When the final image showed the four of us staring down at the pile of blood and ash scattered on our front lawn, Destiny released Taran’s head. Taran slumped to the floor and promptly vomited. We ran to her.

“Son of a bitch,” she muttered between coughs.

While some obviously repulsed vampires mopped up Taran’s mess, another female judge fixed her eyes on Emme. I wasn’t surprised. Emme had our father’s fair skin and blond hair, distinguishing her from the rest of us who inherited our Latin mother’s darker tones. I thought Emme resembled an angel in her soft pink dress. The judges probably thought she resembled dessert.

The judge played with the edges of her robe in teasing strokes. It was hard to appear slutty in an outfit that resembled a muumuu with a zipper, but this vamp managed. She leaned forward, crooning to Emme in an alarmingly alluring voice, “Come to me, little one. There’s something I wish to share with you alone.”

Emme stepped closer to me. “I’d rather not,” she responded.

Judge Malika turned to her colleagues. She whispered, unaware my hearing was as sharp as hers. “Sofia just tried to call their weakest one and you saw she failed to react. Clearly, these Wird sisters are immune to our magic, and yet young David attempted to feed from one.”

The others nodded, but otherwise said nothing. I bit back a smirk. Since vampires were strict about keeping their existence a secret, it was illegal to drink from someone who couldn’t be hypnotized into forgetting the experience. They were also required to erase fang marks by licking the wound. I thought we’d gained some leverage until I caught Judge Malika’s sinister glee.

“Young David attempted an illegal feed,” she said. “Your response, however, was exceedingly violent. I sense your collective power. You could have easily contained David and contacted his master. Sir Aleksandr would have dealt with him.”

“Excuse me.” Shayna cautiously addressed the judges. “We didn’t know your rules. We were just trying to protect our sister.”

Judge Malika pursed her lips. “Then perhaps you shouldn’t associate with those whose ways are unfamiliar to you.”

Her condescending tone infuriated me, but I thought better of lashing out. Instead, I tried to clarify her words. “According to you, David committed a serious crime. What would’ve happened to him if we had contacted Misha?”

The four judges raised their eyebrows in unison, and a wave of muttering rippled through the courtroom. I realized I had insulted Misha by failing to use his proper title. My scowl deepened. Considering we might die at his hands, I didn’t give a crap about formalities.

I glanced over, expecting him to take offense. Instead, he gave me a small nod and a wide, wicked grin. Either I’d impressed him with my backbone or my backside. Regardless, no way would I allow him to take a chunk out of me.

The male judge answered me instead of Judge Malika. He wasn’t any peachier. “Sir Aleksandr would have turned young David over to us to discipline. As per our laws, we would have sentenced him to three months of daily torture sessions, but not death.” The judge trained his focus on Taran. “You set him on fire. Had you been alone, we may have excused your actions by reason of self-defense. But you weren’t.” He pointed an accusing finger at us. “You were all present; therefore the fight was unjust.” He sat back and crossed his arms, inordinately pleased with his reasoning.

I shook my head, refusing to accept his judgment. Something wasn’t right; vampires didn’t attack without provocation.

“Now, if there is nothing further, we will adjourn and return with our verdict.” Judge Malika nodded to dismiss Destiny.

My sisters gasped, likely shocked at how quickly Her Honor had wrapped up our case. Well, not if I could help it…

“Wait. Take my testimony.” Perhaps there was something I’d seen to explain David’s aggression. I took a breath and stepped forward, ready to meet Destiny, and knowing I was probably in for a lot of pain. Unlike Taran, I didn’t have protective shields to keep me safe from harm.

Destiny shrugged and cracked her knuckles right before she grabbed my head. Instantly, it felt like she’d replaced the blood to my brain with battery acid. My cries were horrid as every nerve in my body rioted from the scalding torture. Despite all that, and my full-body convulsions, my version of that night’s events popped into my mind and onto the plasma screen.

I watched David crash into Taran’s dresser when she launched her fireball into his chest. He glared at me when I cut off his screams by crushing his throat. Precisely then, I heard Judge Malika’s voice echo in my head. “Stop!” It was as if she’d hit the pause button on a remote. In the frozen image, David’s eyes flashed green—the bright peridot green from a bloodlust infection.

Urgent whispers filled the courtroom as Destiny released me. I crashed to the floor, vomiting. Unlike Taran, I purposely aimed for Destiny’s hideous white platform sandals. All sympathy for that pitiful ensemble was gone, considering the torment she’d subjected me to. To my credit, I didn’t cry, whereas Tim continued to sniffle somewhere behind me.

