Dimitri looked down at his chest with disgust.
"Valerian marks every vampire he creates," he explained, his voice distant. "I was his first. I had many years to memorize every curve and line he carved into my skin before I completed the transformation and could no longer be cut by any blade."
His jaw tightened.
"I fantasized about carving the same mark into him for a very long time. Since I couldn’t… I had to release that frustration somewhere."
"Your victims were mirrors of your creator," I concluded.
Dimitri nodded.
"Since escaping Valerian, I kill those kinds of men every year on the anniversary of my transformation. Think of it as a macabre birthday ritual."
He winked at me.
"You were right when you connected the marks and the murders to my ‘mentor.’ Clever girl."
I pretended
