Detrand

I awoke with a start, just before the sun set, and was surprised to be back in my bed, the smell of Stefano’s person still lingered in my clothing, instead of in the Fae city. How long had it been since I rested here last?

Rowan was just inside my door. “Master!”

I blinked at him. “How long have I been gone?”

“Seven nights. I’ve been trying to enter your room since I heard you stir, but the door wouldn’t open.”

I growled. “What has happened in my absence?”

“The shifters have sent their intelligence, as well as the contracts, and have paid the additional tax.”

And then I smelled her, and my fangs slid out.

“Some say they have information in the hopes of avoiding paying the higher tax.”

“Where is she?”

Rowan raised his eyebrows. “Who, Lord?”

“Where is the daughter, Bennett’s child?”

“She’s with Lula, in the sitting room.”

I moved towards the front entrance, not bothering to change or clean myself. I had to get away, I was too weakened from my time spent with the Fae, and the desire to pounce on her was too strong.

“Where are you going?” Rowan followed me to the front door.

My strigoi spilled out, and I grabbed onto the door. “I have to go.”

“Oh dear.” Rowan saw that my eyes had darkened; they were almost black now. I opened the door and a man stood in front of me. His eyes were wide and he exuded the fear of the dead.

I grasped at Rowan, afraid that I would rip this man’s throat out and suck him dry, and Rowan held me still.

“What do you want?”

He grunted, and then I noticed that he had stabbed me with a wooden stake. I stared at it in a stupor and the man ran off. I fell to the ground as Rowan pursued the man. The man tripped, and as he fell, twisted his ankle. He cried out and I watched in glee as Rowan stalked the man.

Staring up at Rowan from the ground, the man fumbled at his chest and pulled out a cross tied to his throat. Rowan laughed. Religious relics can ward us off but this man didn’t have the faith. He smelled of despair and, as he cried out his prayer, Rowan pounced on him. He didn’t bother to be kind to the man, who was screaming in terror.

I struggled to get back into the house as Rowan’s slurping became background noise. I didn’t remove the stake, I would do it when I was back in the safety of my protected home. It scraped against my nerves, and I cried out. The noise attracted the attention of all who were in the house.

Sophie was at my side first, and her eyes betrayed the severity of the wound.

“I’ll be okay.” I patted her hand. She gripped me and helped me the rest of the way inside. Then the smell of Bennett’s daughter overcame all of my senses. My nails dug into Sophie as I tried to control my strigoi. That’s all I would need to heal from this wound. A taste of this woman and I would be as new as the day I was born. Her blood called to me and my fangs lowered.

I managed to spit out the words. “Get her from me.”

She was next to me on the floor, tearing a strip off the bottom of her dress.

I clasped at Sophie’s dress and pulled her close, so that she was inches from my face. “Get that woman from me. Take her out of this house.”

Sophie’s eyes widened. “Which one.”

“Bennett’s daughter.” My eyes darkened, and I gripped Sophie tight. My whole body shook with my need and my hands were clamped onto Sophie, unable to move.

Sophie called out behind her. “Get her out of here.”

The daughter’s hands were already on the stake, ready to pull it out.

“Get out of here!” Sophie pushed her, and she stumbled to the ground, confused. “Lula, take Adelade to the docks, and don’t return tonight.”

Lula pulled Adelade off the ground and they moved away.

“Shut the door.”

As soon as the door was shut, I took in a deep breath, trying to clear my nose of her smell. I had to breathe in and out several times to clear it, as it still lingered in the air around me.

Rowan entered, blood dripping from his chin, and he dragged the man inside. His throat had been ripped open, but blood was still dripping from his neck. Sophie called for one of her thralls. Then she yanked the stake from my stomach and, using Adelade’s torn dress, applied pressure to my stomach.

