After being betrayed by the ones who she cared for most, Cleo must make a decision as a war breaks out between vampires and humans-- which side she'll take in it.
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It felt like the world stopped. Claude froze. I stared.
How many days had it been since I'd last seen Claude? Why did it feel like forever, but also no time at all? Why did my legs give in, making Felix grip my waist tighter, holding me up? Why did fear grip my chest?
This was Claude. I knew him. So why did my heart feel like I was looking at a stranger? His brown skin, his gold eyes, his slim fingers that held mine. I had studied them in detail many times before. Why did they now fill my chest with anxiety?
"Are you okay?" Felix whispered near my ear, holding me steady.
Claude defrosted. He went to move forward, but a hand landed on his shoulder as he did so, rooting him to his spot. I followed the hand, up the muscled arm, and realized it was Nadir who stopped in. He had an impassive expression on his face, glancing down at Claude. "Claude, remember your position."
A fraction of a second went by and Claude's face hardened. Then Claude shrugged Nadir's hand off him, not gracing him with a response. Nadir didn't try to stop Claude again as Claude shoved through the guards surrounding him, the hard look on his face not lessening. My heart leaped into my throat as he approached me. Felix's hand lifted slightly, moving in front of me as if he was going to protect me from Claude.
I didn't move, unable to breathe. I didn't know how to react. I didn't know what Claude would do. The last time I'd seen him he was arresting me. What would he do now? Now that I'd been freed from the cell they'd been keeping me in?
I wanted to believe he wouldn't do anything bad, but... how could I trust him now? How could I trust anyone? I thought everything would be okay as soon as I saw him, but that didn't happen. Doubt festered instead.
Claude came to a stop in front of me, his jaw clenching as his eyes swept over me— from the bottom of my tattered dress to Felix's oversized hoodie on me, to my messy hair still caked with blood. "Kaz." Claude's eyes never left mine as he spoke, anger lacing his voice. "What is this?"
Kaz? Hadn't he left? Had he followed us even after Sura told him to leave?
"He's kept Cleo locked up for days looking like this," Felix responded before Kaz could, keeping his arm between Claude and me.
"I told you to bring her to the estate and keep her comfortable there," Claude said in a low voice.
"Well, that's not what he did at all," Felix responded flatly.
"Claude—" Kaz began, proving he had indeed followed us, but cut himself off as Nadir spoke.
"She's a prisoner," Nadir said, and I glanced at him to see him frowning back at me.
Claude finally looked away from me, turning back to Nadir, his hands clenching at his side. "Cleo has lived like a prisoner for most of her life. She won't be living like that anymore. Our prisoner or not. Is that understood? She'll be treated like a member of the royal family. Or do you want to go against the king's orders?"
