, what are you doing? A blind and deaf dog would notice you come in!” I say.

“Nuh-uh. You didn’t wake up when I went into your room!”

“You mean when you stood over me and breathed loudly at me before flopping all around on the floor?”

“Hmm…”

“What do you want?”

“Nothing.”

“Then why all of this? You sleep alone all the time. Why are you sleeping on the rug?”

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