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In her distraction, I pounced, wrapping my arms around her shoulders as I yanked the chain over her head. She froze as the talismans cursed power lost its hold. Panting, she looked around the room uneasily, noting the vampire’s head torn at an unnatural angle and the amulet now wrapped around my wrist.
Her green eyes widened. “Oh, fuck. I think the amulet’s corruption is getting stronger. That time, I almost lost control of myself completely.”
A grim revelation, but I couldn’t even manage a breath of relief before I lifted her into my arms and ran for the door. “Come on, there’s no time. We need to find the staff before anyone discovers us.”
Fear shone in her eyes, and she pulled on my belt loop impatiently. “We have to get out of here before Trystan or his goons see us. If he tries to use the staff on either of us, we’re fucked. Besides, you won’t be able to get the staff away from him outnumbered as we are.”
She was right. I couldn’t risk Jade by barreling in without a coherent plan, and she couldn’t guide my attack without the amulet. There was no way in Hell I would let her put that cursed object back around her neck and risk losing her once more unless absolutely necessary.
Decided, I ran for the stairs, gripping her thighs tightly.
“Let me down, Alexei. I can walk,” she gasped when another shout sounded from somewhere to our right.
I growled, tightening my hold. “Absolutely not.”
Blinding lights illuminated from the entertainment room. Vampires patrolling the halls caught sight of us and let out a shout that summoned the elites from the ballroom.
Jade froze in my arms and smacked my back hard enough to sting. “Give me the amulet, Alexei,” she ordered. “I’m pretty sure we’re going to need it to get out of this mess.”
Her words died off into a grunt as I hefted her further over my shoulder and made for the open window. She pounded her fists on my back, but it was no use; I wasn’t letting her go.
“Wait! Maybe you were right. With the amulet, we can get the staff from him. It’s right there, after weeks searching for it,” she pleaded. “Just let me try.”
“No chance in Hell,” I managed through the black void of rage consuming me alive. My instincts burst to the surface after tittering on the edge for days. I feared there was no hope of retrieving my control until I safely removed Jade from the disaster unfolding around us. “I’m not risking you on a hunch. What if he orders me to leave you behind, or worse? Even corrupted, it’s teeming with power.”
She let out a defeated breath through her clenched teeth. “I know, but if he uses it on innocents—”
“We’ll worry about that later. For now, my priority is getting you back to Salem.”
As I braced my feet back on the ground outside the manor house, I ran for my car, my gaze sweeping over the field for any potential threats. Seeing none, I dove for the passenger seat, stuffing her inside before I took off out of Boston limits.
If any dared follow, they would find themselves face to face with a monster intent on destroying any who threatened his mate.
23
Alexei’s hulking form emanated sheer violence, despite the Dubois Court’s disappearance in our rearview mirror. He shook with unspent rage, his voice deeper and filled with something primal and deadly that frightened me.
“Fuck. Fuck!” His fists banged into the car console, shattering the plastic.
With the Amulet of Davorina still in his possession and radiating immense energy, I felt equally undone. Never had the talisman affected me in such a way. I shuddered, remembering the icy sensation crawling down my spine under its possession, as if I was merely a vessel for its wrath.
My wide eyes focused on the rain-slicked asphalt on the empty road ahead. “Calm down before you crash.”
“That was too fucking close, Jade. Now, he knows you’re involved. Those vampires saw you, no doubt sensed your magick. Trystan isn’t an idiot. He’ll have deduced you’re here with me and our true purpose.”
I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear as I tried to think clearly.
“They didn’t see my face,” I reasoned. “And by the power and chaos coming from the ballroom, it seems Trystan was attempting to use the staff and failing. I mean surely, if he had been successful, we would have never made it off the property.”
My explanation came out as a question, the uncertainty in my voice only increasing Alexei’s frustration.
“It’s as you said, Jade,” Alexei scoffed. “Even corrupted, the staff has immense power. The control he can wield may be temporary or wavers depending on the order or number of soldiers he tries to control. There are too many unanswered questions about the talisman, though one truth remains. I can’t have you anywhere near such a weapon on Trystan’s home turf. I can’t protect you alone if my will is in question.”
I bit my lip, still swollen from his heated kiss.
Alexei was used to running the show as a prince and leader of his Court. But the talismans—and his growing connection with me—created vulnerabilities my vampire had long avoided.
Alexei’s eyes burned crimson, unwavering in his rage, and it made my own vexation with him surge, stoked by the lingering effects of the amulet and seeing Alexei with those nymphs. I vibrated with it until I could swear my blood sang with magick. “If you won’t slow down, then pull over before you hurt me. I’m in no mood to heal from broken bones tonight.”
