-HIM-
I was on the verge of claiming Veronica to show her how real the bond was when this annoying Dhampir showed up to ruin every fucking thing. Everything in me, including my wolf, was urging me to lunge at him, tear him to pieces and hang his decapitated head at my first door to ward off anyone who walked through it.
However, the Night Court was the only thing stopping me from doing so. The last headache I needed right now was being convicted of a Godwick lordling's murder.
I was tempted to kill Karrson and permanently end his nuisance, and I was sure many people would've thanked me for doing god's work, but the trouble that'd follow from the Godwick house wasn't worth the effort.
Besides, he was the only one among the whole Night Court willing to work with me on the missing souls. I was merely putting up with him for the sake of work, but having Veronica involved changed everything.
I didn't trust Karrson around Veronica at all. Karrson knew how to charm people and say what people wanted to hear. He was very good at manipulation and trickery, and I was afraid he was slowly starting to work his magic on Veronica. This made it harder for me to tolerate him. I needed to keep an eye on Veronica, not that I wasn't already doing that.
"You'll stay by my side no matter what," I told her, but I knew she would do anything but that. The flash of defiance in her eyes proved so. I knew she was going to run. It was on her mind. I could feel it, and as much as it pricked my heart, I wanted her to run. I wanted her to run so that I could catch her and claim her like my prize.
I wanted her to run so I could know where her loyalty was. I'd then make her turn away from there, betray the people she was loyal to. I wanted to make her like me— a traitor. If she was my mate, then she was meant to be one.
A traitor was never born but made. I became a traitor because I betrayed my father along with my siblings. My father was a traitor because he betrayed his brothers. I wanted Veronica to become a traitor by betraying the Council she seemed to trust so much. It was only a natural process to become part of who we were, to join this cursed lineage. Her fate had been sealed the moment she was paired with me, and even if she decided to fight against it, there was no way she'd be able to go against what was already decided— that she was to be mine and become a traitor—a Traditore. The Lady of Darkmount, an Underlady.
I could see those traits in her already, but it disappointed me to see that she chose to apply herself for the Council instead of opening up her mind and seeing the possibilities beyond, of all the things she could be if she joined me— of how she wouldn't be a mere cog in a corrupt council but a woman of her own. My woman, she would be.
I needed to show this to her... but before that, I needed her to run. I needed to catch her and drag her back and break her loyalty to those who'd toss her away the moment she became useless to them. That was the only way she'd be able to see the reality of what she was meant to be. Until then, she'd try to defy me and run away. I'd allow that, but only for a certain time.
I led her out of my house, placing my hand on the small of her back, but she stepped away. I clenched my jaw and stared ahead. I was too afraid to look at her because it'd make me snap.
When we reached the bottom of the front stairs of my house, Karrson was in his car, waiting for us to follow. I opened the garage and opened the door of my car for her. For a second, she was hesitant. We were going to be close and alone with each other again— something she seemed to hate.
"You'll come with me," I said firmly because I could see her contemplating jumping into Karrson's car. I wouldn't allow that ever. She gave me a wary look, knowing well if she did that, she'd cross an invisible line, and besides, I could tell that even though she was trying to seem easygoing with Karrson, she didn't trust him fully.
I guess her sceptical nature came in handy at this moment. She huffed and got inside the car silently. I rounded around the car and got into the driver's seat before rolling the car out of the garage.
Karrson gave us an acknowledging honk before he drove down the hill, and I followed him. The drive this time was much more tense than earlier this evening. All the time, Veronica had her arms crossed on her chest, and she was staring out of the window, pretending that I wasn't even there.
I reached out and placed my hand heavily on her thigh to let her know that this wasn't over yet. The game was still on. I knew she would run, and I was prepared for it. She sucked in a breath but didn't make an effort to move my hand.
The journey was long. Karrson led us to the other side of the hills, where there was nothing but large stretches of industrial land that either lay undeveloped or abandoned. It was usually a place where the outlaws set up their shady businesses.
I didn't have a good feeling about the place, and for a moment, I doubted my decision to bring Veronica with me. I shouldn't have dragged her into this, but the way Karrson talked about it, it seemed like somehow the Council was involved in this. That'd be my biggest nightmare, but I was trying to be optimistic for the remainder of the time.
Karrson kept driving before he turned away from the asphalt road and drove down a dirt road, heading towards distant mountains beyond some abandoned warehouses. At this point, we were at the edge of Desert National Park.
I followed him reluctantly, mentally preparing myself for anything waiting for us there. I reached out to touch Veronica for the last time, and she felt tense under my touch, but not because of the mating bond this time.
"What is this place?" She asked, her voice thin. The only light source was my headlights while driving through the desert. Karrson's car was right ahead of mine, and abruptly, he slowed down.
"I don't know," I answered honestly.
"What lead him here in the first place?" She wondered out loud, and I thought the same.
Maybe...
"Might be a feeding ground for the Dhampirs," I took a wild guess, and Veronica gasped. I shrugged. "It's isolated enough for them to do their work without drawing any attention,"
"Do you think he's leading us into a trap?" She asked, and I couldn't help but chuckle at her. She was finally starting to see through Karrson's deadly charm.
"I don't know, but you wanted to come here, so we're here," I reminded her, and right on time, Karrson halted his car. She frowned at me but didn't argue as she stared at Karrson getting out of his car, looking apprehensive.
I armed myself quietly, and just to be sure, I slipped a knife and a gun to Veronica. She took it quietly and hid them under her dress. I grunted when she was done before exiting the car and opening her door.
Karrson was waiting for us ahead, a dark look on his face.
"What is here, Karrson?" I asked him.
"Be very quiet from here," He whispered, "We'll need to cover the rest of the way on foot. They all must be here by now,"
"What do you mean by they?" Veronica asked. Karrson gave her a quick look and replied curtly, "You'd have to see it to believe it,"
His words made me uneasy, but I kept my face blank and followed him, keeping Veronica close by my side. We walked through the dark desert for a few more minutes. As the wind changed direction, I started hearing noises— noises that didn't belong to this realm.
I froze for a second, and Veronica gave me a concerned look. I pushed her behind me as I continued to follow Karrson. I had gripped Veronica's wrist in one hand while my other hand remained in my pocket, my finger on the trigger. Though I doubted a gun would be enough to face those creatures to whom those shrilly noises belonged.
Karrson signalled us to slow down, and I noticed a sudden drop ahead. Karrson hid behind a boulder and motioned me to hide behind a nearby one. I tugged Veronica with me and hid behind the boulder. Here, the noises were louder. Those shrilly voices were chanting something. I had heard them before, and they made uncomfortable memories surface in my mind. I pushed them back and, finally, peaked beyond the rocky edge of the drop. It seemed like this place had been dug to work as a landfill.
The drop wasn't that deep, but it was still deep enough to give me a whole view of what was happening. I first saw something dark and abysmal swirling at the bottom.
Surrounding it were tall, dark figures with red eyes that were tending to the circle of fire surrounding that black hole-like thing. I recognised those tall, dark figures immediately. I had been there when Rhendohr ripped off their wings and expelled them from the Underworld for scheming against him.
They were the Valisks—the angels of death.
The chanting of the screeching noises was coming from the swirling dark hole, and it didn't take me long to realise that those were the sounds of souls. I noticed some people huddled at one side, being watched by a Valisk. I was too busy taking in the whole scene to notice that Veronica had moved to my side, and she was also peeking.
"That's Victor!" She gasped.
~
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