The drive to city hall was anticlimactic. Normal amount of traffic. Normal amounts of humans on the streets. Normal amounts of everything. All that changed after Linus and I entered the video conference suite at the Lyceum.

An entire wall was dedicated to what looked like fifty-inch televisions. Each family didn’t get its own screen. They shared in groups of six, cutting down on the number of devices required to make it all work and the trauma they experienced when stepping into this century. Bringing humans back to life as vampires? Plausible. Teleconferencing? Clearly witchcraft. That meant a few matriarchs had to travel to whichever neighbor was hosting the video meeting this time, but no more than a few miles. As usual, the dames lorded over the uppermost level while the matrons held court beneath them, and the vampires occupied the lowest tier.

Dames and matrons roared over the din in a feeble attempt to be heard above their neighbors, both in the room with them and in the collective. Underscoring the insanity was the grating sound of vampire incisors scraping. Their agitation gave me chills.

The Grande Dame was the first to mark our arrival, the only person physically in the room with us, and she swept her gaze over Linus, barely breathing until she assured herself he was whole. I earned a cursory glance, but the stilted show of concern was all the attention she paid me.

Guess she was still miffed about her son siding with another woman over her.

“Linus, darling.” Ice crackled in her voice as it filled the room. “I have gathered the council as you requested. Now be a dear and tell us what this is all about.”

Clearly, she was annoyed with him too. She knew the reason why we were here. She wouldn’t have gathered everyone otherwise. Feigning ignorance gave her leeway to act as shocked and horrified as the rest of the gathering. Or, if the mood soured, just as retaliatory for us having wasted her time.

“We received word tonight that Gaspard Lacroix has mobilized his clan,” he said. “He plans to attack the Society.”

Gasps poured through the speakers, and a few dames rose from their seats, flapping their arms like chickens with their heads cut off, an illusion aided by their headless figures on the screen, before a glare from the Grande Dame seated them.

“He chafes beneath Society rule,” he continued. “He has all but dismantled the Undead Coalition to clear a path for his vision for a new governing body for vampires.”

“We must leave,” a dame shouted from her spot between two matrons, one of which must have been hosting her. “If what he says is true, we must return to our homes.”

“What about our families?” a matron shouted. “We must warn them.”

“That is why I requested your presence,” he intoned. “It was critical that you all understand the scope of the threat.”

“What do you mean?” The Grande Dame played her role to perfection. “What haven’t you told us?”

“Lacroix is a powerful Last Seed, an ancient. He will be using compulsion to lead the attack. You won’t be able to reason with these vampires. Even if you know them, they are not themselves. They will not listen.”

Sharp intakes of breath ricocheted across the screens as true panic set in.

“All of the city’s Elite will be on the streets tonight, as well as every available sentinel. I’ve called in requests for aid from the surrounding cities and put them on alert.” He panned his gaze across the various screens. “Go home if you’re not already there. Bar your doors. Hide your families. Call the Lyceum if you’re attacked, and help will come.”

At that point, not even dirty looks from the Grande Dame kept people in their seats. They fled to their own homes and families, leaving us with a view of empty chairs, some toppled over in their haste to exit.

“Might I have a word?” The Grande Dame hadn’t budged from her position. “In my chambers?”

“Of course.” Linus inclined his head. “We’ll be right there.”

Until he mentioned it, I hadn’t gotten the hint it was a solo invitation. Forcing the issue that he was with me might do more harm than good in the long run, but we had no time for bruised egos.

“You must be certain of this information,” she said after the door to her office closed behind us.

“We are,” Linus confirmed, ignoring the single chair in front of her desk.

As much as I wanted to believe, especially under these circumstances, she wasn’t so petty as to send in an underling to remove one of her chairs prior to my arrival as a direct insult to me, this was the Grande Dame. I hadn’t seen her birth certificate or anything, but I wouldn’t be surprised to learn Petty was her middle name.

Smirking at the empty chair, she sat. “Do you have anything besides Corbin’s warning to support your claims?”

“The wraith showed me a vision of Lacroix giving the order.” I stared her down. “He ordered a woman who appeared to be one of his lieutenants to rally their clansmen.” I watched her carefully for signs she was in the know. “When she turned, I recognized her. Becky Heath, Boaz Pritchard’s partner. She’s an Elite and a Low Society necromancer. She must be using the same magical augmentation as before to pass as a vampire. That means the Elite can corroborate our story.”

A flash of temper heated her tone. “I am aware the Elite have launched their own investigation.”

The truth smacked me upside the head, and I laughed in her face before I could strangle the sound.

“They already had their operative primed.” Kudos to her, she made an excellent vampire in my opinion. “Becky has an established identity within Lacroix’s organization as Dr. Heath. She infiltrated them once, and she did it again.”

Lucky for me, she couldn’t shoot lasers from her eyeballs.

