Blood Legacy (12 page)

Not yet, anyway.

“Lucio’s death has weighed heavy on all our souls. When the Coven offered me the chance to take his place within the Coven of Families, I knew that I would not want to do so unless I could do his work justice.” Victor smiled, pearly teeth glinting in the spotlight.

“And so it is my great honor to announce that, in addition to continuing my duties running the daily operations of Bressov Industries, I will be joining the Coven of Families.”

The crowd cheered. Nastasya slapped me on the arm before applauding and waving her hands wildly. I managed to plaster a huge smile on my face, but inside, I sensed a raging storm.

Yes, I would now have almost unfettered (well, except for when Victor literally chained me . . .) access to one of the most powerful Vampyrs in the entire Republic. Finch would be thrilled. The whole Resistance would benefit. And the Resistance aside, I now had Victor Bressov’s ear. I should be delighted.

Instead, I felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. I’d put my trust and my safety completely into Victor Bressov’s hands tonight, after all, and even when I’d started hallucinating again, he cared for me above and beyond what anyone else had ever done—human or Vampyr. I liked having him trust me in return. And it felt dangerous—overwhelmingly dangerous, in a way that even an
agonie
shouldn’t enjoy—to put my fate so solidly into the hands of a man I was actively betraying.

But the Resistance needed me. Humanity needed me. And if Victor had spoken truly
, then we needed each other, to reach our true potential.

Victor
held his hands up, forming a V with his arms, to silence the crowd. “Thank you. Thank you so much, my brothers and sisters in blood, our allies, our Donors, our guests. And to demonstrate my commitment to the Coven of Families, I would like to share with you the details of the orders that I have just signed as my first official act as a Coven member.”

I stood up straighter, craning to see him over the heads of the Vampyrs, yearning to feel his eyes on me once more.

“I have ordered the immediate arrest of the human Resistance fighter responsible for Lucio Bressov’s murder,” Victor said. “Finch Oakton.”

To be continued . . .

Don’t miss
BLOOD VENGEANCE

Book #2 in the Blood Legacy series

Coming September 2013 from Velvet Pony Press

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