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“Indeed.” I huffed out a laugh. “The Impaler loved to watch people twitch on his spear. He was skilled in all weapons, but had a perverse, twisted sense of honor. Tens of thousands of men, women, and children were impaled under his command. Figures he’d end up getting resurrected by Ra to kill forever, until our queen put an end to that.”
“He used to joke that he loved to gut a man just to see how quickly he’d get tangled up in his own intestines. He’s still alive. I don’t think it’s a betrayal of trust to admit he’s one of Karmen’s Blood.”
That I did not know, and didn’t like much at all. The only time I’d come close to failing in our queen’s defense was when the Soldiers of Light had attacked her in Kansas City. In close quarters with only two furry shifters and the rock troll for backup, they’d kept me busy with six skilled fighters while the rest tried to drag her through the portal.
The Impaler alone wouldn’t be a problem for me to dispatch. But a dozen or more infamous warriors armed with sharp steel and centuries of warfare could do some serious damage.
:My jaws shatter steel still wet with the blood of my kill,: Sekh said. :While the legion scatters their bones in the deepest ocean.:
:If they have flesh, I’ll fucking roast them alive,: Mehen retorted. :If they don’t, I’ll toast their fucking skeletons until they explode like fucking popcorn. No motherfucking sword is getting through my scales.:
“No one else would teach me.” Letting out a harsh laugh, Vivian shook her head, tossing her red braids back over her shoulder. “So I fucking taught myself.”
Her bond told another story, roiling with frustration, helplessness, and a choking sense of shame of what she’d endured in Heliopolis. I could only fucking imagine what a child raised to adulthood in the punishing wrath of the god of light might have seen. “Then perhaps we’d better start regular drills so we can give the still-living Soldiers of Light some entertainment.”
Flames flickered around her. “Really? Yeah, that’d be fucking phenomenal.”
I looked over at Rik. “Alpha?”
He nodded. “We shouldn’t depend on only our beasts if we have to fight our way out. Remember Rome.”
“What the fuck happened in Rome?” Sekh asked with a scowl.
:I thought you were the mighty All Seeing,: Mehen sneered.
:Even I can’t see through the queen of Rome’s power, let alone the Dauphine’s. If I could, do you think we’d be sitting around here with nothing better to do then pretend to hunt human pedestrians on the street, jerk off?:
“Do I get to watch?” Shara asked.
“You shouldn’t miss it for the world, my queen.” Chuckling, I climbed to my feet and bowed low. “This is going to be amusing as hell.”
32
SHARA
Discover Her secrets hidden in this house, daughter of Isis.
Looking around at the third floor, I realized I’d seen very little of this house. I’d only stayed in New York City briefly, much preferring my own nest in Eureka Springs. But in many ways, my mother had made the perfect home away from home.
This entire floor was open and airy with soaring twenty-foot ceilings. No walls to impede even my largest Blood, and only a few support pillars gave even Leviathan plenty of room to maneuver despite his massive wingspan. A giant retractable skylight provided quick and easy access to the roof for all the winged Blood.
Concrete floor, presumably to make the blood splatter easier to clean, though that didn’t matter to a vampire queen. Well, it did matter to me. A great deal. I wanted to see their blood. Smell it. Wallow in it.
Blood didn’t fuck around with dull swords even when they were only practicing.
Even Guillaume was pleased because the back wall provided ample storage for racks and shelves of weapons, ranging from swords and throwing stars to modern assault rifles and flamethrowers. Magnum had brought in some deep, comfortable chairs, plenty big enough for Rik to hold me while I watched my Blood. She even had staff bring up several trays of food for the Blood to wolf down in between sparring rounds.
Though of course once the humans left, I’d be more than happy to let my Blood wolf on me.
:No fair.: Xin’s wolf touched his nose to my forehead in the bond. :No one gets to wolf on you if I’m not there.:
Touching his bond only made my heart pang with loss. :You’re so far away.:
Hundreds of miles away, he ran a seemingly random back and forth swerving path along the edge of a river, nose tipped into the breeze. :I should pick up his scent soon if he came anywhere out of Louisiana. If not, I’ll cut back toward Florida.:
:Touch my bond as soon as you have his trail.:
His wolf yipped agreement.