“That’s why,” I continued, “after you viewed the recording from the ball, you sent Corbin to me. You wanted your own mole, and you knew I would take responsibility for him. It was a perfect fit. Lacroix would indulge me, I would protect Corbin, and we would report on Lacroix in exchange for your forgiveness.” A cold smile curved my lips. “You’re a master at knowing which screws to twist to get what you want, but you know that. You wouldn’t be Grande Dame if you weren’t manipulative.”

“I am not an enemy you want to have, Grier.”

“Nor am I,” Linus said softly. “You’re meant to be the invisible hand moving pieces behind the scenes, but you forgot to wipe off your fingerprints this time.”

A cunning light sparked in her eyes, one I might blame on pride under other circumstances. “What is it you want from me?”

“A clean slate.” He rested his hand at the small of my back. “You pardon Grier for her part in your scheme and any fallout that results from Corbin Theroux aligning with Lacroix.”

“And you pardon Corbin,” I chimed in. “This isn’t the life he wanted, but he can find new purpose with the right guidance. He’s an advocate for human rights, and his voice deserves to be heard. He could be instrumental in restructuring the Undead Coalition with modern ideals after Lacroix has been dealt with.”

The Grande Dame didn’t look at me or otherwise acknowledge my existence.

“Corbin has put his immortal existence in danger to gather information that might save lives.” Linus took up the fight when it became obvious the Grande Dame had no intention of discussing terms with me. “His freedom can be contingent on monitoring for an agreed-upon period of time to ensure he doesn’t slide back into old habits, but I believe he’s earned a chance to see what he can make of his new life.”

“Very well.” She drummed her fingernails on her desktop. “I will forgive Grier for her part in Corbin Theroux evading recapture. I will also pardon him, if he consents to one hundred years of service as a sentinel with the option for promotion to Elite.” Before I could protest, she continued. “The sentinels will give him a sense of purpose, and they will afford him the camaraderie he lacks without his hunter brethren. He must acclimate to our world and his place in it by living in the barracks for the first twenty-five years in order to foster goodwill among his detractors.”

There were no vampire Elite. Even the position of sentinel would ostracize him, like he needed any help standing out.

“We can’t accept that deal on his behalf,” I protested. “He has a right to—”

“He is a fugitive and a murderer. He has no rights that I recognize.”

Jaw set, I bit my tongue to avoid fanning the flames of an argument that would consume me.

“There’s one more condition.” The Grande Dame rose. “I want Linus to marry Dame Austen’s daughter, Flora. It’s a good match. She comes from good stock, and she’s witty.” She toyed with the pendant hung around her neck. “Linus will also be returning to Atlanta at the end of the month. He has duties to his city and a career he has been neglecting. Flora will meet him there. I’ll consent to a fifty-year engagement, a generous offer considering her age, but I expect a marriage and grandchildren at the end of that period.”

Austen. Austen. Austen.

Flipping the surname over in my head, I almost laughed when I recalled who she meant. Flora. The older woman. About ten years Linus’s senior. She toasted me at the ball when I rescued Linus from his gaggle of eligible bachelorettes.

She might fill a pool with Dom Pérignon for me to swim in after she caught wind of this.

Darkness pooled in the corners of the room, pulsing with Linus’s heartbeat. “No.”

“Defy me on this,” she warned coldly, “and I will strip you of your title and your inheritance.”

“I told you once already,” he said, “and I won’t repeat myself.”

I won’t be parted from Grier.

That’s what he had promised me, and he meant every word.

The Grande Dame’s ultimatum transported me back to the ballroom, to our first dance, to what I told him.

It doesn’t have to mean forever to still mean something.

Forever was potential without realization—unless you seized the moment and lived your life to the fullest.

For the sake of my pride, I really, really hoped Linus was ready to be seized.

I was finished dealing in stolen futures. I wanted to embrace the possibilities. Hands and heart wide open.

“He can’t marry Dame Austen’s daughter—or anyone else.” Scrounging up my courage, I met his eyes while I bumbled through the rest. “He’s already engaged.” I couldn’t tear my gaze from his, too afraid I would miss his true reaction and glimpse only a manufactured one. “To me.”

The breath punched from Linus’s lungs, his exhale a high-pitched whistle through his nose.

Across from us, the Grande Dame’s knees buckled, and she sat down hard.

“You have the marriage contract?” Her jaw hung open. “How?” She looked to Linus. “You’ve seen it?”

“I have.” The edge of his lips twitched. “It’s authentic.”

Fuming, she snapped her teeth together. “You’re—you’re—happy about this?”

“Grier Woolworth has just claimed me as her fiancé before the Grande Dame of the Society for Post-Life Management. Her declaration is binding and serves as an official announcement of our intentions to be wed.” A genuine smile cracked his façade, and the real Linus seeped through. “You ought to be thrilled. This is exactly what you wanted for me, and it’s exactly what Maud wanted for Grier.”