The smell of her torn dress drifted through my nose, and I groaned. Sophie chided me. “Don’t be such a child.” The thrall leaned over me and I bit into her neck, gulping down her blood as I healed. Her blood was rich, and it soothed me. She moaned as I drank, and began rubbing herself against me.

Rowan kicked the man, who was now very dead. “Idiot.”

Sophie put her hand on my shoulder, and I reluctantly slurped my last drops of the thrall, and licked her neck.

Her skirts were up now and she tried to straddle me, but Sophie pulled her away, sighing. “If I’d never had you at my neck, I would never understand your allure.”

I smiled at her, fully healed now, and licked my lips. She stared at them, and I took my time with my tongue, teasing her. I laughed and she turned away, then stood and pulled her thrall towards the back room, rolling her eyes.

Rowan turned to me. “There’s still time left, do you want to turn him?” Rowan grinned. “Then we could torture him in the cellar.”

I frowned. “No. He’s not likely to remember who sent him here anyway.” I stood up and pulled my shirt off, throwing it to the floor. “It would take him too long to turn anyway. Let me see that cross.”

Rowan yanked it from the man’s neck and handed it to me. I studied its crude design and my eyes darkened. “Father.”

Rowan nodded. I threw it to the ground. “Burn them both.”

Rowan grabbed the necklace, put the man over his shoulder, and headed out the door to the back corner of the garden where we held a continual fire for cases like these. I followed him out and disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

As I strode to the priest’s home, I pushed away the thoughts of Adelade and how she didn’t hesitate to minister unto my wounds even though I could've ripped her head off.  When she was by my side, I could smell a mixture of her fear and lust, and I wondered if she felt that way towards me. Did she want me, as I wanted her?

I growled. I only wanted her blood, and I was playing a dangerous game to keep her in my home. It had already proven deadly. If I hadn’t been so consumed with my blood lust, I would’ve smelled that man before I opened the door. If I wasn’t careful, someone could easily kill me, as they had my Master. I stopped short, wondering if Agosto had been killed over his blood lust. Or for a woman.

I moved towards the church again, considering the man who was now dead, instead of me. It was a good thing he was misinformed and aimed for my stomach instead of my heart.

My strigoi growled, and I entered the church and made myself invisible.

The priest was at the back of the building, crouched on the floor. He was shaking and reading from his bible out loud. His voice trembled as he read, and he held out his cross towards the door. The cross burned me and I scattered to the wall.

He did have the faith to burn me to dust, and I would have to be very careful. I slithered slowly, pressing my back against the wall to avoid the burn of his cross. When I was next to him, I appeared so quickly, that he jumped up and dropped his cross. I kicked it across the room and swiveled towards him.

“You sent me a present.”

He stared at me, looking at my mouth. He knew how dangerous it was to look me in the eyes, and avoided it unless he was feeling especially brave.

“I send all my parishioners gifts. It is part of the calling.”

“I haven’t been one of your parishioners in a long time.”

“I’d hoped you would return to me, since you decided to stay.”

I grinned, leaning in towards him so that he could get a good look at my teeth. He was old and had poor vision, plus he placed a certain amount of trust in his faith, which was just plain stupidity. He needed a reminder of what I was capable of.

“Is that what you would like me to do? Visit you on Sundays? Pray with you?”

“I have hope for even the soulless.”

I sneered. “Your faith is in vain. And it couldn’t save your man.”

He sighed. “I feared as much when he didn’t return.”

I reached out and touched his chin with my finger, pulling it up. He glanced into my eyes and then closed them quickly.

“Don’t worry, Father. I have no desire to compel you because I have no fear that you will hurt me. Otherwise that stake would’ve landed in my chest, near my heart, instead of my stomach.”

The priest opened his eyes, staring into mine. “I warned him that he must have sufficient faith.”

I smiled. “Apparently, he underestimated his belief.”

“Apparently, it wasn’t enough. But no matter, he goes to God anyway.”

