Meaning I’d had him. I’d had the bastard screaming at my feet, and in my anxiety to get to Jackson, I’d let him live. Fuck.

I would have done the same, Jackson said.

That’s not overly comforting right now. I stopped a few paces outside the stone circle. Will your broken leg prevent you taking out the guards?

It prevents me from moving, but if I can access my fire, I can take the guards out no problem. He paused. But the minute I attempt it, the witch is dead.

I’m about to fix that problem. To Rinaldo, I said, “Release your grip on the witch before I step into your circle.”

He raised an eyebrow. “If you hope that she might help you with her magic, you will be disappointed. Among the charms she created for me was one that restricts any access she has to magic.”

“Release her and you can have me. Don’t, and I’ll kill your guards, free Jackson, and leave you surrounded in a ring of fire your witch won’t be able to tame and you won’t get through.” To Jackson, I added, Don’t react. Not in any way.

With that, I called to the mother. She answered swiftly, and with such force that my entire body trembled. I licked my lips and flicked an invisible sliver toward Jackson—even as I let her energy dance across my fingertips to ensure Rinaldo’s attention remained on me.

“And then,” I added, “I’ll go find your bastard brother and finish what I started. I’m sure he couldn’t have crawled too far from where I left him.”

The pendant disappeared in a puff of smoke even as Rinaldo’s face twisted and he took an involuntary step forward. Then he stopped and took a deep breath. But there was madness in his eyes now—madness and pain. It was both his and his brother’s, I suspected.

“I will very much enjoy tearing you apart piece by tiny piece.” As he spoke, the witch took a shuddering breath, then glanced around wildly. “Where am I? What’s happening?”

“You were under the thrall of a vampire,” I said, keeping my gaze on said vampire, “and have just been released. Stay calm, and don’t move, or his guards will kill you.”

“Oh my god.”

“It’s okay,” Jackson murmured. “Everything will be okay.”

“No, it won’t,” Rinaldo said, then motioned me forward with his fingers—fingers equipped with nails that were unusually long and razor sharp. He really was going to tear me apart. “Come along, Emberly. I haven’t all day.”