A Shadow of Light (A Shade of Vampire #4)(71)

Ingrid turned toward me. “Sofia is going to fight to her last breath before she allows Borys to lay a hand on her. I’m not sure she’ll last an hour. Are you really sure you want to drag this out?”

“There’s no way I’m going to let Borys leave this island with her.”

“He will be more than willing to break every bone in her body and force her to drink his blood so she’ll heal, then do it all over again. An hour is a long time, Derek.” Her shoulders sagged and it was easy to see that she was conflicted. “Let us go.”

I narrowed my eyes at Ingrid and wondered if she was actually really pleading for Sofia’s sake. “That doesn’t make sense, Ingrid. I know Sofia. She would rather die than leave this island with Borys. I would rather die than give her over to him—not after what she had already gone through, not after you just told me what he’s capable of doing to her.” I couldn’t help but look at her like she was stupid. “Are you even thinking straight? How could you leave your own daughter in the hands of the likes of him?”

“We’re wasting time.” Aiden interrupted, eyes brimming with tears. “We have to stop him from destroying Sofia.” His voice was choked, and it was the first time I was convinced that he genuinely cared for Sofia.

“Let me have a talk with him…” Vivienne took a step forward. “There was a time when it was me he wanted. Maybe we can talk him into taking me instead of her.”

My eyes widened in horror. “Vivienne, what!”

“Can you think of any other way to somehow get his eyes off Sofia even for a while? We have to at least try something…”

Another bang came from the room and I found myself fighting the urge to just lose it and barge my way into the room to try and kill Borys myself.

“You would do that for my daughter?” Aiden was looking at Vivienne as if she was some sort of miracle.

Ingrid, on the other hand, eyed her from head to foot. “What makes you think Borys would still want you when he has his immune right in his hands?”

“Borys wants Sofia because she’s immune, right?” I took a step forward. “We have another immune on the island. If we bring her to him, would he consider taking her instead of Sofia?”

Ingrid seemed to take the proposal into consideration and nodded. “I can ask him. Still…he’s going to put Sofia through hell until this other ‘immune’ comes…”

Vivienne once again asserted herself—much to my chagrin. “Let me go with you… I can at least divert his attention from her for a little while.”

Ingrid smirked at my sister, but shrugged. “If you really want to… I don’t think you’ll be of much help though… He’ll probably kick you out of the room as soon as you show your face.”

I couldn’t understand why Vivienne was putting herself at risk on Sofia’s behalf once again, but I was out of ideas and I was desperate to get Sofia out of the pain I was certain she was going through.

“Vivienne, what are you even planning to do? You’re nowhere near as strong as Borys…” I couldn’t help but mouth out my concern.

“The point is to get his attention away from Sofia. The fact that I’m no threat to him is to my advantage.”

I stared at Vivienne, admiring her for her courage and yet, the idea of sending my sister off to what could be her death was something that didn’t sit well with me. I just got her back and now I have to send her to this monster.

I glared once again at Ingrid. “She’s your daughter. How could you…”

She waved my statement away and rolled her eyes. “Please…don’t remind me… If you’re trying to appeal to my maternal instincts, trust me…it won’t work.”

Aiden attested to this. “She isn’t Sofia’s mother. Camilla is dead.”

I knew I had to make a decision quick, because just as the words came out of Aiden’s mouth, we heard Sofia’s piercing scream.

A sweeping cold ran up from the base of my spine to the back of my head. I pointed at Vivienne, and without really thinking things through, I blurted out at her, “Go! Now!”

I didn’t care what had to be done that day. I simply resolved that I wasn’t about to lose Sofia. I also made up my mind that no matter what, Borys Maslen wasn’t going to leave The Shade alive.

I am going to rip him to shreds.

And I was going to relish every moment of seeing the life drain away from his body.

CHAPTER 49: SOFIA

He’s going to kill me.

When the back of his hand hit my face, I was surprised that my neck didn’t snap. My head was spinning from the pain which was already racking every bone in my body. I was certain that I had at least one broken rib and the parts of my body he dug his claws into were screaming in agony. I began coughing blood—the red liquid causing a spark of delight in his beady eyes.

“Why do you fight me, Sofia? Why do you resist?” he asked as I scampered away from him, backing myself up into a wall, as he dipped his finger in the blood I’d coughed up on the floor and licked it. He closed his eyes. “There’s nothing like it. What is it that makes your blood so delightfully sweet?”

I wanted to glare up at him but one of my eyes was already swollen shut. I was trying to figure out a way to retrieve the wooden stake I kept on the hunters’ strap round my thigh without Borys noticing. I knew that should he see the stake coming, then I couldn’t use it against him, but his eyes remained on me.