I growled. “Only because I allowed it, instead of turning him.” I leaned in, and could smell his fear grow stronger. He knew that death was the better option than living with my disease. “Why did you send him?”

He was quiet and I could hear the raven call to its mate outside. Its song was bitter and melancholic. Finally the priest spoke. “If I could offer you your heart’s desire, would you return to Italy, to live out your days?”

“What do you know of my heart’s desire? According to what you preach to your congregation, I have no heart.”

“I may not have the talent to read one’s desires.” I grinned as I thought of the nun who cleaned the church, and he avoided my eyes. “But what I do know, is that Sophie prays outside my doors nightly.”

I gripped his arm. “And what of it?”

“She still comes to me for advice, and I could slip in a word that it would be best to return to you. Things would be different in Italy.”

I shook my head. “Why are you so intent to drive me away? What plans do you have for my city?”

He leaned closer and his breath was on my cheek. “She still longs for you, even after what you did to her.”

I touched his face, and his shoulders jerked. “The days when Sophie and I were content are over.”

“She told me that you still talk to her ghost.”

“She chose to bask in the protection of Agosto, and for that I can never forget that she felt safer with him, than with me.”

“And do you blame her?”

I shook my head. “I do not. Sophie will never lay in my arms again, and only her soul that wanders through my darkness will touch my heart.” I growled, tired of his games. “The only threat to my body has been your man. What have I to fear, that you would send someone to their death?”

He gripped my arm now, his eyes alight with passion as he leaned into me. “They are coming. They are almost to the door, and they will knock it over.” Then he stood and walked towards the rooms reserved for the priests. “Go now, at your own peril. I have warned you sufficiently.”

* * *

I stood at the window, staring into the city as I considered my options very carefully.

What had Agosto gotten himself into, that even Father would risk the life of one of his parishioners in an attempt to scare me away?

Sighing, I began to pace up and down the room. My life in Italy was good. It had taken some time to find the perfect city: large enough to have plenty of fresh blood without drawing attention, but without infringing on another supernatural being’s city. I had no desire to align myself with another powerful fae or vampire, the most common rulers of the cities in Italy.

I grinned. It also had plenty of women who were willing to satisfy me when my strigoi needed it; the morals of the women in the city were far loser than those in the country. I frowned. Plus, Sophie was absent in Italy, and I could easily forget her among the willing partners in Italy.

But, Agosto’s power over this city was great and it would be easy for me to slip into his role, if it was something that I desired. Which I did not. However, I knew that if I left, the power struggle that ensued would end up killing a lot of the shifters, and possibly even Sophie. I gripped the window pane. Also, there was Agosto’s killer to be reckoned with. I would destroy him, as he destroyed my Maker.

Making up my mind to stay, I went to the desk and rifled through it, trying to find the shipping logs. If the Fae King wanted the goods we were bringing in from Africa, then there would be information in the logs. I heard Sophie’s lilting voice from down the hall, and then Lily’s, as I stood up and went to the shelves. I wondered at Lily, curious that she would dare return and thought about bringing her to my room again, just to teach her a lesson.

I grinned. This time I wouldn’t be so kind.

Frustrated, I went back to the desk and pulled out all the drawers again. I cried out to Sophie. “Where are the shipping logs?” The conversation in the sitting room did not pause, so I called out again. “Sophie?”

Her laugher down the hallway grew louder, and I stood up. I strode to the sitting room and, ignoring the stares that were now on me, I grabbed her by the arm and drug her from the room. She grasped my hand on her arm as she followed me, and after we entered Agosto’s office, I threw her into the room. As she fell to the floor, her skirts flew up, showing me her thighs and my eyes traveled up them.

Forgetting the logs for a moment, I knelt to the floor and crawled towards her. She was as still as death, and stared at the wall. “Don’t touch me, Detrand.” But her body betrayed her; she smelled warm and inviting, and the blood in her veins called to me.

