Page 54 of Claimed By Blood

The vampire, evidently realising that I still can’t understand him, smirks. Someone behind me says something, and he rolls his eyes, like it was a terrible suggestion, before turning and opening the doors.

I follow him inside, blinking at the sudden gloom. It’s not dark per se, but the lighting is so low that it takes a second for my eyes to adjust. When they do, I take in the circular room with its subtly domed, raised floor with confusion. Around the edge, on low cushions, other vampires recline and watch with eagle eyes as I’m led in, but it’s the man sitting cross-legged in the centre who commands my attention.

Samuel.

He really is alive.

His clothes are dark and plain, but tailored to his slim build and edged in gold stitching that sets off his chestnut skin perfectly. Around his neck is a long chain hung with a simple wooden cross, and in front of him, my sword and dagger are laid out like offerings, almost within my reach.

A hand on my shoulder forces me to my knees, and I hit the stone with a bone-jarring force. Samuel raises one palm in a restraining gesture, and the grip holding me down disappears.

“Evonnia. I wondered how long it would take you to seek me out.” His voice is quiet, but the words echo off the walls of the chamber, lending more gravitas to them.

God, how long has it been since I heard my birth name? Centuries surely.

Cain renamed all five of his daughters once we’d proved ourselves. Even before that, we weren’t allowed to use the names our mothers gave us. We were just ‘daughter.’ Our whole identities were stripped away overnight. A psychological trick to break us down so we could be remade as his creatures.

When we were young, I used to fall asleep to Morwen whispering her true name over and over again.

My eyes drop back to my weapons, silently calculating if I can make it to them before someone stops me. But there are still guards behind me. They’ve released me for now, but they’re still tense. Waiting for me to try something.

My odds of reaching my things before they can react are slim-to-none.

Samuel notices where my focus has drifted to and arches a single pierced brow. “But, are you here because our sire ordered you to take my head or for some other reason?”

I shake my head. “I’m not answering any of your questions until you release my thralls and my sister.”

“Already done,” he replies, easily. “They were not invited. I returned them to the surface as soon as we captured them. You are here because of a promise I made and nothing more.” He pauses, and one side of his lips quirks upward. “So which is it? My head? Or something else?”

The vampire who brought me here mumbles something harsh under his breath, but both of us ignore him.

“Maybe it’s both,” I hedge.

He looks taken aback by that answer, and the vampires behind me visibly bristle with hostility. “Don’t play games here, sister. I went to a lot of trouble to fake my death, so tell me plainly; does Cain know I’m alive?”

I shake my head. “He thinks we’re here to hunt down a vampire you sired.”

Samuel’s nostrils flare and he looks heavenward, as if praying for patience. “You’ve made him suspicious. I would’ve rather you’d found some other excuse to seek me out. One that didn’t involve drawing his attention to this corner of the world.”

“I’m here because there’s a rumour you have a weapon which will kill him.”

He smirks, and soon enough it’s turned into a full-blown smile. His startled chuckle seems to drain a little of the tension away from the others, but I don’t make the mistake of thinking they’ve relaxed.

Again, I calculate the odds of getting to my sword before anyone else can react, and once again I dismiss the idea. I thought I’d be relieved that the others were safe above ground, but in reality, I feel more cornered than I did before.

Samuel wants me here alone. Surrounded by other vampires who are clearly under his command.

He finally stops laughing long enough to ask, “Do you think I’d be hiding down here if I possessed such a weapon?”

The hope I’ve been quietly nursing since I found out about his survival at the gala vanishes. He has a good point. Clearly, he has the ability to stay out of Cain’s radar, and enough vampires to organise an attack if he wanted to.

No. Irefuseto believe he knows nothing when our sire was scared enough to sendthreeof his daughters on this mission.

“You know something then,” I challenge. “Whatever it is, I need that information.”

That piercing glints as he raises his eyebrow again. “You’d only need such a thing if you were planning to try to kill him yourself…”

“I am.”

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