Nostrils flared, she protested, “That was before.”

“Grier and I were different people then.” He shook his head. “It wouldn’t have worked.”

“We had to get broken before we fit together,” I added.

Corny, yes. Necessary, also yes. Honeymoon period, remember?

“Go.” The Grande Dame swiveled her chair until its back faced us. “Now.”

Linus cupped my elbow and led me down the empty hallway to the elevator.

Our footsteps echoed, but I couldn’t hear much over the roaring in my ears.

I had claimed Linus. In front of the Grande Dame. In front of his mother. And I hadn’t asked first.

“Linus…”

Guiding me into the booth and boxing me into a corner, he cupped my face in his hands, his thumbs caressing my cheeks, and stared down at me. “Tell me you meant it.”

“I shouldn’t have sprung this on you. There’s still Atlanta to consider, and your job, and your life, and I didn’t even ask first. I just blurted it out, and you can’t take back a declaration like that.” A bit of the sparkle left his eyes, and I grew desperate to earn it back. “There was no dinner, no candlelight, no roses.” I palmed my forehead. “I don’t even have a ring for you.”

“I don’t need those things,” he said softly.

“You deserve those things.” Sinking onto my knees before him, I gathered his hands in mine. “I botched the first half, but I can do this much right.” Sweat turned my palms slippery, and I had trouble holding on thanks to the tremors in my fingers. “Linus Andreas Lawson, will you marry me?”

Black swirls eddied across the surface of his skin. “You only ever had to ask.”

“Is that a yes?” I reached in my pocket and came up with a bread tie, a knife, and a gum wrapper. “I need to be certain before I put a not-ring on it.”

“Yes.”

“Good.” Dizziness swept through me, making me lightheaded. “Then hold still so I don’t stab you.”

After I pulled the bread tie from my pocket, I wrapped it around his finger and twisted the end closed.

“It’s not much,” I started.

“I’ll cherish it always,” he said, smiling as he turned over his hand, admiring the twist like I had given him the Hope Diamond.

Coming from the same man who had kept the packet of oatmeal I once tossed him in lieu of an apple, I might have to wait until he fell asleep then slip the ring off him when I was ready to replace it with the real deal.

Metal hit my back, and my breath whooshed over my lips. For a heartbeat, I didn’t understand why my knees no longer touched the floor.

Linus had pinned me in the corner, his hands beneath my thighs, his hips wedged between mine.

“I will make you happy,” he promised. “You won’t regret choosing me.”

Not for the first time, my heart cracked in two for this man who had no idea of his worth.

“I’m the lucky one.” I linked my arms behind his neck and my ankles at his spine. “You have nothing to prove.” I tangled my fingers in his hair and drew his face down to mine. “Not to me.”

I tasted my name on his lips and sighed into his mouth. His grip tightened, turning possessive, and I arched my spine, not caring one whit if I was putting on a show for the cameras.

An ear-splitting wolf whistle was my first clue the doors had opened, the digitized click of a camera shutter on a cellphone the second.

“This is going to look amazing on your bridal shower invitations.” Lethe kept clicking. “Sure, most of your guests will die of shock over the audacity of two Society titans having the gall to fall in love, but they’ll get over it. Or they’ll die clutching their pearls. Either way, I’m good.”

“We didn’t tell you we were engaged,” I pointed out as we exited the booth.

“You done in there?” she called to a door labeled Security then turned to me. “You’ll thank me later.”

“Oh goddess.” I slumped against Linus. “This won’t end well.”

Hood emerged with his finger speared through a CD he set spinning with a flick of his wrist.

“Got it.” He presented it to me. “Happy engagement.”

“Is this…?” I tried to swallow, but my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth. “My proposal?”

“Yes,” Lethe trilled. “I teared up, and it wasn’t just the hormones.” She walked over and punched my shoulder. “You did great. I had no idea I was practice. I would have made you sweat if I had known you had this planned, or at least asked for more donuts.” To Linus, she said, “Welcome to the pack.”

“Thank you,” he said, drawing me against his chest while I struggled not to die of embarrassment. “Did you make a copy, or is this the original?”

“It’s the original,” Hood confirmed. “It was broadcast live to the security room, but those personnel have evacuated. No one saw, except us, and that’s the only recording.”

“Good.” Linus took the disc from my hand and snapped it in two, tucking both halves in his back pocket. “I prefer the memory to the recording.”

“You’re no fun.” Lethe huffed at Linus then glared at Hood. “That was really the only copy?”

“Sorry.” Hood spread his hands. “Just following orders.”

Shane burst into the lobby, his blue-black hair plaited down his back. “We need to move.”

Turning from Linus, I faced him. “What now?”

“Vampires,” he breathed. “Hundreds of them.”

Guess we had been right about where Lacroix would strike first.

Lucky us, we were standing on ground zero.