He guided her to the center where he had placed a round table. On it was a bowl of cheese puffs, a champagne bottle, and two long-stemmed hand-blown glasses. The paper cranes followed them, flitting about, teasing her hair and spinning off to fly up to the ceiling.
The largest crane, made of dark purple paper, dropped onto the table. It leaned its long elegant neck, letting a silver ring slide off onto the space in front of Mina with a small clink. Her hands were covering her mouth, her midnight eyes so wide and startled. Those same beautiful eyes flitted to the ring, to him, and back.
Laughter threatened to spill out. It ran along the back of his throat and across his face. He allowed himself a broad smile.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this speechless.” He reached over and picked up the ring, showing her the amethyst in the center. “This is a start of something…”
“You are bad,” she scolded.
For the thousandth time, Xander thanked providence and grace for Mina convincing him into the blood-tie prior to the failed negotiations. He’d been reluctant, but it was what saved her in the end, allowing him to track her. No. It had saved him. If she’d died…If…Now, no matter what, their fates were tied. Together they’d protect the children of Mikhail and Laurie, and each other.
“It’s a yes.” She grinned, the sharp points of her teeth giving her a wicked look.
“I haven’t asked.” He raised a brow at her impertinence.
“Then do!” She laughed as a few of the paper cranes settled in her hair, flapping their small wings.
The woman he loved wasn’t sleek or elegant, but he didn’t want that. He wanted Mina.
“Marry me.”
Lev never liked the blood room.
It smelled of rust, old dirt, shit, and despair. They’d fastened his wrists to chains connected to the stone ceiling, pulling his skin and muscles taut. His ankles were manacled on either side of the drain below. His blood would serve to feed some of the darkest denizens of his world.
He’d been stripped of his clothes except for loose-fitting black cotton pants. A courtesy given to him because he was the son of Cazacul, The Dragon. If he’d been a lesser creature of his world, they’d have hung him naked and mocked him.
It wouldn’t have mattered to him.
He kept his eyes on the floor a few feet in front of him. Around him he heard the rustle of clothing, thud of footsteps, and the scrape of claw and rough skin on stone as the Darks settled themselves in the encircling seats of the amphitheater carved into the rock. They were here to see his punishment. To see what awaited those who broke a law set by his father. His sentencing had been pronounced out in the council chamber, where he was mercifully not required to be attendance.
No, he was the main attraction.
The energy in the room changed the moment Stefan Tepes entered the arena. Lev couldn’t hide the upward quirk of his lips. The man couldn’t show up unobtrusively if he tried. Ah, his amusement showed he hadn’t reached the depth of despair yet. There was still time.
“Are you ready?” His father’s voice was low, rough. His words were meant only for Lev, but the Darks, with their enhanced auditory senses, wouldn’t miss a thing.
Lev forced his eyes up into the inscrutable black gaze of Cazacul. He stood less than six inches from him. Beside him lay a table with a number of instruments he didn’t want to think about.
Only criminals of the Darks were scarred on the face. This was his second offense. He would now truly be called a Downcast—the lowest in their society—and his father was going to do the task. He wouldn’t trust another to it, just like the last time.
“Do it,” Lev rasped back.
There was no sense delaying this. His father shut his eyes for a moment, and the tiniest sliver of regret and grief, salt and bitter, rolled over his tongue. When those obsidian eyes opened again, resolution, flat and chalky, remained.
“This is your last time,” his father told him, no longer keeping his voice lowered, but not shouting either.
What Cazacul was saying more clearly than if he’d said it outright was that he couldn’t save him if he crossed the line again. There wouldn’t be any more scarring, and his body would be given to their people to feast upon, taking his power from blood and flesh. Lev knew this.
He met his father’s gaze and nodded. “Understood.”
Acknowledgments
I wouldn’t be here without the support and humor of my agent Victoria Lea, who has the patience of a saint, and shares my love of coffee.
Thank you to my editor Michelle, who has helped refine this story, and Omnific Publicist Traci who guides me in the promotion of it.
To my critique and brainstorming partners who keep me grounded and laughing: Katherine Bone, Ronna Smythe, Moriah Densley, and Jennifer Stephan; you’re always an inspiration.
To my Beta readers: Jean Zeiler, Pyxi Rose, Anna Steffl, Angela Blount—Thank you, for reading the story at its roughest and still loving it.
And a huge thank you to the gracious Debra Glass and her husband Timm, who answered my endless questions about cleaning up hazardous spills and Tyvek suits. All mistakes are my own.
To my friends writing and otherwise; Jenna Barton, Nancee Cain, Houston Havens…the list can go on and on, you know who you are. Without the wise words and sharing my love of snark writing would not be near as fun.
Finally a shout out to my street team the Darklings, and to my friends at the Heart Center, all who love books, adventure, and fun times—So glad I know you!
To my One and Only who makes the best cup of coffee and my Minions who remind me of the ever-changing slang—I couldn’t do it without you.
About the Author
M.V. Freeman lives in northern Alabama. A nurse by day, at night she enjoys creating and exploring alternate worlds within our own. She gravitates toward stories of determined heroines and anti-heroes who push the boundaries as they both fight to find their light in the dark.
M.V. is represented by Victoria Lea from The Aponte Literary Agency. Her debut novel, Incandescent, is the first in the Hidden Races Series and Illuminations is the second. Currently she is working on the third book in the series, while plotting others. When not writing, she can be found reading, cooking, throwing around kettle bells, or making coffee. You can find out more about her here at: www.mvfreeman.com
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