Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 97188 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97188 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
On the other hand, there’s an entire bloodline of vampires whose power is glamour. A single word from them is enough to stop even the most powerful predator in their tracks and make them helpless as a babe. That is dangerous. There’s a reason we don’t fuck with them unless we absolutely have to—and when we have to, we attack from long range. That bloodline is the reason I’m proficient in sniper rifles.
Impossible to glamour me into doing their will if they’re missing their head.
If Bastian’s power is anywhere in that vicinity, then he’s exactly as dangerous as the Cŵn Annwn believe. If his glamour works the same way that Wolf’s paramour’s does, then his guards will have him gagged. If they’re smart, they’ll have him gagged, blindfolded, and bound.
If the ship goes down, he’ll die.
“Lizzie.” Maeve steps to me and grasps my shoulders. “This might be our only chance to get your heirlooms back. It could be months or longer to track them down again, and if they go to Lyari, then they’re beyond our reach for as long as they’re there. No matter how powerful and formidable you are, the capital is filled with the Cŵn Annwn. It’s too dangerous to risk.”
I don’t give a fuck about my family heirlooms.
The thought shocks me. Ever since I realized Evelyn had them with her when she disappeared, retrieving those jewels had been the thing motivating every single one of my actions. Maeve is right. I should be frothing at the mouth to follow Siobhan’s orders just to get them back. I shouldn’t care if anyone’s hurt in the process. My mother would whip me for experiencing even a sliver of doubt, of hesitation.
But I do care. A whole fucking lot. More than I know how to put into words.
It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask Maeve what happens if we just . . . let them go. If we stopped hunting them. If we took a different route. I have no desire to settle down in some tiny selkie town, but Threshold is vast and filled with wonder. We could spend the rest of our lives traveling it.
Except that’s just another problem. I have the potential to live several of Maeve’s lifetimes. She will grow old and frail and eventually slip beyond my reach, while I will still be hale and hearty. The thought makes me sick to my stomach.
What if I bit her? Not the bite of feeding but the bite of turning. Bloodline vampires don’t make a habit of turning humanoid paranormals into vampires. A turned vampire is a different creature all together. They gain the life span and superhuman strength and speed, but none of the powers that come with being part of the bloodline. And their bite hurts rather than giving pleasure.
Still, it would mean she was alive.
“Lizzie,” Maeve says again. She squeezes my shoulders and gives me a tiny shake. “Even without your heirlooms in play, we cannot let the Council get their hands on Bastian. If he’s close enough to Siobhan for her to care if he lives or dies, then he’s privy to secrets that will cost a massive loss of life. More than that, they’ll become aware of the rebellion before we’re ready for them to know. It will be an all-out war. I don’t see how the rebellion can possibly win unless we have the element of surprise on our hands. We have to save him.”
“Or kill him.” That’s the simplest solution. It means the rebellion loses their glamour mage, but it prevents the Cŵn Annwn from getting access to his secrets.
She narrows her eyes. “I realize that murder is your default, but even without the risk of him falling into the Council’s hands, it cannot be overstated what a powerful tool he is. We need him.”
I knew she’d say that, but it’s not going to stop me from arguing. “How can you need someone who you didn’t know existed a few hours go?”
She sets her jaw in a stubborn angle I’m beginning to recognize. Maeve may bend when it comes to certain things, but the moment she digs in her heels, my chances of convincing her to see things my way diminish rapidly. Sure enough, when she speaks, her voice is clipped and angry. “I understand this isn’t a priority to you, but his existence can alter the course of the rebellion. Once you collect your family heirlooms, you’re leaving Threshold. You don’t have to continue to live in a world where we suffer every time a Cŵn Annwn crew feels like causing problems. If this man is vital to Siobhan’s plan, then we need him. It doesn’t matter if you think we do or not, because she thinks we do and therefore we will save him.”
That’s the problem with a cause. It makes martyrs of far too many people. It’s clear in every line of her body and the boldness in her tone that Maeve believes in the rebellion wholeheartedly. She doesn’t want to die, but she’s willing to if it comes to that.