Page 28 of Deceived By a Warrior

Disregarding her slight fear of heights, Eva couldn’t help but become mesmerized by the sight in front of her. She had been away from snow for so long she had almost forgotten what it looked like in person.

Absolutely stunning.

“Where are we?” She asked in amazement as she walked down the steps.

Neither of them answered.

“Darius?” She asked. He stood at the bottom of the stairs, looking elsewhere. “You there, bud?” He was refusing to look at her. Seriously, what had gotten into him?

Obviously, nothing good. As a woman who had hid from the bad all her life, she knew exactly when to know bad was coming her way. This time, she wished she saw it coming sooner.

Dread already flowing through her veins, she wasn’t surprised when two vampires in uniformed attire whipped her way, taking a hold of her as soon as she stepped onto the ground. With both her arms tightly held by these vampires, she was immediately rendered helpless.

The joke was on them. It wasn’t like she was going to fight anyway. She already knew the odds were against her.

When Darius said, “We had no other choice,” still not looking at her, she decided she could care less.No other choice, yeah?She thought. Bullshit!She had been living her life in solitude for this exact reason.

Trust no one.

“I’m not surprised,” she told him, and it was the truth. She screwed up by beginning to trust another, if only slightly. “Am I even your lifeblood?” She needed to ask as the vampires began pulling her toward the castle, which now looked a lot more like a dungeon than something out of a fantasy novel.

“You are.”

She was actually surprised to hear that. She never heard of a vampire screwing over their lifeblood.

Well, there’s a first for everything.

She looked back to him when she spoke next, surprised he was actually looking in her direction now. Ignoring the anguish he wore she told him, “Then you’re seriously fucked up,” through gritted teeth. If he could betray his lifeblood so easily, who knew what else he was capable of. “Fucked up beyond repair. I can’t believe I almost trusted you.”

If she made it out of here alive, she’d never make that mistake again.

Chapter Sixteen

Darius Fischer

It was difficult for Darius to look as Eva was hauled off by four of Artem’s men. She didn’t deserve this.

Gods, the hatred in her eyes… it would haunt his dreams for as long as he lived.

I had no other choice.

It didn’t matter what choice he was or wasn’t given, all that mattered was how much he’d regret the decision he made. At least he’d be less likely to regret betraying a woman he just met than betraying one he’s known his entire life.

Darius worked on conjuring up images of Karina to ease the unbearable mental torment he was experiencing. He wished he could remember the last time he saw her smile, but he couldn’t. Karina’s smiles were taken from her long ago. Just as his were.

Now Eva’s would be taken from her too.

Misery spread like a plague to those who knew him, didn’t it?

Through his seemingly endless rush of horrid emotions, he noticed Eva wasn’t screaming. She wasn’t even fighting. She was simply letting those vampires take her.

Had she already given up? Did he ruin her already?

No,he shook his head. He couldn’t have. She was too full of life. She was toobrave.

As if reading his mind, Gedeon pressed a hand against Darius’ back and said, “If she’s as brave as you say she is, she’ll be fine.”

Darius was trying to convince himself of the same. Still, he found himself saying, “Will she, though? Artem destroys everyone he crosses paths with.”

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