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Gods, I hated myself for being so weak.
“Ready,moj sin? Guests have begun to arrive,” my mother’s voice called out from her perch at Mira’s vanity.
I paused at the doorway, watching as she braided my sister’s cascading hair into a plait as they sipped on wine and listened to upbeat music from the radio. They glanced over at my entrance expectantly, only for their faces to fall.
“Alexei! What’s happened?” My mother’s sudden embrace drowned her distressed cry, her cool hands pulling me closer. She inspected the panic in my eyes knowingly for a beat before she released me with a muttered oath.
“What’s going on? Is it Jade?” Mira’s questions buzzed in my head like a gnat.
Mother sent her a chiding tut. “Mira, be useful and go find your brother some whiskey.”
“Fine, leave me out of it like always.” Irritated at the dismissal, Mira stomped away.
I took a breath, searching for the words to articulate the storm raging inside me. Settling for honesty, I grated, “I’m terrified,mati.”
“Oh, Alexei.” Mother let out a deep sigh, her face crumpling. She walked over to a chair and sat, her shoulders hunched over with despair. “It seems the past always has a way of finding us, does it not?”
Her eyes were scarlet with tears as she wiped the sign of her weakness away. “I’ll be frank,moj sin. There is no greater pain for a vampire than losing your mate. Death, especially at the hand of your father, would eat you alive until nothing remained. It is a grief I never wanted you to contend with.”
“You know what she is to me?” I gasped.
Her lips pursed tartly. “I am your mother, Alexei, and we always know these things.”
I shook my head, too afraid to ponder if father similarly suspected. Stabbing a hand through my hair, I rasped, “Has he told you his grand plan? How he wants to kidnap and torture her sisters before killing them all? And you’re okay with it?”
“You know it is suicidal to defy your father, Alexei.” Her eyes narrowed darkly as her fangs peeked past her glossy lips. “I raised you better than to ever allow such weakness to show to him. He may not know what she is to youyet, but in time, he will discover the truth and use her in unimaginable ways as leverage. You know what you must do to save the girl. To prevent the same fate my poor Matthias met.”
Mother never mentioned the male who she had mated with only days before my father made her his bride. Even now, I knew she was only half herself, a broken shell missing something vital.
“I’m getting her out.”
“Oh,moj sin,” my mother sighed, not surprised at my plan in the slightest. “I only hope you are stronger than I was. You’ll have to be to defeat him to survive this, but I will stand by your side. As I have since the day I first held you in my arms.”
Her eyes flickered with sadness at the solemn resolution on my face.
“Mati, the guests are arriving!” Mira called from down the hall.
Mother stood and gently adjusted the lapels of my suit jacket. “I’ll make excuses for you while you clean yourself up.”
After I used the washroom to clean Jade’s blood from my lips, I forced my mask firmly in place. I sauntered down the stairs to the ballroom with a wry grin.
Before I reached the crowd of vampire elites, Henry emerged from my mother’s private parlor and roughly dragged me inside. I opened my mouth to berate him, when I noticed the vampire pacing behind my old friend.
“You,” I snarled, stalking towards Silas faster than even his stealthy reflects could deflect. My fist connected with his jaw as I seethed. “I fucking trusted you, you lying bastard.”
Silas’s dark eyes focused on me, not bothering to defend himself. “Did I not warn you this would result from your dalliance with her, Alexei? Keeping up with your little mate will surely earn you a quick path to an early grave.”
I growled, slamming my fist into his gut.
Henry watched me get another hit in with quiet determination before he halted my arm. I slanted him a glare, which he promptly ignored. “Got that out of your system, did you? Now, let’s focus on the situation at hand before your father discovers us missing from the ballroom.”
Muttering a curse, I dropped my hands to my sides and seethed from across the room.
Henry looked at his watch, and his face pinched with stress. “All of Alistair’s generals should be here within the hour. Your father has already warned Silas about the announcement he plans to make regarding your betrothal. That will be the opportune moment for him to sneak into the dungeons and get Jade to safety.”
“And why should I trust that traitor to rescue my mate?” I bit out, snapping my fangs. “How will he even get her out of Slovenia without my father knowing? He has vampires at every major airport or government building across the country. You won’t get far on foot.”
Silas shifted on his feet, recapturing my attention.
