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burned in her throat, Costel was probably trying to be helpful for once. Her best bet on surviving right now probably involved getting the hell out of this room.
    She glanced around to find an exit just as Frederick grabbed her elbow. He shuffled her out of the room, and despite his excessively tight grip on her, she didn’t resist. She was too numb to argue with anyone anymore.
    It wasn’t until they got back to the car and peeled out of the driveway that Frederick spoke. “I’m going to try to appeal to Costel. I can’t promise anything, but I’ll try.”
    She nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. The king was the king. No one of their kind was above him, and he’d obey nothing but his own conscience. Which could be a problem, seeing as how he didn’t have one.
    “I’ll start researching the Council’s policies to see if there are any loopholes.” He slammed a fist against the steering wheel, making her flinch in surprise. “I can’t believe Costel never told me. Our world has no tolerance for half-breeds. None.”
    “I didn’t know.”
    “It’s not a common problem because they’re not allowed to exist. And why didn’t you tell me what had happened with Rhyannon when I came to see you?”
    She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’m sorry. I should have. I just… I wasn’t sure, and I didn’t want to bring it up until I knew more.”
    He shook his head and refocused on the road. “I’ll figure something out.”
    A thought dawned on her. “Why me, Frederick?”
    “Excuse me?”
    “Why me? Why did Costel pick me for this mission? We both know I’m not really even old enough to be the executioner, let alone represent the vampire nation.” She’d accepted the position, but she’d never understood why she’d been chosen. With only two undead years under her belt, she didn’t have the experience to be given such responsibilities. What could Costel be thinking? What was his motive?
    Eldon shook his head. “I don’t know.” He gave her a sidelong glance but didn’t say anything else.
    With a deep sigh, she buried her head in her hands. Her thoughts drifted to Eldon then Preshea and Tim.
    She couldn’t tell her teammates about any of this. They couldn’t afford more distractions right now. Not when they had so much on their plates. She already had a death mark on her arm, courtesy of Rhyannon, and while her vampire nature might prolong its effects, she couldn’t avoid death altogether. It was coming for her.
    She shook her head. Between finding the Kamens and trying to find a remedy for her death mark, she wouldn’t let her teammates shoulder one more burden on her behalf.
    “I need you to do something for me,” Frederick said.
    “Name it.”
    He flipped his turn signal and sped into the curve. When their path straightened, he shot her a level stare. “Get out of town. Immediately.”

Chapter Three

    R ho popped her knuckles and shook out her hands. “It’s not working.” She’d been standing with Eldon in the field outside the safe house for hours, and her patience was starting to wear thin.
    February nights were damn cold in Austin, even if she was a vampire. Or at least partially one. Her toes and fingers were sore from the chilly night air, no socks or gloves thick enough to keep out the blasts of wind. Just because she couldn’t get hypothermia didn’t mean she enjoyed freezing her ass off. She tucked her nose inside the top of her jacket.
    Time to suck it up. The only hope she had of surviving the Council’s trial would be if she could learn to control her powers. She had no idea how long she’d be able to keep the team in the dark about her predicament, but she needed to figure out a diversion quick.
    Even though the safe house was locked down with more magick and security features than she’d ever seen before in her life, the sooner they left the better. The Council had resources. If they wanted to find her, they would.
    “You’re not trying hard