The room spun. I staggered to my feet. To my right, vampire guards restrained my struggling sisters. Shayna’s breath came fast, and tears streamed down Emme’s face. Taran was all fury. “I’m okay,” I choked. It was a lie. My entire body hurt like I’d taken on a wererhino. But I knew I’d recover.

The guards released my family after a firm nod from Judge Malika. They rushed to me. Emme grabbed me in a tight embrace. Her soft yellow light quickly encased me, instantly extinguishing my remaining pain and nausea. She obstructed part of my view, but I caught Shayna reaching for her toothpicks and converting the minute pieces of wood into long, sharp needles.

Taran clenched her teeth and gathered her fire around her. “I’m sorry, Celia. But don’t worry; we’re getting the hell out of here.”

Except for the judges and Misha, all the courtroom attendants surrounded us. As they closed in, I exposed my fangs and claws and matched the vamps’ hisses with a low, threatening growl.

“The Wird girls are not to be harmed. Return to your pews.” Judge Malika spoke softly, but the authority in her voice silenced the house. Within seconds, the audience resumed their seats as if there had never been a disturbance.

I maintained my defensive posture. “Taran, turn down the power. Shayna, hold your position.” My sisters nodded.

Judge Malika tapped her long nails against the dais. “It appears chronic bloodlust played a hand in the events. Since young David’s fate would have been the same had he stood trial, the charges against the defendants are dismissed.”

Taran glared at her. “Wait just a goddamned minute. You’re letting us go, just like that?”

I glared, too—at Taran. “Zip. It. Now.”

Taran narrowed her eyes. “This is bullshit, Celia. Something’s up.”

“Would you rather stay?” Judge Malika asked in a way that clearly said she’d like us to.

Shayna slipped in front of Taran with her palms up. “It’s cool of you dudes not to eat us and stuff. We just want to know why so we”—she motioned her head back at Taran—“don’t ever end up here again.”

Emme tugged frantically on Shayna’s sleeve. Not me. I was ready to knock them both out and throw them over my shoulders. “Seriously? Can we just get the hell out of here?”

The male judge explained slowly, like nothing as stupid as us could possibly exist. “David was in the beginning phase of chronic bloodlust.”

I frowned, confused. I knew bloodlust occurred when a vamp went too long without a feed, and the freaky green eyes had been a giveaway. It was easily remedied, though, by providing the vamp with a supervised feeding so he or she didn’t completely drain the donor. “What do you mean, chronic? I thought bloodlust resolved itself after the infected vampire is fed.”

Judge Malika responded. “Chronic bloodlust results from a powerful magic wielder’s curse. It makes a vampire’s appetite insatiable. The more he feeds, the more he desires, and the deeper he falls into insanity. He’ll lose his beauty and grow in size and strength from overindulgence. His only focus is to continue to eat at any cost.”

“Dude, that sounds sick. How do you cure it?” Shayna asked.

“There is no cure. The vampire must be destroyed,” Malika answered stiffly.

“But how did you know David had chronic bloodlust?” Shayna pressed.

Malika smacked her lips like she could still taste her breakfast. “The first sign was the aggression David demonstrated toward your sister. Violence toward our food is unnecessary. We have no need to kill our prey to feast well. The second was that there was no reason for deprivation. You live in Tahoe. Millions visit there each year; David could have easily fed anytime he wished. Now, if there are no further questions, leave.”

Judge Zhahara scowled with majestic beauty, likely bummed we wouldn’t be sentenced to some miserable death. But when she turned her sights on Misha she smiled with all the warmth of a cobra. “Sir Aleksandr, step forward. Explain to the court why you allowed chronic bloodlust to go unnoticed and undisciplined in your family.”

We tried to exit the courtroom. Misha blocked our path. At first I thought he’d poised himself to attack. I leaped in front of my sisters to protect them. He ignored us, addressing the judges instead. “I assure the court I hold the strictest control over my family.” His voice belied his rage. “On my honor, I will not only discover how this infestation occurred, but I will also hunt and kill all those responsible.” He then turned to us and bowed. “Ladies, you have my deepest apology for this unfortunate incident.”

Incident? Between my date with Destiny and the legions of orthodontically challenged waiting to munch on us, “incident” didn’t quite sum it up. “Take your apology and shove it up your—”

Shayna covered my mouth. “Dude! Are you nuts?”