Page 6 of The Vampire Crown

Fear crawls up my limbs, leaving me shivering with a numbing cold that seeps into the marrow of my bones. The meaning of what remains unspoken hangs in the air. Cold and cramped, closing in on me, trying to bury me under the weight of it. But I do not accept it. I refuse to.

“If fate does not favor me, then I will change it.”

Varin cocks their head. “What makes you think fate is so easily altered?”

“I did not say I think it will be easy.” As I speak, something Alaric once said comes to the surface of my memories.

Only now do I realize how deeply I took his words to heart. I have made decisions that could have cost my life—decisions that perhaps no one else would have made. But they were mine alone to make, and I don’t regret a single one.

A wry smile pulls at the corners of my lips. “Fate is only what will come to pass. What matters is the path I choose.”

Several moments pass. I’m unsure what they will do, but as seconds stretch to agonizing minutes, I grow more convinced they will still send me away.

“Very well. Then we will continue until we succeed, or until you die.” There’s a slight hint of amusement in Varin’s voice.

A chill ripples over the surface of my skin as fire burns along my nerves like poison. Perspiration breaks out across my forehead, and my body feels as though it’s turning to ice from the ground up. With no more warning than that, the three pale scars on my lower left leg prickle and sting like needles dipped in acid.

The force of it rips the air from my lungs. Varin traces them with the tips of taloned fingers, barely skimming the surface.

Sparks of red trail in the wake of their touch. The old wounds feel as if time is reversing and all healing is being undone. Slow and torturous… I barely manage to keep my knees from buckling and remain upright.

Between one moment and the next, the pain fades like the smoke from a spent match. Varin removes their hand, withdrawing their power with it.

I slump, limp and gasping and coughing. Varin lowers me to the ground. I can’t breathe, and no matter how hard I fight against its pull, unconsciousness steals over me.

* * *

It’s dark. The smell of rotting wood and stale air. Beneath me, the ground is hard and cold and uneven. I don’t know how long I was unconscious, but I’m thankful that I can at least remember where I am.

“You are awake.” Varin’s relief is nearly tangible.

Groaning, I lull my head to the side and find the demon’s face startlingly close. They are curled up against my side. Their body radiates a mild warmth instead of their usual chill.

It takes effort to sit up. The exhaustion that is coiled within every inch of muscle and bone is so intense, I could nearly weep. Not even the Otherworld-damned stone beneath me could stop me from sleeping right in this very spot for a full day if I let myself. Calling on the remaining dregs of strength, I compel my body to rise.

Varin echoes my movements and watches me closely. They take my hand with the ring and hold it palm up, humming thoughtfully.

Before I can figure out what they’re about to do, Varin drags something sharp over my hand. I suck in a sharp gasp and struggle to pull away, but I am too weak, and they are too strong for my efforts to do any good.

A stone shard falls between us with a fragile clack. Already forgotten. A wave of nausea rolls over me at the sight of raw flesh through my blood.

Pins and needles race through my veins and down my arm. The sensation is more uncomfortable than painful. But the shrinking well of blood captures my full attention. I gape, not daring to blink as the muscle and skin knit back together. In seconds, it’s gone without a trace.

It was nothing how I expected it to feel. Nothing like the first time Alaric healed me, or even when Cassius healed me after I’d killed Alexander.

“You did well, Clara.” The demon’s mouth pulls back just enough to show the menacing points of their double rows of jagged teeth in what I think might be a smile.

A small thrill alights inside my chest.

This might actually work.

My celebration is cut short when the demon’s head jerks up, a low growl issuing from their throat. I sway on my feet, feeling the further loss of the energy that small amount of healing took. On instinct, I swivel to face the same direction, though I cannot make out whatever they must have heard or sensed.

“Quickly now,” Varin hisses lowly. There’s a sense of urgency that wasn’t there before as they push me toward the door.

CHAPTER THREE

CLARA

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