Amelia rubbed her forehead. She remembered that confusing time of being newly bonded and trying to push Byron away, but at the same time fighting an unquenchable need to be close and feed her.

“Nothing will stop Victorija coming for you, Daisy. She’ll use you for blood and never stop, just like Victorija’s father did with her mother.”

“There must be some way to break the bond. There’s always a way. I’m not going to be some vamp’s everlasting meal.”

“Maybe Magda might know of something buried deep in the magic literature?” Amelia said to Byron. “Or maybe Sybil?”

“We will look into it, but be assured, Daisy, we will protect you.”

“Thank you. I should probably mention, when Victorija tasted my blood, she said it was strange,” Daisy said.

“What was strange?” Amelia asked.

“After she tasted my blood, she recoiled and looked deeply into my eyes as if she was remembering something.”

What could it all mean? What Amelia did know was that suddenly their lives had gotten even more complicated.

* * *

Alexis stood in the entrance hallway with the two-person team she had put together—Owen, one of Bhal’s warriors, and Trista, a turned vampire with a lot of experience.

“Okay, stick close to Daisy. Byron has assured her that we will keep her safe, and I intend to keep that promise.”

“Yes, Duca,” they both replied.

“Now keep on your toes because Daisy has no fear and mistakenly thinks she can take on the world. Another thing is that she can’t be compelled. We don’t know why, but it helps us. It means that a Dred can’t lure her away. If you need backup, call immediately.”

They both nodded and went to the drawing room doors to wait on Daisy.

Just then the front door opened, and Katie came through it. Alexis had to physically stop herself from running to her. Katie had been out for a jog after lunch before she started her afternoon tasks. Alexis was comfortable enough with that because after the other night at the park, she’d put a guard on Katie with orders to keep off Katie’s radar.

They hadn’t talked since their argument. Alexis hadn’t wanted to face the decision she had to make—love Katie completely and live with the fear of her mortality, or walk away.

It was so hard to keep away from Katie. Alexis ached for her deep in her soul, and the ache was made worse by not feeding. She didn’t want to hurt Katie’s feelings by feeding on another, so she’d been surviving on bottled. One thing was for sure, if she fed on Katie, there would be no going back. She loved her too much.