He just makes these awful choking sounds and pats his hands all over his face like that’s going to help stop the bleeding.
I don’t wait around. While Thaddeus and his other vampy sidekick are distracted, I run across the room and yank the door open. I only make it a few feet into the hallway before someone grabs me again and pulls me back into the office.
“What have you done?” Thaddeus pins me to the wall with his hand around my throat. I claw at his hand as I gasp for breath, and he grabs my wrist. When his gaze focuses on Madame Deverell’s brand, he growls in frustration. “Deverell put a protection spell on you?”
Honestly, I kind of thought the protection spell was for show more than anything. But from the corner of my eye, I see the vamp who bit me lying in a heap on the floor surrounded by blood. With way more confidence than I’m feeling, I sneer at Thaddeus.
“She did. And you’ll all die if you try to kill me or hurt me again.”
Thaddeus bares his teeth and squeezes my neck a bit tighter, but then he drops me onto the ground. I bring my trembling hand up to my throat, coughing and gasping for breath, and watch as he steps away and straightens his suit jacket. A tiny thread of hope blooms in my chest. I don’t think Thaddeus will kill me if he’s the least bit uncertain about Madame Deverell’s protection charm. But I can’t imagine he’ll let me go after what’s just happened either. If I can just get out of this room—if I can find Alistair, Matthieu, or Rian—I know I’ll be okay.
“Get rid of her. I need to speak with the Unseelie Lord.”
My breath falters at his words, and I turn my head to look at the other vampire in the room. He’s been silent until now, and hasn’t moved an inch from his original spot behind the desk. At Thaddeus’s order, the vampire male raises his eyebrows and scoffs.
“I’m not dying for this. Deverell is known to be extremely protective of her pets. I sincerely doubt the girl is lying about the consequences of breaking her spell.”
Thaddeus is clearly pissed at his crony’s straight up refusal to follow his bidding. He’s starting to lose his cool a bit, which makes me think the vampire prick is actually panicking right now. He smooths his hair down and spits venomously over his shoulder as he makes his way from the room, “I don’t care how you do it. Just get rid of her. Take her to Giovanni if you must.”
He slips out the door, leaving me alone with the disobedient vampire. He sighs loudly and rolls his eyes as he mutters, “No way is this worth it just to sleep with some little half-demon hybrid.”
When his gaze turns toward me, I start crying. I’m terrified and pretty badly hurt, and he’s literally my last chance at finding a way out of this. Maybe if I beg, he’ll take me to Lord Rian. Hopefully he’s too scared of Madame to listen to Thaddeus.
“Please,” I cry, not caring how pitiful I look or sound.
“This isn’t personal, human girl.” He slowly walks over to where I’m huddled on the ground and bends down in front of me. His eyes sweep over my form quickly, and he shrugs. “You’re pretty enough, so I’m sure someone else will make you a pet.”
I open my mouth to plead with him again. It occurs to me that I should tell him I’m Rian’s mate. Even if it’s not true, it might get me out of this. But his vampiric reflexes are too quick, and I’m unable to speak a word before he grabs my face between his hands and forces me to stare into his eyes. Most supernaturals can use some level of compulsion. It’s usually easy enough to fight against, but in my weakened state, I only last a few seconds before my eyelids flutter closed and I fall into a deep sleep.
The muffled sound of weeping wakes me up.
My head is absolutely killing me. It feels ten thousand times worse than my worst hangover, and I groan as I fight to open my eyes. As I slowly become more aware, I realize I’m lying on a cold, hard surface. Panic immediately sets my heart racing, and I blink rapidly while I try to figure out where I am.