“Why do you stay here, Sophie? Agosto is gone, your binding to him is complete. And yet, you stay.”

Her chest heaved as she tried to control her feelings. “I have no other home.”

I crept closer until I was kneeling over her. “You have coins to go where you please. And yet you stay, to tempt me with the fire that runs through your veins and calls to me. I hear it in the day, even as my body lies in my bed as still as death, and I hear it in the night as I wake. It sings to me, reminding me of the days when we could run about under the sun, feeling its golden rays on our skin. When our children bounced on our knees, laughing. It sings to me, and I feel its call.” I pulled down the strap to her dress, exposing her shoulder, and ran my nose up it. “If you stay much longer, I might give in to it.”

“If I go, you will release me then?”

I shook my head. “I will not.”

She cried out, almost a sob. “How can I leave then?”

I smelled her skin, which was sweaty and leaking her fear and lust. “You could try. And yet, you don’t.” My nose traveled from her shoulder, up her neck. “Where are the shipping logs, Sophie?”

She looked at me, fire in her eyes. “Why would I know anything about his shipping logs?”

“You were his mate. You should know everything he ever did, and everything he planned.”

She shrugged. “He never spoke to me about his business.”

“I don’t believe you, Sophie. You were always pecking about my papers, wanting to know every last detail.” I watched her quiver as I leaned on her neck, breathing in deeply. “From where I bought the seed, to the pricing of each bushel. Like a little bird, you pecked and pecked, digging yourself into my business.”

She gripped my shirt as my hand traveled up her thigh to her rear. It was smooth and inviting and I was so tempted to give in to her pull. I could tell by the way that she writhed under me that she wanted me to give in to my temptation and take her right there on the floor.

“Where are the shipping logs?” My voice was a whisper over her body, my teeth scraping her skin.

“If I tell you, then you will stay.”

I rubbed my chin on her neck and she pulled me closer. “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.”

She sighed, giving in. “They’re in the third drawer, in the book with the blue binding.”

I was silent for a moment, torn about giving in to my desire. Then I stood and went to the desk, leaving her on the floor.

Finding the book, I began at the ending, looking at the dates that corresponded to the last shipment of supplies from Africa. I moved my finger down the listed materials, then followed it to the day that Agosto was killed. “I want you to send Lily to my room.”

She got up, nodding, and pulled her dress straight.

Finding what I wanted, I got off the chair. “And when I’m done with Lily, send Rowan to me. He should be in the back garden.”

* * *

I left Lily naked and dozing in my bed, and called for Rowan. He followed me out the door as we moved towards the docks.

“Rowan, were there any problems with the first shipment we received from Africa?”

He straightened his coat. “No, everything went according to plan.”

“Did the fae ever try to enter any of the ships?”

He eyed me. “Ever?”

I nodded.

“Of course. We do business with the Fae. Sometimes they inspect the goods before we load them onto the dock.”

“And did they ever complain about any of the goods?”

He shrugged. “Not any more than the usual. You know how the fae can be.”

I bit my lip, making it bleed. “Is Stefano in charge of security tonight?”

Rowan eyed the woman walking towards us; her hips swaying seductively. He didn’t stop her, but let her pass. “Yes, as usual.”

I licked the blood on my lip. “Are they coming to meet Stefano tonight?”

“No. They aren’t expected tonight.”

“Do we ever employ anyone else to greet them?”

“Never. Stefano covers the docks and employs as many as are necessary.”

I stopped, and Rowan was still beside me. I put my hand on his shoulder and met his eyes. “Do you trust him?”

He studied me, and fiddled with the button on his coat. “He’s a strigoi. Can we ever be trusted?”

I frowned, his response revealing something new about him. “And Agosto, could he be trusted?”

Unwilling to meet my eyes, Rowan stared at the ship that was coming into the bay. Sweat began to run down the side of his face, and he swiped at it. “Agosto could always be trusted.”

