“Get them.” Morana issues the command and all too quickly bodies are flying left and right, and without thought I jump into the fray. Just like Carver, Lucian, and Marius taught me, I attack.

I fight.

A second in time and I toss a full-grown man with superhuman strength into a tree. Another second, and I slam my palm into the chest of another, the crack of his ribs under my palm sounding in my ears like a strike of lightning hitting the ground.

“Behind you, mate.” Lucian shouts a warning to Carver.

“You little bastard. A bat isn’t going to do anything.” Carver growls the words as the wood breaks across his back. He grabs it from the fledgling vampires hands and whacks him in the face with it before shoving the spiked end through his chest. “Idiot.” Carver doesn’t wait for him to fall, but instead turns his attention to the next attacker.

I listen as Marius taunts the guards, goading them into following him closer towards the car. “Come here you dumb bastard. Yup, right over here.” He slams one of their heads into the trunk of the car so hard it pops open. He chuckles and moves on to the next one, “It’s like playing whack a mole. Most fun I’ve had in a good while.” He takes them out with an efficiency any mercenary would be proud of, a cheerful smile on his face as he slams his knee into the nose of an adversary and blood spurts everywhere. “Better get that checked, man. Looks bad.”

Grunts and thumps reverberate through the air and I look past the melee to see Morana standing still, watching the fighting with a gleeful expression lighting up her face. She’s stroking the hair of one of her pets. “So fun isn’t it my darling? All this fighting. I told you I’d have a show for us tonight.” She cackles and the girl stares up at her with a blind adoration.

Disgust roils through me at the thought that I could have been one of those poor girls. A collar around my neck and a leash made of gold keeping me tethered to Morana. High as a fucking kite, bending to her every whim, and having to accept every depravity forced on me. Bile roils in my stomach and I shake it off, punching a guard square in the jaw.

I have to focus. Our plan was to get in, let me slip away to find the ring, and get out after the show. So far, the show’s been cancelled and like we’d thought it’s a god damned trap. Fucking crafty bitch.

I wait for Morana’s attention to turn away from where I’m standing as Lyra lets out a battle cry and turns on Morana’s guards. I’d thought she was fighting against us for a moment when she’d first attacked, subtly keeping the guards away from Carver and making it look like she was fighting with them rather than against them.

I wait a moment, scanning each of their faces to make sure they’re not looking at what I’m doing but more worried about protecting their horrible queen.

Each of their faces are distorted with hunger. Fangs dropped, and as I watch they lick their lips. Hunger comes in many forms and I’d assume to be standing that close to Morana you’d have to be one sick puppy.

I move towards the steps leading up to the entrance and pause again. Waiting. Watching. I hold my breath and scrutinize the fighting. Before my eyes Lyra nods to a guard standing on the steps. He turns his back and Lyra catches my gaze.

She mouths one word. Go.

And I do as she says.

I slip past them as they’re distracted and run as fast as I can. Arms pumping, legs straining, I sprint towards the front doors. Past the tapestry covered walls, up the plush velvet covered stairs, and across from the strange looking armored knight statue. Straight up to where Carver told me Morana’s room is.

I fling open the doors and look around. I start opening the chest of drawers to my right, ruffling through them and find nothing. I move to the bedside chest and fling it open, tossing out old keepsakes and trinkets. I stop when I come to a book, flipping through the pages. Something about it draws me in and I tuck it into the bag I’d brought with me. I’ll hand it over to Carver and Lucian to look at, all I know is that I need to have that with me. Some instinct tells me I can’t leave it behind.

And after the past few months, I never ignore an instinct. I refocus my attention to the task at hand, the sounds of the fighting outside added with my new-found book making it harder than it should be. I want to be there next to Carver and Lucian and Maruis, fighting off these animals. But I know that if I want Carver to be whole, mentally, I need to find this ring and we need to get his sister back. Even if that means that we have to take risks.

I look around, distracted by the sheer number of sparkly objects in Morana’s room. What was she a fucking jewelry thief in a past life? She’s got more sparkle than Liberace up in here. I spy jewels on her dresser across the room and I stare at them like a lifeline.

I pull out the picture we’d found of the ring and look at it, then the rings, then the picture. Dismay weakens my knees as I realize it’s not here. I have to find it. I turn and speed through the bathroom and the closet, tossing clothing out of my way and ripping them off hangers. I could care less that the dress that just fell to the floor in a pile of fabric probably cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

It’s nothing compared to the value of that ring if we can get it from her.

I kick at the closet door as I leave the room agitated beyond belief.

I pull at my hair. “Fuck!”

I take one last look around and suck in a calming breath. I can’t stay here any longer. For all I know someone’s realized I’m missing and they’ll come after me.

Pained shouts rumble through the air and I give up my attempt. I need to help my men. And we need to get the fuck out of here. There’s no way we can survive a full-scale attack with just the three of us and Lyra. And by now someone has to have called for reinforcements.

I dash down the stairs and back into the courtyard, stepping over broken bodies of our enemies.

Lucian and Marius stand back to back, plucking their attackers off one by one. The only problem is that they keep coming back for more. Without fire or a good ole decapitation, they’re really hard to keep down. It’s both a blessing and a curse here.

I look around, catching sight of Carver as Hugo and Louis corner him. Carver doesn’t look frightened though. He looks enraged. His fangs are bared, his fists are up, and he’s snarling at them.

I scan the crowd for Morana and see her standing behind two guards. Her fingers steepled in front of her mouth, a smile curving her poisonous mouth. And that’s when I see it.

The ring.

I wrack my brain, not sure how I’m going to get that from her without losing my own life. I watch in horror as Louis casts Carver to the ground and advances on him. I gasp, distracting Carver and Hugo grabs him, holding his arms behind his back and Louis kicks Carver’s knee, the snap of the bone a sickening sound. I cover my mouth so I won’t make another sound that could cost him his life and look back to Morana and that pretty jewel on her finger.

Without any further hesitation I step towards her.

I know that I can’t warn my men about what I’m about to do. They’d only try to stop me. I only pray they see it for what it is and not their worst nightmare.

I shout the words, the sound ringing out through the air and overpowering the noise of flesh meeting flesh as the fighting continues.

“My queen. I wish to pledge my fealty to you.”