The humans turned, craning their necks up and looking behind to where Kanin’s tall, imposing figure stood perfectly still on an overhead beam, gazing down at them.

“So, wha’d’ya say, minions?” It wasn’t really a question.

Jackal’s voice was hard, the edge beneath the surface hinting at barely restrained violence. He grinned at them, the smile of a killer, all fangs and glowing eyes, and several raiders shuffled uneasily. “Do we have an understanding? Grovel for my forgiveness now, and I might kill only half of you later.”

The raiders hesitated. Several of them looked to Zeke, standing motionless at the edge of the pit. “What about the other vamp’s promise?” one called. “He said he’d Turn whoever killed Jackal and brought you his head. Does that offer still stand?”

Jackal laughed, his voice booming through the chamber.

“You really think that psycho would’ve Turned any of you?”

he mocked. “Really? Because the messed-up face and obnoxious riddles would’ve tipped me off.” The raider king shook his head, his voice cutting. “He’s not coming back, minions,”

he called. “And if any of you believed for one second that Sarren would keep his promise and not rip your hearts out through your jugulars, then do me a favor and shoot yourself in the face right now, because you’re too stupid to keep living.”

“Sarren is gone,” added a deep, confident voice from overhead. Kanin, watching dispassionately from his perch. “And as Jackal said before, he is not coming back. We are the vampires you must deal with now.” The raiders stirred, muttering among themselves, as the Master vampire continued.

“You have two clear choices tonight—leave in peace, or stay and fight us all. You might win. Your numbers might overwhelm us. But we will decimate this city, and its inhabitants, before we are finished. And neither Sarren nor Ezekiel will protect you.”

I stood quietly, sword in hand, waiting to see what the humans would do. I felt like I should say something, but Zeke and Jackal seemed to be handling it well on their own; they were the vamps who had been in charge of this city, not me. And Kanin, by definition, was a Master and someone you’d best pay attention to. I just had to stand here and look dangerous—well, as dangerous as a thin, seventeen-year-old girl with a katana could look, I supposed. Hopefully the fact that I was a vampire made up for my height.

There were a few heartbeats of tense silence, before one raider snorted and stepped back from the edge.

“Fuck this,” he growled, lowering his weapon. His voice echoed through the chamber, and the room seemed to let out its breath. “I ain’t fightin’ a goddamned pack of bloodsuckers.

They want the city, they can have it. I ain’t dyin’ for this.”

That seemed to be the tipping point. As the one raider walked away into the darkness, everyone else lowered their weapons and stepped back from the ledge. Jackal waited a moment longer, until it seemed the danger was truly past, then nodded.

“There, see? I knew we could be civil.” Though his voice was amused, his eyes glittered, hinting at future retribution.

“Murder and thieving aside, we’re not barbarians. Now, get out of here, the lot of you. Your stupid faces are grating on my nerves.

“Oh, and minions?” he added as the room began to empty.

Most of the humans looked back, and Jackal gave them a very dangerous smile. “Don’t think for a second you’ve gotten off easy,” he warned in a low voice. “I won’t forget this. In fact, I think it’s high time we brought back the public dismemberments, to remind everyone why it’s a bad idea to piss off a vampire king.” He grinned up at them, fangs gleaming brightly, and cocked two fingers. “Any volunteers?”

The raiders scattered. Guns clattering, they swiftly drew back from the ledge and fled the room, vanishing through doorways and even through holes in the walls in their haste.

For a few seconds, chaos ensued as the army scrambled to get out of Jackal’s immediate sight. Then the footsteps disappeared, the voices faded away, and soon the dripping of water and the faint moans of the building around us were all that could be heard.

Jackal smiled into the silence, then turned to the rest of us, smug satisfaction breaking over his face. “And that, ” he stated, looking mostly at Zeke, “is how you rule a raider city.”

Zeke didn’t answer, but I stepped forward, placing myself between him and Jackal, keeping my sword raised. Jackal eyed me and snorted.

“Relax, sister.” The raider king waved an airy hand. “Put up the damn sword before I shove it down your throat. The minions have come to their senses, and as soon as I hang a few heads from the center of town, all will be as it should.

We won this round, so untwist your panties and calm down.”

I didn’t relax. “What about Zeke?”

“What about him?” Jackal shrugged. “You won’t let me put him out of his misery, he’s your problem now. Besides…” He glanced at Zeke, watching us a few feet away, and smirked.

“I’d never thought I’d say this, but the little meatsack has potential. If he doesn’t have a meltdown and decide he needs a tan, he might actually be a decent bloodsucker. And by decent, I mean a proper, murdering, ‘I eat babies for breakfast’ vampire. It’s always the nice ones you have to worry about.”

Jackal smiled at me, cruel and challenging. “Ironic, isn’t it, sister? Your innocent, puppy-eyed human could become a worse monster than you. Or me. Or even Sarren. Wouldn’t that be a hoot?”

I scowled, but at that moment Kanin dropped from the ledge, landing with a barely audible splash a few yards away.

I blinked as he rose and glided toward us, his face impassive.

“I thought you and Jackal were going to wait outside the city,” I said, gazing up at him. “Wasn’t that the plan? Not that I’m complaining, but why’d you come back?”

One corner of Kanin’s mouth twitched, very slightly. “It wasn’t entirely my decision to return, Allison,” he said.

For a moment, I was confused. Then my eyes widened in shock, and I turned to Jackal, who was standing in the same place with his arms crossed, looking annoyed. “Jackal?” I sputtered, and he raised an eyebrow. “You decided to come back? Why?”

“Don’t read too much into it, sister.” My blood brother sneered at me, golden eyes mocking. “I didn’t come back to save you from the big bad minion army, trust me. I just wasn’t about to let lover boy get away with stealing my city. And I figured you wouldn’t have the balls to off him yourself, once it really came down to it. Looks like I was right.” He snorted and rolled his eyes. “I came to cut off a head and take back what’s mine, nothing else. So, don’t get all mushy on me.”

“Regardless,” Kanin said, interrupting us, much to Jackal’s relief, I thought, “we are wasting time. Eden is still in danger. Ezekiel,” he said solemnly, turning to Zeke, “I will ask you this only once. You know the stakes, how important it is that we reach Eden. You know we will have to face Sarren at the end of this journey. Can you do this?”

“I don’t know,” Zeke answered simply, unapologetically.