“Anastasia.”

“How dare you—”

“It’s fine, Hunter. Selena is here as my guest, after all.” She silenced Alec with a glare and motioned to the chair in front of her.

I glanced at Headmaster Daizlei, sitting behind his long oak desk— the desk Anastasia was currently leaning against. Her guards were stationed throughout the room, melding into the shadows, neither seen nor heard. Daizlei’s face was stoic, an unreadable mask. This couldn’t be good.

“Guest?” I repeated, plopping into the chair with exaggerated ease.

Her eyebrow rose, but there was no amusement in her eyes. “Guest.”

“To what do I owe this pleasure, Council Member Fortescue?” I worked to keep my tone light, friendly.

She smirked at the change in title, but I played the humble commoner well. I couldn’t afford to show worry. Anxiety clawed up my throat with every passing moment that she stared at me with those unwavering, cold blue eyes. Being summoned so soon for a visit after her grandfather’s death and my interrogation wasn’t a good sign. Something was wrong. It was the only reason she would travel halfway around the world in person. She either wanted something, or this was my execution.

“I’m sure you’ve heard what’s transpired over the last twelve hours.”

“My condolences for your grandfather. He’ll be dearly missed.” They were pretty words. Respectful words. The very words people had offered me when my parents died. If I’d had time to pretend, I would’ve looked for different ones, because, judging by the clenching of her fists and shuddering breath, she felt the same way about them I had. They weren’t enough, and they never would be.

“He will be,” she murmured, taking a breath to steady herself. “But that’s not why I’m here.” She pushed off the desk, and walked away. Her steps were measured as she approached the massive stained-glass clock that towered over campus. I glanced at Daizlei now that her back was to us, but he remained a statue as ageless as time.

“The Council is calling for war. The Vampires have been testing the boundary for the last half a century, and some members view my grandfather’s death as the final straw.” Her voice carried.

“I was under the impression that the table was divided. Which leaves you.”

Her back straightened, and the clock chimed. “Publically, I’ll support the war because my grandfather just died, and that’s what’s expected.”

I crossed my ankles and rested my hands in a steeple. “And outside the public eye?”

She turned to meet my eyes. “I’ll be putting together a group of exceptionally gifted Supernaturals to end this war before it even starts. A group you’ll be leading.”

I stared at her, mouth hanging open, unable to form a coherent response. “You— I— What?” I spluttered, dropping the nonchalant façade.

“I don’t want to go to war, Selena. Millions will die, and there’s a high risk of exposure. The Council is proposing a draft, and taking those soldiers to Viliky Novgorod before winter hits. They want to strike now…however, they understand my concerns. Therefore, they’re willing to postpone any declaration of war if they start seeing results. Results I think you can deliver.”

I weighed my response. Results. Such a diplomatic way of saying murder, like assassination was just marking off a to-do list. “Let me get this straight. The Council wants to attack the Vampire capital of the world, and you want to stop it?”

“Correct.” Her response was stiff, but her actions seemed sincere.

“And you want me to lead some band of misfit servants to god knows where and hunt down those things? Don’t you have anyone better suited for this?” I wanted to ask why the hell she wanted me, but I knew why. I’m a telekinetic. Which put a price on my head, but also made me valuable, because I would be able to do things they couldn’t dream of, if my powers continued to grow.

“Not quite. I want you to lead a team of soldiers I’ve personally chosen to accompany you to hunt down Vampires. And they are not my servants. They volunteered.” She tapped her heel impatiently, oblivious to the flaws in this grand plan of hers.

“I have several issues with that statement. First and foremost, I don’t know where you got this idea that I’m the girl for your mission. Second, even if I was—which I’m not—I pick my team, not you.” I stood, turning to walk out the door.

“I think you’ll want to reconsider.”

I paused, glancing over my shoulder. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

Her blue eyes pierced me as the overwhelming presence of her mind pushed down on mine in a battle of wills. “Victoria Hunter’s memory of your attack was tampered with, which is, by law, a crime I could have you put on trial for. Instead, I want to make you an offer.” Her shark grin widened. “You fight for me for the duration of the war, and in the end, you go free, and can use my team to hunt down whoever sent the Vampires after you.”

Silence ticked by like the hand of a clock that never stopped.

“How do you know what happened if Victoria’s memories were altered? How do you know I even had anything to do with it?” I asked, trying to carefully dance around accepting the blame even though I wasn’t the one to blame for this. If anything, Lucas was the idiot who hadn’t covered his tracks well enough, and now the Head of the Council had enough dirt on me to get me killed if I didn’t do what she asked.

“Because when her memory was re-evaluated, we found these interesting inconsistencies between what she thought had transpired, and the little message you sent.” She paused, giving me a moment to weigh my options. Or maybe just taking the time to enjoy her victory. If she really was able to break through whatever Lucas had done…I was in deep shit. Like, mounds of it.

“Why do you want me in the first place? Why not just dole out your punishment and be done with it?” I asked, knowing full well she didn’t need the Council to take action against me. She was drawing this out, playing with me, and for what? A flippin war I wanted nothing to do with.

