Vincent regarded the monster slayer like he’d gone off the deep end. “Who gives a shit about that now? The vampire king is coming. Sterling wetting his dick isn’t exactly priority number one right now.”
Eros shook his head and rubbed his temple like he was trying to reason with a rock. “Don’t you get it, asshole? If Thomas Knight is in her head, we need to get him the fuck out. How are we going to kill him if he’s in her thoughts, catching bits and pieces of any plan we cobble together?”
“Ooh.” Corry’s eyes lit up with a sudden epiphany that seemed to sideswipe him out of nowhere. “You think if Sterling marks Red and completes the mating bond, it will kick Master out of her head? Like circuits being rewired the right way?”
“That’s the idea, yeah. It’s only a matter of time before Master rips out of Dagon’s influence. It’s going to be dawn within the hour, though, so no one’s going anywhere. May as well put the daylight hours to good use. We sure as shit aren’t coming out of this alive if he’s inside her head, picking up the plan as we make it.”
A wave of nausea swept through me. “About that. I think… I think he’s already broken out of Dagon’s control.”
Chapter ten
Monster's Kiss
Mybreathhitchedinmy chest the second I let it out that my father was already free of Dagon’s control.
All the princes’ reactions varied slightly. Corry’s shoulders quivered, then stiffened. Eros looked absolutely enraged.
Vincent’s features were unreadable, but the wildfire blazing in his eyes was enough to burn the world around him to ashes if he had a mind to let it.
“Fucking Christ,” the fae said after a moment, his voice filled with cinder that crumbled away on the next breath.
Never had I seen so much hopelessness and anguish from the Knight princes.
This wasn’t like them. Seeing them reduced to this kind of desolate state should have scared me shitless, but all it did was piss me off. The vampire king was ruining everything I loved.
“Come on, guys. Let’s get it together. So what if my dad broke out of Dagon’s control? Doesn’t that mean the reanimating spell won’t hold for much longer?”
Vincent laughed, the sound humorless. “Wouldn’t that be a picture-fucking-perfect fairytale ending? Too bad Knight spawn don’t get those.” He rose from the bed and lounged against the bedpost, angling his head to the side to look at me. “This is us we’re talking about. The Knights heirs. We’ve always gotten the jagged end of the stick, Princess. Next comes the part where the universe fucks us with it. If it’s true that your father is no longer on Dagon’s leash, that means Daddy is here to stay until we put him back in the ground.”
My heart felt like it had been wrenched out. “What do you mean?” My voice strained beneath the burden of panic I was barely fending off. “Vin? What are you talking about?”
The dark fae released a guttural hiss. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t intend for you to go near him, so it’s not your concern.”
My mouth stretched with a mangled grin that made Corry wheeze from the sidelines of my vision, and Eros glanced between Vin and me as if he was ready to pounce between us at any moment. We all remembered what happened the last time I brandished the crazed look I currently wore—how I tore at the male’s chest like the lid of a toy box, seconds from reclaiming my mark as a testament to him and others stupid enough to piss me off in the future.
I didn’t move. Didn’t breathe. I remained rooted in place, standing a few feet in front of him, as still as death.
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying and failing to steady the berserk thrum of my pulse. A moment later, I opened my eyes. My guys gawked at me, and satisfaction wound through my gut as all three of their mouths dropped open. The red irises of my monster stared back at me through the reflection in their eyes. She’d never come out this quietly before. Then again, I’d never been so calm and resolute in my need for her strength.
“I allowed Feral to keep my mark on two conditions.” I held up two fingers, where razor-sharp claws were growing from their tips as I spoke with the demonic cadence of my monster. “Number one. Play nice.” The corners of my mouth vaulted into a feral smirk. “Not with me, obviously. But with each other.” I put down a finger, leaving one remaining. My middle finger, inconsequently.
“Number two? No more fucking secrets. That goes for all of you. So I’ll ask again. Dagon’s spell wasn’t supposed to last for more than a day or two. What’s changed?”
Corry made an audible gulp from where he sat with his back against the headboard of my bed. “Hey, don’t look at me. I’m just as in the dark about this as you, Red. I don’t know shit about ancient vampire magic.”
Eros’ lips flattened into a frown. “I hate to say it, but I don’t know what he’s talking about either.”
I cocked an expectant brow at Vin since he seemed to be the only one in on the secret here, whatever it was. Instead of speaking, he seemed preoccupiedwith the sight of my monster. Pushing himself off the bedpost with a shove of his shoulder, he strode toward me with terrifying purpose in the way he carried himself.
He stopped only when he stood mere centimeters from me, our chests practically brushing. He left just enough space between us for me to want to close the remaining gap. My eyelashes twitched as they caught in the path of his baritone chuckle, and his breath washed over my face, making my skin flame.
“Little monster,” the brutal prince drawled in a husky tone, causing my brow to bead with sweat before the nickname had fully left his tongue. He stood before me, tall and imposing one moment, and in the next breath he was ducking down. His eyes blazed brightly. His infuriating mouth curled into a brazen smirk. His heady scent which made my brain go slack from the lustful haze it incited, invaded my nose. He placed his hand gently over my throat, his fingers creating a loose necklace with his own body. It was all a collective volley, meant to break down my defenses.
I knew he was using the raging hard-on he had for my monster as an excuse to dodge the question. Still, it was impossible not to surrender to the attack. In the wake of all the chaos, the anxiety and angst had run my nerves ragged.
Now all of it slipped away like water over feathers, as if those things had never happened and all that existed was Vincent Feral and the strange alchemy our inner beasts shared. So when his burly shoulders hunched and stooped in a tantalizing arch, I couldn’t summon the willpower to dodge his kiss. Clutching his shoulders, their muscled meat flexed beneath my claws as I rose onto my toes and threw myself into him.
His lips were fire against mine. His tongue prodded my mouth, demanding entry. That’s when I remembered how well-behaved my feral fae was when properly incentivized. I swayed my hips, pressing my pelvis and torso flush against his to discover averyaroused male.