I nudged him with my senses, and he jerked his face to me, his eyes wide. “Don’t you dare.”

I growled. “Don’t give me a reason.”

“I’ve always served you faithfully, and never given you a reason to mistrust me. And yet, you haven’t fulfilled your word.”

I raised my eyebrow. “And what promise is that?”

“You’ve not given me my freedom.”

“If I ever decide to free you, it will be because of my grace, not because you’ve earned it. If there is anyone in this city that I trust, it is you. But don’t give me a reason to test you.”

“I will never give you a reason. I serve you willingly.”

I nodded, appeased, and we turned towards the wharf. “I want you to direct Stefano to take the Shifter’s goods off first, and then burn the rest, including the ship.”

He stared at me, his eyes wide. “Why?”

Ignoring him, I turned away and marched towards the alley behind the wharf.

* * *

As the darkness surrounded me, I took in a deep breath, feeling the roll of mist coming from the bay. I unleashed my strigoi senses and stalked the streets, unseen. As soon as the fire was lit, people spilled from the streets into the bay. The fire was large enough that no amount of water buckets would quell it, though many tried. I didn’t care about them, I was waiting for something else.

As I watched the crowd grow, my strigoi grew restless. I would need to feed soon, but it must wait. When magic first hit the air, I glided through the crowd, sucking the air through my teeth and watching for the Fae.

King Orin himself came, and he stood in front of the crowd. His hands clenched in fists and his face a bright red, he stared at it in fury. He didn’t try to quench the fire. He easily could’ve done it, of course. With one swipe of his hand, all the fire would be extinguished, but he let everything burn.

I grinned, watching as his wide eyes took in the orange and red flames. Behind him stood several of his subjects. Their eyes danced in merriment, though they tried to hide it. He would punish them for my impertinence at burning the ship, and so they took pleasure in his unlucky circumstances.

A man stood off to the side, bucket in hand, disheveled and sweaty from trying to put out the flames. He was so close that his eyes glowed red, a reflection of the fire. It was the same man from before, the one who sang in the streets with his comrade’s arms around him. I now noticed they were just a few feet away from him.

I moved behind him, so close that if he were to move an inch he would touch me, and took in a deep breath. He was lucky. He hadn’t contracted the disease from his seducer from the other night. I softly released my senses over him, pulling him into the darkness so I could feed.

* * *

Footsteps sounded behind me as the man writhed under me, clasping me tight. I sent my senses towards the approaching shifter, but felt no malevolence. When I finished eating, I compelled the man quickly and he stumbled away with a smirk on his face.

I swiveled to face the shifter. “I sense you in the darkness. You may approach me, I will not harm you.”

The corner of my lip lifted in revulsion; she was unkempt, and reeked of her fear. She took a small step forward, her eyes staring at the ground which was potholed and filled with muck and piss. “I’m sorry, my Lord, I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

I shrugged. “What do you want?”

She stuttered, and I was impatient for her to get out what she wanted to say. Instead of showing my impatience, I took a small step towards her. She stumbled backwards, but I slowly drew closer to her again and pulled her head up gently with my hand. “I will do you no harm.”

She didn’t look me in the eyes but continued to stare at my chin as she began again. “I’m sorry, my Lord, I came to tell you…” She paused, wringing her hands.

I studied her closely; she didn’t look familiar. “Do you live with the other shifters?”

She shook her head. “I u-used to, but I was cast out.”

“And why is that?”

“I was betrothed to Derek, but he broke off our engagement, and I was rejected in the pack.”

“Who is Derek?” What in hell’s name was this woman trying to tell me?

“He is third in command, and in love with Salina.”

“Dark hair, yellow eyes?” I touched her cheek. “He has a scar on his right cheek?”

She nodded and I grew very still, intent on what she would tell me. “And is that why he broke off his engagement with you?”

She nodded. “He desires to be head of the pack, but is afraid of our second. So he wishes to woo Salina, and become her mate.”

