“He’s mine.”
Vittoria appeared as if from nowhere and drifted over to the player, running her hands through his hair. Assured he was still living, she then tugged him to his feet.
He did as she commanded.
Envy recoiled. The player was Fae. Not human. His elongated ears were pierced several times, the little suns signaling the Seelie Court. Vittoria leaned in and kissed him, completely unfazed by the demon blade Envy still held.
Envy gritted his teeth. “He’s part of the game. He belongs to Lennox.”
Vittoria ignored him, stepping back.
“I know. But he came to me.” She gave the Fae an appreciative look. “He was very persuasive with asking for my help in his little game.”
Envy drew in a deep breath. It didn’t take his annoyance away.
“You gave him my true name.”
She finally glanced over her shoulder, lavender gaze raking over Envy. “Not outright. He had to work hard for it. I gave him a nearly impossible task. He won.”
Envy sensed she wanted him to ask about the bargain she’d struck but refused to do so. It didn’t matter. The end result was all he cared about.
Predictably, Vittoria’s frustration grew. She turned on her Fae. “Show him.”
The male had the good sense to look scared.
The Goddess of Death was not known to be merciful. When she wanted something, she got it. If someone refused, she made them regret it. She was one of the few beings in the Underworld who could kill an immortal with True Death. Not that Envy wanted to think about that.
“Now,” she said, eyes glowing as her power churned.
The Fae spared one last look at Envy, then… his glamour fell over him.
Envy stared at a mirror image of himself.
“Your obsession with me is getting sad,” he drawled. “Fucking someone wearing my face still isn’t the same thing, darling.”
Vittoria’s demonic hand darkened at the fingertips, death charring her own skin. Soon, Envy knew, her fingers would lengthen and end in talons. The better to pluck out hearts with.
“It has nothing to do with you,” she said, voice pitched low. “Only what bedding you can do for my purposes.”
“You know just what to say to make a male feel wanted.”
“Would you rather I stroke your ego?” she asked, her voice a purr. “Tell you no male will ever please me like you? I think you hear that enough.”
“Only when warranted.”
“Maybe I wanted to let the fantasy of it ride me again and again in my dreams.”
“It wasn’t the fantasy or dreams, darling, but the Fae riding you.”
She gave him a withering look.
“Our joining is inevitable. You cannot deny me for eternity.”
He knew exactly why she wanted him. Only to see whether his brother Pride would become jealous. Her games were never-ending but held no appeal for Envy, unlike Camilla.
She motioned to the Fae wearing Envy’s skin. “Go on. Pull his cock out and see how it compares to yours.” Her smile grew wicked. “And then I want you to worship it.”
The Fae dropped to his knees, hand already on Envy’s trousers.
Envy halted the Fae’s movements.
“While I appreciate the artful way of telling me to go fuck myself,” he said, “I’m bored. I have a game to win. Aside from riding me, I’m sure we can find something else you want.”
Vittoria’s attention roved over him again, he could practically see her scheme. She’d known all along it would come to this. She whispered a spell that put the Fae in a trance.
“Your heart for his death. Before you open that troublesome mouth of yours, know it’s my only counteroffer. Accept and he dies, or decline, and I escort him safely from these woods.” She motioned toward the silver tree behind them. “Less you forget, he already carved your name. If he lives, you yourself will be cursed.”
Lennox must have spies in the Seven Circles, ones who were well aware of his last run-in with the Goddess of Death. It was one more twist of the knife, quite literally.
Vittoria had removed Envy’s heart recently, and it had significantly weakened him while it slowly grew back. His power was already slipping, thanks to the ward he had to keep up around his House of Sin. He didn’t have the energy needed to regenerate a heart in the middle of the game.
But if the player left these woods now, placed that leaf under his pillow before he slept tonight, Envy would have another set of unknown troubles to watch out for.
It was a gamble he couldn’t risk. The Fae had to die.
He kept his emotions locked away, mind reaching for any other solution. He didn’t want to be the cause of another death, but his court was at stake and he’d do anything to save them.
Vittoria’s gaze shimmered with dark victory. She knew he’d take the deal.
Hearts were one of her favorite sources of power.
Seeing no alternative, Envy gave a slight jerk of his chin.
“What was that?” Vittoria asked sweetly. As if she didn’t damn well know. “You accept?”
He allowed every last drop of hatred he felt for her to shine through in his expression.
“Yes. I accept.”
Her smile was as nefarious as they come. With lightning quick reflexes, she punched a hole through the Fae’s chest and tore out his heart.
The Fae dropped into an unmoving heap, trance broken, he reverted to his true form, his eyes wide with shock. He was dead before he’d hit the ground.
Vittoria’s demonic hand dripped with sparkling blood as she pivoted to Envy, clutching the throbbing heart close. She looked at it with approval only once before magicking it off to her secret chamber, where she kept them in jars.
Gods only fucking knew what she did with that morbid collection.
“Will he rise again?” Envy asked, toeing the body.
Vittoria gave him a bemused look. “He was given True Death.”
He shot her a sharp look, not liking her tone.
“True Death is not what you’re giving me,” he said. “Remember that.”
“Don’t worry, little prince. I’m not finished playing with you yet. A deal is a deal.”
She moved to stand before him, her talon carving his shirt open as she slowly dragged it downward, cutting some of his flesh as she exposed his chest.
She licked her lips, then flicked her gaze to his.
“This will hurt.”
He’d no sooner braced himself for the pain than her talons ripped into his chest.
She clutched his heart in her demonic hand, feeling it beat a few brutal times, before wrenching it out.
Her delighted, cruel laughter was the last thing he heard.
Darkness descended and Envy collapsed.
FORTY-ONE
CAMILLA REALLY OUGHT to stop searching every shadow in the vampire castle for Envy.
Blade was correct about one thing: the demon prince wasn’t coming to save her.
Maybe she’d gotten it wrong, and the Fear Collector hadn’t somehow implanted the name in her mind. Or maybe the next clue had brought the demon elsewhere.
Envy had his game, and Camilla had hers now. She vowed to pour her energy into plotting her own escape and would not think of the prince again.