As Victoria rose from the lounge, Vail did as well. He stretched his back, which was slightly uncomfortable from the way he had been leaning over her during the feed. Still, a little soreness was nothing compared to the high he had felt while he’d drank her unique blood. He could still feel the phantom of her delicate fingers on his shoulder and smell the remnants of iron that lingered in the room, both of which just made him more excited about the next time he would return to prey on her again.

At her description of the plan, he murmured his agreement. One week from now wasn’t very far away, but he supposed it was better to get the more disturbing part of their pact over with sooner rather than later. Once Spencer was dead, he could focus entirely on the pleasure of meeting every three days to taste her blood. He quite looked forward to that.

“Just make sure the weapons are wrapped in a cloth or something else that will keep them covered,” Vail added. “Otherwise I won’t be able to touch them.” Silver wasn’t just off putting to him because of its pungent smell. Even the gentlest brush of the metal burned his skin. Though he was fully capable of handling a pistol, he couldn’t use one made with silver unless he had something to put between his hand and the weapon. It was inconvenient, but it was what he had to do if he was to manipulate a gun like that.

“I could help you in one of two ways,” he answered when Victoria asked how he planned to dispatch her fiancé. “Either you will distract him long enough for me to get a clear shot at his heart, or I will restrain him while you shoot.” Both options seemed viable in his opinion. In either case, they would have to catch the Wynter by surprise, which meant the Lady would have to keep him distracted. As long as Spencer didn’t catch on to what was happening before they had an opportunity to kill him, the murder would go smoothly.

“How confident are you with a gun?” Vail queried, deciding that was probably the biggest factor in determining which of them would shoot her fiancé.