All Chapters of System Of Blood: To Crave Survival: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

CHAPTER 31Camryn's POVWhitney led us through streets that grew darker the further we went, away from the gas lamps and into alleys where the only light came from windows three stories up. Fabian walked beside me, his hand resting on the knife at his belt."How much further?" I asked."Two more blocks." Whitney glanced back at us. "And when we get there, keep your mouths shut and your hoods up. The people running these auctions don't like questions."We turned a corner, and I saw a massive warehouse with boarded windows and a line of people stretching from its entrance into the shadows. Hunters, mostly. I could tell by the weapons and the way they moved and looked. But there were others too. Well-dressed men and women who looked like they'd wandered in from the Garden District. The wealthy, coming to watch their favorite blood sport."They really do this in person," I muttered."The radios are for the masses," Fabian said quietly. "But the real entertainment? That's exclusive. You pa

CHAPTER 33Camryn's POVI spent the morning teaching girls how to curtsy without looking like they were about to fall over.My mind wasn’t on the lesson. It was at the meeting with Pascal. The industrial sectors. Midnight. Six hours from now.“Miss Chavez?” Natasha raised her hand.“You’ve explained this curtsy three times now.”I blinked. “Right. Sorry. Let’s move on to dinner etiquette.”The rest of the class dragged on. When the bell finally rang, I dismissed them and headed straight for my room. I hurriedly changed out of my teaching dress into something darker, more practical. I checked my knife. The ward pendant Amon had given me. Everything I’d need if Pascal’s meeting turned into an ambush.Someone knocked.“Come in,” I said.Fabian stepped through, already dressed for the night. “Ready?”“As I’ll ever be.”We left through the service entrance, avoiding the main gates because we didn’t want guards asking us questions. The streets were quieter this time of night, most people al

CHAPTER 35Amon's POVI’d been staring at the ceiling for three days straight. The black veins from the venom had faded to gray, then to nothing. Marcus said I was healing faster than expected. Said I’d be mobile within another day or two.It didn’t feel fast enough.“You’re brooding again,” Marcus said from across the room. “Stop it. You’ll slow your recovery.”“I’m not brooding.”“You’ve been staring at the same ceiling tile for twenty minutes.” He moved to my cot, checking the bandages across my chest. “The wounds are closed. The venom’s cleared. You should be resting, not doing whatever this is.”“This is resting.”“This is you being pissed off that you’re stuck here while Camryn’s out there doing god knows what.” He finished with the bandages and stepped back. “She visited yesterday. Told me about an important meeting.”“And?”“And she seemed confident. Said they got what they needed.” Marcus paused.My jaw tightened. “She what?”“That’s Camryn.” Marcus moved back to his supply t

CHAPTER 37Camryn's POVAmon collapsed before we reached the apartment.One moment he was walking beside me, the next he was on his knees, blood seeping through the bandages on his chest.“Shit.” I grabbed his arm. “Fabian, help me.”The two of us got Amon up the stairs and through Whitney’s door. Alex woke up immediately, took one look at Amon, and started pulling out medical supplies without being asked.“He reopened his wounds,” Alex said, cutting away the bloodied bandages. “What the hell was he doing out of the medical wing?”“Saving my ass,” I muttered. “Again.”We got Amon onto Whitney’s bed. Alex worked efficiently, cleaning the wounds, applying fresh bandages. The kid had clearly done this before.“He’ll be okay,” Alex said after a few minutes. “But he needs rest. Real rest this time. No more running around playing hero.”Amon’s eyes opened slightly. “Not playing.”“Shut up and rest,” I told him.He looked at me and shut up.Whitney was making coffee while Fabian checked the

CHAPTER 39Camryn's POVThe checkpoint guard looked at our deployment papers like they were written in a language he couldn't read."St. Lazarus sector," he said slowly. "Are you sure about this?""We're sure." I kept my voice level and professional. The papers were forgeries, courtesy of one of Fabian's contacts, but they looked official enough. "Anomaly assessment and salvage operation.""Haven't had anyone request entry there in six months. The last team that went in, only two came back." He stamped the papers anyway. "Your funeral."The gate opened with a groan of rusted metal.Beyond it, the abandoned sector waited.The difference was immediate and visceral. On our side of the gate, Lenore maintained its illusion of civilization. Clean streets, functioning lights, people going about their lives pretending the monsters weren't real. On the other side, the illusion died.Buildings leaned at angles that defied physics. Windows gaped like empty eye sockets. The sky above seemed dimme