Page 54 of Sworn to Revenge
Of course. What else is new?I sigh in frustration. “And by ‘not going to like it,’ you mean what exactly?” I dare to ask.
“We need to go back to Aunt Lora before I can be sure, but before that, the Coral of Life needs to feed…” she exhales heavily, her lips starting to tremble.
“So, that’s why the dragon woke up early? The Coral of Life is weakening?” Alin asks, and Bay nods in confirmation.
“The Triyat bloodline... it’s been wiped out,” she updates Alin, her body stiffening as she struggles to breathe.
I’m trying to piece the information together. “I’m guessing that means another bloodline’s light has gone out in the Chamber at the castle?”
Bay looks at me now, nodding in confirmation, her eyes distant, lost in whatever thoughts are racing through her mind. “And that’s not all. The Triyat bloodline…” she starts, swallowing hard before continuing. “They were the last known to have sent someone to retrieve something from Jocelyn. We haven’t heard from them since, but I think this confirms what we feared the most.”
It seems Alin has already come to the same conclusion because her face remains pale, and her hand trembles as she reaches for Bay’s shoulder.
“The Doomsday Elixir?” she asks in barely a whisper.
“The Doomsday Elixir,” Bay confirms, her voice is shaking. “And that means, whether you like my plan or not, it’s our only option.”
Bay rises from the couch, momentarily forgetting she’s still wearing heels as she wobbles and grabs onto my shoulder for balance. “I am never wearing this shit again,” she declares between curses, kicking off the heels and standing barefoot.
“The Guardian gave me some information, but I have to hunt this time in return. I have to help feed the Coral of Life after this blow it took,” she explains, and I stand up immediately, facing her. She looks up at me—without the heels, her head barely reaches my chest—and I flash her a mischievous grin.
At least with this problem, I can help. “If the Coral of Life needs to eat, I think I know exactly what to feed it.”
They both look at me questioningly, and Bay takes a step back, scanning my face as if she’s trying to read my thoughts. I reach out, running my finger across the little furrow of curiosity forming between her brows,smoothing it out.
“We have Mariana,” I tell Alin, watching as understanding dawns in her eyes. A knowing smile spreads across her face, mirroring mine. “And very soon, we’ll have Martin’s idiot brother too.”
Before she can respond, I go on. “Mariana’s been playing both the French and the Russians, using them to sabotage our storage sites. She’s probably relying on her father’s records to track the locations down—trying to lure Luca out for revenge.”
“I don’t know about you, Bay, but I promise you I’ll be smiling when the Coral of Life takes their souls. That’s something I’m not willing to miss,” Alin’s mischievous grin sends a shiver down even my spine—this girl is capable of things that would make anyone fear her. With a mother like hers on one side and Luca on the other, she will turn into a queen no one would want to cross.
Bay still looks confused. “I have no idea who these people are, but if Alin’s ready to hand them over to the Coral of Life with a smile like that, I’m all for it.”
Pedro
“What about Will?” I ask Mariano as Luca opens the door to one of the back warehouses that belong to Flavio’s casino. Martin’s brother knows how to vanish off the radar like a cockroach in a sewer. “I’m sure he’s involved in this—only the French could have known about the location of the last warehouse that blew up.”
“We haven’t tracked him down yet, but he’s close. Flavio’s men brought Mariana here,” Mariano updates us as we follow Luca’s steps into the stuffy warehouse. How can this disgusting, old place be connected to such a high-end casino?
“The more bodies, the better,” I mutter mostly to myself, and Mariano raises an eyebrow in confusion.
“More bodies? My little brother is starting to enjoy the killing?” he asks, incredulous. Torturing people to death is his strong suit in the family, not mine. I don’t have the patience for it.
“I’ll explain later, but we can’t kill any of them today. They’re going to be Bay’s next hunt for the Coral of Life,” I quickly reply, and Mariano’s smirk isn’t far behind.
“Just don’t tell me I can’t torture them. You’d take all the fun away,” he says sarcastically, and I roll my eyes in response. I’m not sure if it’s his loyalty or insanity that makes him so good at this, but I’m just glad I’m not on his bad side.
“Have as much fun as you want, just don’t kill them. According to Bay, she takes the oxygen from them when they’re close to the Coral of Life—their souls can’t leave their bodies until the Coral consumes them,” I explain as if that should be common knowledge and a perfectly reasonable request.
His jaw drops in shock. “And I thought I was taking them to the edge…”
I chuckle, but then Bay’s familiar voice suddenly appears behind us, causing me to stop while Mariano keeps walking after Luca.
“I’m here,” she announces, walking quickly toward me, wrapping her arm around mine like we’re heading out on a date.
I smirk at her and glance down at her feet. “You came to watch the torture in flip-flops?” I purse my lips, swallowing a laugh.
“Are you planning to torture them or me? I’m never wearing heels again,” she declares, leaning forward and tilting her head up to look at me. My smirk disappears as my eyes land on the side of her chest, barely concealed by the green stitching of her dress. I quickly strip off my black suit jacket, wrapping it around her from behind. It was torture enough enduring all the eyes on her at the event with that minimal dress; I’m not about to let those French bastards who’ll be here any minute enjoy what belongs to me too.