I studied her worn clothing and could tell by her smell that she hadn’t bathed in over a week. “And how serious is he about becoming her mate?”

Suddenly she grew bold, and looked me in the eyes. “Very serious, my Lord.”

“Enough to wish Agosto his final death?”

On this she tittered, “Of that I cannot say. I only know that he would risk manipulating the pack against me, so that he could cast me aside. It takes a great deal to dismiss a member, and he spent a great deal of energy towards it.”

I turned towards the docks, smelling the reek of dead fish and of the animal corpses that littered the bay. “And what motivation have you, in approaching me?” I swiveled back towards her. “For revenge?”

She sneered. “I do wish revenge, my Lord. But I have other matters to care to. My family cannot afford to pay the higher tax, not even for a bit of soap or meat. I wish to help you, so that you can release my family.”

I frowned. “And why would I believe you then? You could lie to invoke pity, so that I would release the tax.”

“I would never dare, sir. It’s true, I implore you for pity. I have a sister, who is not yet four.” Tears sprung from her eyes now. “She is hungry. I came to you, even though I feared your very presence, not for my sake, but for hers.” Her eyes steeled. “And yet, I speak the truth. Derek has a hard heart that he hides from those who would judge him, and only those he has destroyed have seen it. He desires the heart of Salina, so that he may rule over her, and he is willing to do a great deal to achieve it.” She looked away. “I don’t know if he killed your Maker, but I do know that if he had the chance he would take it.”

My mouth opened in astonishment. “And he believes that he could overtake a strigoi?”

She nodded. “He does. Especially if they were dead to the light of day.”

I nodded, considering her, then took her by her arm. She jumped at my touch but I moved her so swiftly up the street that she stumbled to keep up with me.

“Tell me, what is your name?”

“Myla.”

“And are you so desperate that you would do anything to feed your family.”

“I would, sir.”

“Do you still speak to any of the shifters?”

We reached the main street now, and I looked for a horse that could carry her away. “I do have a friend who still speaks to me, she is kind and doesn’t believe the lies that Derek spoke.”

I flagged down a man and put her in the carriage. “I have a need for your services.” I put her inside the back seat. “Are you willing to do a work for me, hmm?”

She nodded, her eyes wide open in fear, but her courage to help her family won over her fear. I put a coin in her hand and folded her fingers over it. “Go to your friend and tell her that you heard a rumor that I will soon come to the shifter household to announce my intentions. Can you do that?”

She nodded, and her shoulders relaxed, confident she could carry out my orders. “There will be another coin if you do as I say. And I will instruct them to reduce the taxes over your family.”

Her eyes grew wide and she threw her arms around me. I stiffened for a moment and then kissed her forehead. After paying the porter, I urged them to rush to their errand, and then they were off.

* * *

As soon as I entered my house, my fangs slid out, and my strigoi spilled out as the smell of her blood entered my nostrils. I growled, ready for the hunt. Realizing that that woman was in my home, I pushed it back down. Bloody hell. I just ate. I gripped the handle of the door, trying to determine if I should flee from my own damn home. Why not just kill her and get it over with?

I frowned, even as my eyes darkened. I was not a newly turned strigoi. I was master over my strigoi, and it my servant. I growled and, gripping the wall, I moved towards my workshop. Sophie watched me from the darkness.

“What do you want?”

She folded her arms across her stomach. “You burned the ship.”

I grunted, and continued down the hallway. Suddenly she was next to me, her hand on my elbow. “What’s the matter?”

I gripped her dress and pulled her towards me, breathing heavily. Adelade’s blood sang a song so sweet, I would suffer horribly if I did not taste it. Her heartbeat thrummed in my ears, beat by beat, commanding me to partake.

Sophie stared into my dark eyes. “It’s Adelade.”

