Kaiden just stared back at her for a beat. He'd always known she was cold, a heartless bitch, even, but this? This was something else.
Due to his opinion of Vaelira already being horribly low, he did not experience the same type of shock as Sasha and Jack felt. It was more of a deeper, bitter confirmation: "You're even worse than I thought."
Maybe Jack was right. Maybe, strategically, she'd made the right call. But Leon hadn't even been given a chance to fight the parasite back. She'd never even looked for that sliver of hope.
And Leon… Leon was the kind of man who'd throw himself in harm's way to protect her if the situation demanded. As their ace, Vaelira was worth it, and Leon knew it perfectly well.
She had spat on every ounce of that loyalty without blinking.
But Kaiden didn't have the luxury to dwell on it.
Because the Countess was chuckling.