“Because you don’t have a problem killing, and that makes you useful. I’m making you an offer for freedom and a chance at vengeance. Don’t be stupid, Selena. Take it, before I change my mind and kill you instead.” Her abrupt switch wasn’t surprising, but at least she wasn’t pretending to be anything more than the monster she was beneath that face.

She was playing a dangerous game threatening me, but I wasn’t a fool. Anastasia Fortescue had nothing to lose but the respect of her people. Whereas I…I had everything now. I had a sister I needed to live for, and a promise to keep. I had friends…well, kind of. I didn’t know where Lucas and I stood. Given his role in putting me in the middle of this shitstorm, I wasn’t exactly his biggest fan at the moment. Then there was the whole matter of promising Tori that I would get revenge—for her, for Lily, and myself.

Anastasia’s deal was the best shot I was going to get, even if being her assassin stripped whatever remaining morals I had left. Something still didn’t sit right, though, and the inexplicable sense of wrongness hit me strongly enough that I knew I needed to bargain for one more thing—because I was selfish, and that was what selfish people did. “Okay, but I want something.”

“I’m listening,” she said.

I stared at the glass clock behind her, wondering how hard it would be to shatter it and kill them all. Wondering how my life had become a bargaining chip. How I’d ended up here. That one was a little easier, though.

Lucas.

I was here because of him, and how he’d fixed things. I’d been right not to get tangled up in his so-called love. It had made him a damned fool, and now I was paying the price.

“I want to choose my team. At least part of it. Supernaturals working for the Council tend to lead inexplicably short lives, and I want people I trust guarding my back.” I paused, waiting for her answer. I really had no room to be arguing here. No leverage. All I had was the gut instinct that she’d give me what I wanted, because she didn’t want me dead—at least not yet.

“Why would I do that? They’re children, only just coming into their own powers, and while a good number of them will end up on the front lines anyway if the draft is called in, they aren’t strong enough for this. I will only have the best representing the Council.”

I didn’t know what to say, because she wasn’t wrong. But…for the first time in my life, I didn’t want to go it alone. Not completely. Lily wasn’t coming anywhere near this—she would be safer here—but the others…I wanted them. I would need them when the time came, to remember what living felt like. To drag me out of the darkness kicking and screaming. I needed them, because now that I knew what it was like to live, I didn’t want to die inside again—but I wasn’t strong enough to save myself.

I couldn’t say that, though, because that was weak. So, I would approach it from a different angle, one powerful people could understand.

“I’m no older than them, and yet you don’t seem to mind asking for my freedom. If you truly want a team that’s strong and can end a war, you’ll give them the choice, because I can guarantee that they’re stronger than any band of reject royals you’ll give me.”

It wasn’t a lie, but it also definitely wasn’t the truth. I had no idea if they’d be stronger—all I knew was that the people she was bound to give me probably wouldn’t care one way or another what we killed or if I died. My friends would, though. They would be my humanity and give me a reason to fight when the killing gene overwhelmed me.

“Stronger? You’ve killed demons, survived a Vampire attack, and I’ve seen you massacre a number of young men for underestimating you. You have no mercy. You told me that yourself. It’s the only reason you’re here.” She paused, stepping forward to meet me eye-to-eye. “And you’re telling me they can do the same? That they are stronger than even heirs to the Council?” Her smile was cool, and vicious.

I should’ve thrown myself on the pyre and just accepted her offer at face value. I shouldn’t have tried to think long game, because I was pretty sure she was going to give me what I asked for. But not without a price.

Swallowing the bile in my throat, I couldn’t stop myself from sealing their fate when I said, “Yes.”

She missed nothing. The clock chimed behind her, like a warning bell I should’ve heeded.

“You have a month to train with the nine soldiers I’ve chosen. I’ll allow you to choose six of your own, who will also train. You have twenty-four hours to get me their names and await further instructions.”

What I’d just done made me want to vomit, because it was far too easy. And if I knew anything about the Fortescues, it was that nothing came easy where they were involved. Her response had been too quick. Too planned. I didn’t like it.

“This is an honor, and you will treat it as such. Some people give their firstborn child for the chance to serve my family, and you get the privilege of serving as penance for your crimes.” Her words were mocking, condescending. After the last couple of days I’d had, though, I couldn’t give two shits what she thought of me. Only how this little game we were playing turned out.

“Is that all?” I asked, feeling both tired and out of control. Her patience was running thin, and I knew I shouldn’t push my luck any more than I already had, but the urge to remind her who she was talking to was very tempting.

“For now,” she said dismissively. “Do we have a deal?”

Deal. For some reason, the word felt off—maybe because what she was doing wasn’t a deal. It was blackmail.

She held out her hand, pale white and identical in every way to my own.

At least she isn’t pretending I’m a guest anymore, I thought bitterly.

I forced myself to place my palm in hers. If I played my cards right, no one would set foot in the Vampire capital, and I would get to keep every promise I’d made.

Her ice-cold fingers wrapped around mine as she whispered her final command.

I nodded once.

What have I done?