I shrugged, and put my head on her shoulder. She held my arms, noting my trembling, then she pulled me to her. My fangs extracted and I breathed in deeply, my arms around her waist. Even with Sophie by my side, the pull to go to Adelade was still stronger. I scraped Sophie’s neck with my incisors, my need driving me to delve into the only woman who could give me peace. But at a high cost.

Gripping my arms tight, she pushed me back, her cheeks flushed. “I will bring one of my thralls.”

I shook my head.

“Lily, then.”

“She won’t be enough.”

“Then we must expel Adelade from the house. You cannot live like this.”

“Where is she? What is she doing?”

“She tried to help with the fire, and returned exhausted; she’s sleeping.”

I groaned and suddenly I was falling into Sophie’s arms. She held me to her as I struggled to control my strigoi. It would be so easy, Adelade would never need know. I could slip in and out, and she could wake in the morning completely unaware that I had only taken a sip. My hands gripped Sophie tighter. But could I only take a sip?

Exerting every ounce of will that I held in my body, I pulled back and cupped Sophie’s cheeks, staring into her eyes. “I will go to my workshop.”

She hesitated, but seeing that my control was greater than my strigoi, she nodded and took a step back. I stumbled, and she made to hold me again but I straightened myself and disappeared into my workshop.

* * *

I gripped the worktable, trying to keep my control. I mashed the shavings of wood with my finger, pulverizing them into little pieces of dust. Breathing in the smell of freshly carved wood, I reminded my strigoi that I’d already eaten tonight. A haze moved through the room, and I swiveled towards the door. The Fae Queen sat before me on an ornate throne of carved wood, a crown of thistles on her head. Her long golden locks curved and twisted down her half-naked body, giving me a glimpse of her breasts. It disappeared into her lap, where a sheer skirt woven with palm leaves billowed from her throne.

I grinned. There were other ways I could settle my strigoi.

She stared me down. “You burned everything.”

I stalked towards her. “Your King shouldn’t have provoked me.”

“He only tried to protect what is his.”

“Everything in this city is mine. I can do with it as I please. I only burned what I didn’t want.”

Then she smiled, surprising me, making me consider that the Fae King couldn’t have been that angry. “Come, Detrand. We have too much history to be enemies now.”

Her voice was mesmerizing and it tickled my ear. My whole body relaxed, my blood lust forgotten. Maybe I could keep her here; she could keep me from tearing Adelade’s throat out.

She held her hand to me and I walked towards her in a daze. She smelled of roses, a smell that reminded me of happy days, and my fangs extended.

“Words are whispered in dark corners about you Detrand. I’m curious what is true. And what isn’t.”

I took her hand and bent over it, kissing the top of it lightly. “Dulcina. Your beauty never fails to seduce me.”

She smiled, and the glory in her smile rivaled that of the sun. She turned her hand, and my tongue licked the vein over her wrist in one long lazy stroke.

She stared at me with half-hooded lids and her finger tickled my chin, gesturing me closer. I leaned in and she tilted her head away from me to show me her neck, an invitation. I closed my eyes, allowing my senses to flood through me. Taking off my shirt, I straddled her lap, the core of my body so hot that the touch of her naked chest was a shock of cold. She stared at my chest but I leaned down and gripped the nape of her neck. She groaned as my fangs scraped her skin. The smell of her blood was… intoxicating.

I breathed in and out deeply, reveling in her call and trying to control my strigoi. If I drank her blood, I would always be bound to her. My fangs entered her skin and I paused, allowing my poison to run through her body, and she convulsed under me. My fingers trailed down to her bosom, hardening her nipples into little pebbles. I trailed lower and teased her as she whimpered, her hands clinging to me, pressing me closer and urging me to drink from her.

Then suddenly she exploded under my delicate hands and she opened herself to me. My senses were ready and I thoroughly explored her every desire, her every motive. I paused in shock. She’d gotten involved with Agosto.

She was a greedy bitch, and I withdrew my fangs.

