Page 53 of Let Sleeping Vampires Lie

Con’s gaze met mine across Raven’s bowed head. His eyes held anger, fear, and a kind of savage focus that I had only seen when he thought he was in danger of losing someone he couldn’t afford to lose.

“Move,” he said.

Con picked up Raven in his arms as if she weighed nothing.

I leaned toward her. “Stay with me.”

She tried to smirk. “You say that like I have anywhere better to be.”

Her voice wavered.

Her blood was still flowing.

And whatever was in that wound was weakening her further.

CHAPTER 10

Raven made Con put her down. She leaned against me as we staggered toward the mansion. Her bare feet slipped in the damp grass, and I tightened my grip around her waist, ignoring the hot, sticky feel of her blood seeping through my fingers.

“Hey,” I murmured. “Stay awake for me, all right?”

“I’m trying,” she breathed. “No promises.”

Con walked on her other side, one hand hovering near her arm, ready to catch her if her knees buckled. His jaw was clenched, eyes sweeping the graves for any sign of more enhanced humans. Val and Quinn were still at the storage shed grabbing something to carry her on, but waiting felt like a luxury we didn’t have.

The cut along Raven’s side oozed steadily, a dark line against her pale skin. The edges of the wound still had that strange shadowed hue, like something caustic smoldered beneath the surface.

Fear tightened under my ribs.

“We’re not losing you in our own cemetery,” I told her. “That would be too embarrassingly poetic.”

Her mouth twitched. “It would be very on brand for me, actually.”

“Nah, too dramatic,” I said. “Even for you.”

She let out something that might have been a laugh, then hissed as another wave of pain hit.

We stopped beneath the old yew tree near the center path. She was shaking now, breath coming faster. Con moved in closer, bracing her with both hands while I pressed my palm more firmly above the wound, trying to slow the blood.

“Raven,” I said quietly, “tell me how to help you.”

Her pupils were blown wide, violet irises barely visible around the black. Sweat beaded at her hairline despite the chill. She swallowed, throat working.

“You can’t fix poison you don’t recognize,” she whispered.

“No,” I replied. “But I can help you fight it.”

She tried to shake her head and winced. “Cass, you’re already⁠—”

“I know what I did earlier.” I tightened my grip on her shoulder. “This is different. I’m not boosting Rene, I’m stabilizing you. Tell me what to do.” Surprise flashed in Raven’s eyes. Oh, right, she didn’t know I boosted Rene earlier.

Con’s gaze slid to me, wary. “Cass⁠—”

“Not now,” I cut in. “Raven?”

Her lashes fluttered as she tried to focus.

“Our bond,” she murmured. “You can use it like a conduit, but you have to be careful. If you pull too hard, you’ll drag the poison toward you.”