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"Oh, ht?"

"Father?"

It was Syn who spoke, but his voice was different than she rely cold She looked back at hi of the male she&039;d known Only a shell, a hate-filled shell

"Please, Syn," she begged "Please let hi "I will reods-"

"Until I have e"

"No, please-"

Several pairs of footsteps raced down the stairs and into the dungeon Voices, loud and angry; a warning Petra felt herself being spun to face the stairs, then yanked back against Synjon, the knife at her throat once again

"Synjon, stop now!"

"Jesus, what is he doing?"

The roo the crowd

"Christ, Syn," said another ht, Frosty," Synjon said against Petra&039;s ear "Mad as a hatter"

"Put the knife down," ordered a female voice Petra had never heard before

"Why should I?" Synjon rasped, his tone pained and bitter

"Because she&039;s"Please, Synjon"

Syn gathered Petra tighter around the breasts "Fuck you all! Juliet was a sister too She could&039;ve been a mother, a mateso much more This vampire bastard used her" Synjon&039;s voice broke "Put her in a cage, doped her with drugs, and wanted Frosty here to fuck her until she bred another balas he could experiment on"

His words, the ache in his voice, the truth in it, stilled Petra Her father had done all of that? It wasn&039;t possible

"He killed the one I loved," Synjon ground out "Perhaps I should return the favor Perhaps I should kill the one he loves"

Petra whimpered, whispered to him, "Please don&039;t do this"

"Why?" Suddenly, Synjon lowered his blade and whirled her around to face hiain His eyes ild and filled with unshed tears She&039;d never seen anyone in so much pain "Why should I let you live, Petra?"

"Becauseoh, gods, Syn" Her eyes pricked with tears too as she grabbed the edges of her coat, yanked it back, and revealed her swollen belly "I&039; your child"