Page 161 of Our Sins in Blood (Coven of Sin 1)

No, I couldn’t think about that right now. I had to do what Vincent told me.

Run.

So that’s what I did. I ran so hard my lungs burned, and my feet ached. It was so cold that my breath froze in clouds in front of me, and tears crusted my cheeks.

I ran until my body screamed, but the pain couldn’t compare to the agony of leaving my heart in pieces, nestled between the bodies of the two men I was never supposed to fall in love with.

Chapter seventy-four

Revelations and a Sordid Promise

Iransofast,my mind was in a whirlwind, and my lungs heaved in pain as I took in a huge gulp of the frigid night air.

The only illumination of the deserted road splicing through this industrial area came from a handful of street lamps. Most of them had burnt out, leaving only a few flickering light bulbs, their ominous glow bathing everything in orange.

This whole place was freaky. It had to belong to the Boston Coven. It was the perfect place to lure and hunt down prey, with no civilization around to hear their screams.

Little did Sharpe and the rest of his coven know I wasn’t prey. I was the predator here. At least, that’s what the monster inside me was sure of. She wanted to kill, maim, and make them suffer.

But the rest of me… All I felt was nothingness.

They’d broken me. I had run from that factory in pieces, and I would have to figure out how to put myself back together so I could make Sharpe pay for what they’d done. What he’d taken from me.

Sharpe had said this plot of theirs was all to avoid a full-out war. But the second Vin had died, they’d sealed their fate.

They didn’t want a war, but that’s exactly what they were going to get.

I would make them suffer. Before, I had feared the monstrous nature that I knew I had inherited from the old vampire king. Now, I wanted to unleash it in full force on my enemies, and I would leave a fucking crater where the Boston Coven once stood so that no one would forget that even though human blood coursed through my veins, so did Thomas Knight’s.

Hell, I’d probably make dear old dad proud. I never wanted to stoop to his level of cruelty, but seeing Vincent and Eros laying there on the concrete in a pool of blood… It twisted my insides into painful knots, squeezing another round of fresh tears from me.

My heart had been ripped out, and the only thing I could fill it with was the satisfaction I’d ultimately get by avenging them.

As much as I wanted to turn around and tear off Sharpe’s head, tonight was not the night to make him pay.

I needed Corry and Sterling. Where in the bloody hell were they? I knew they were coming for me. I could feel it. My mark on Sterling’s throat was getting closer. He had definitely left the Cape, and thank fuck for the tiara. Otherwise, they wouldn’t know where to find me.

They’d want me to find a safe place to hide until they reached me. I swept my gaze over the industrial area, and when I spotted an alley, I ducked into it. Running at breakneck speed, I almost collided with the man that rounded the corner at the other end.

Screeching to a halt, everything in me cringed, seeing who it was.

“You.You murdered Vincent! You’re a fucking traitor!” Seeing Sharpe standing in front of me with a look on his face that was all disgust and pity, my insides heaved.

I screamed my fury, releasing my agony in a piercing wail that split the night. Somewhere far off, dogs began to howl.

“How?” I demanded, my tone fraught with anger and grief. “How could you do something like this? You butchered him.” My legs wouldn’t hold me for a second longer. They shook, and I felt my knees hit the wet, filthy cement of the alley.

Sharpe took a step forward, looking down his nose at me like I was nothing but trash. “Look at you. Ruby Renada Baxter. How you’ve grown. No matter how hard we tried to keep you sheltered, you ended up just like your mother after all. She was fierce and wild, just like you. Until those she loved were hurt, that is. Then she’d do exactly what you are doing now. She’d crumble into a helpless heap and cry like the pathetic human she was.”

I looked up at him through my tangle of red hair, blinking in confusion. “My mother was never fierce or wild. She was scared of me. She hid behind her crucifix and locked doors.”

The doctor’s mouth split into a manic grin, his eyes completely devoid of anything that could be classified as good or merciful. “Stupid girl. You still think that mortal was your mother? She was just a woman the coven paid to shelter you. We compensated very well. She had to be, considering how frightened of you she was.”

A chill pulsated through me, filling my body with ice. What was he talking about? My mother wasn’t actually my mother? If not her, who?

What was even real anymore? Had everything I’d known been a lie?

Sharpe took a step closer until he was standing over me. He canted his head, his lip peeling as he regarded me like I was just a piece of gum stuck to his shoe. “For a moment there, I thought you might truly make a half-decent queen. But look at you. Take your mates from you, and you’re reduced to a shaking, blubbering disgrace. It was a shame what had to be done back there. It was almost moving, hearing Feral admit his feelings for you. You have a way of wrapping the hearts of hopeless males around your finger, don’t you?”

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