Page 81 of Vanquished Gods

We had to play this cool. As the wind rushed over me, I walked casually over to them, masking my horror with an easy smile. “That boy? Am I supposed to be concerned?” I bared my fangs. “Perhaps you didn’t notice, but I’m a vampire now. I don’t give a fuck about humans.”

The Pater’s eyes gleamed. “You’re lying, witch. Always so mendacious, your kind. Give yourself over to my Luminari, and they will subdue you three with hawthorn. I will set the boy free, and Gwethel can live in tranquility. It’s all very simple.”

“Leave her here,” said Sion, cold fury lacing his voice, “and take me.”

Fury of my own twisted through me, molten hot, but I shoved it down, schooling my face into a calm mask. I knew how this would play out. The Pater would kill me, Sion, Maelor,andLeo, and then everyone else on the island.

“You want me to give my life for this mortal boy?” I sighed dramatically. “Are you stupid? As I said, I’m a vampire now. I don’t care for this boy any more then I care for a littlehedgehog.I’ll kill him myself.”

I reached out and stroked his forehead with my bare fingertips.

It was the first time I’d ever touched him without gloves, a simple brush, as light as a kiss.

For a moment, he stiffened—then went limp, slumping back against the Pater, convulsing a little.

It wasveryconvincing.

The Pater’s smile faltered, confusion flashing in his eyes as he looked down at Leo shaking in his arms. He let him drop to the ground, where he fell into the dirt.

I slammed my fist into the Pater’s face—once, twice—cracking his skull. I wanted him alive but broken.

Before I could strike again, the Luminari leapt into action. A soldier lunged at me with his sword, swinging for my throat. But he was too slow for me. I ducked, and my hand shot up to catch his wrist in a crushing grip. He cried out, dropping the sword, and I released my death magic into his body. He fell to the ground, and I pivoted to see a sword swinging for me again.

My stomach swooped, and I caught that one in my fist. I grunted with pain as it cut through my hand, sliding through to the bone, but I managed to stop the swing. I backhanded his face with my other hand, releasing my death magic as I did.

When I turned again, my hand was already healing.

Sion and Maelor were in motion, their bodies blurring as they tore through the Luminari with breathtaking ferocity. Sion ripped thought the throat of a blond soldier. Maelor grabbed a Luminari by the head, slamming him face-first into a tree trunk with such force that it made me wince. Bodies lay scattered at our feet—including the Pater’s, still breathing. Still alive.

I caught my breath as I scanned for Leo, who sat crumpled next to a tree, staring at us with fear.Oh, gods.I ran to him and knelt. “I need you to get to safety.”

He stared at me wide-eyed.

I turned back to Sion. “Where’s the safest place for Leo now? Where can he hide?”

Sion frowned at him. “Leo, have you been drinking the hawthorn tincture?”

Leo nodded. “Can I become a vampire now, too?”

“No,” said Sion with finality. “Maelor will take you back to Veilcross and protect you there.”

Maelor scooped up Leo without a word, pulling him close to his chest. He took off in a streak of shadowy black, racing with him back to the witches’ home.

I dragged the Pater’s limp body out to the battlefield, pulling him over the stones. Sion rushed across the rocks beside me.

Before the ships on the shore, I spun to face the castle.

Moving swiftly, I once more dragged the Pater’s limp body over the stones, his legs catching on the jagged edges of the earth. I screamed, “I have your Pater!”

The Luminari were still trying to scale the castle walls, desperately trying to force the portcullis open.

“I have your king!” I shouted again, my voice ragged, barely cutting through the chaos—the soldiers shouting as they tried to breach the castle, the fire raging from above.

“I have your king!” I shouted yet again, drawing my wand. But my voice was lost, drifting away in the ashy wind.

By my side, Sion cupped his hands around his mouth, shouting, “We have your king! Your Pater has been captured, and your Magister Solaris is dead. My queen, Elowen here, can kill each and every one of you with her magic.”

“What?” I whispered, shocked not only by his words, but by what he’d called me.