She protested, angry that I hadn’t drunk her blood and she moved me so that she was on top. Then she leaned over me, pressing her perky little breasts into my mouth and I tasted them, groaning, as she tried to seduce me into consuming her. I suckled them and my hands continued to roam her graceful body. She grew tight under my ministrations and she whimpered and groaned, as my hands explored her body. Giving in to her temptation, she tore my off my clothes and threw them on the floor and then she was raising and lowering herself over my hardened center. She threw back her head and the vein in her neck pulsed in front of my eyes, begging me to taste her sweet claret. I clasped her tighter, my hands traveling over her bare back as the pressure built inside me, uncertain I could control myself for much longer.

My whole body shook, as my strigoi threatened to overtake me. Then she was inside my head, my defenses weakened, and she knew what I wanted.

She laughed, pulling back and then stood before me, attempting to disappear into the darkness. The slit in her skirt showed her juices leaking down her thighs and I grabbed her and kneeled, giving into the temptation as I parted it and caressed her thighs with my tongue. She stopped and, moaning her pleasure, gripped my head. I looked up, my eyes raked her body and my strigoi growled, unsatisfied. I stood up, yanking her back into the chair and was on top of her, slamming myself into her.

No woman ever abandoned me, until I was satisfied.

She clenched her fists in my hair, moving with me as I gripped her hips, holding on tightly as our sweat-licked bodies slipped over each other. She howled, urging me on; she wanted it as much as I did. So I sat back, pulling on the back of her neck as I moved, my hardened muscles rippling down my stomach as I pounded faster, using my fingers to please her. We both cried out at the same time as we peaked.

And then she gasped and vanished, along with her throne, and I stumbled to the floor. Instead of rising, I stretched out on the floor, feeling the shavings and dust under my naked body. I smiled, knowing that she had allowed herself more than she intended, and that the King would punish her for her indulgence.

My eyebrows furrowed. Somehow she’d involved herself with Agosto; he was never as good as I at controlling his blood lust. Did they exchange blood? I shivered at the thought.

Now she knew my innermost desire, the one thing I wanted above all others, and even I didn’t know what that was. I would never allow her to tempt me again.

But she slipped up. Not only did I know her innermost desires, I knew everything she ever wanted and more. She’d revealed her lust and desire for Agosto, and everything he had. But nothing deadlier than that.

I touched my cheek, realizing that it was bleeding again. I wiped it and dressed, then left the room.

* * *

As I entered the sitting room, all eyes turned to me. I could still smell Adelade, but being with the Fae Queen calmed my strigoi somewhat. Besides, I would control it, or she or I would die, and it would probably not be me. I owed it to Bennett to dominate my strigoi.

I sat next to Lula, who looked radiant in her tight-fitting dress even though she smelled of perspiration and the mill next to the docks. Noting the threatening lift of Rowan’s lip, I stared him down silently. Sighing, he fell back into the settee, almost crashing into Lily who sat at the end of it, her back straight and was breathing heavily. I looked towards Sophie, who was lounging on the chaise across from me, her eyebrows raised.

I smiled. “And how are you tonight?”

The room was silent, unaccustomed to my presence at their fêtes. Sophie ruffled the skirts of her dress, which was a velvet green and complimented her dark green eyes. “I think the question, my dear, is whether your mood is acceptable this evening.” Her comment was light but her eyes held me.

I folded my long legs and I sensed that Lily was taking note of my every movement, so I leaned towards her, just slightly. Her mouth parted.

Contemplating my romp with the Fae Queen, I smiled, showing my teeth in answer to her question. “What a lovely night for a fire.”

The whole room expelled a breath, and the thralls standing behind the settee continued their discourse over the items that must have burned with the ship. Trying her best to ignore me, Lily struck up a conversation with Rowan who was still eyeing me cautiously.

Treveti, a strigoi who worked for several years under Agosto, leaned over to whisper to a young, and delicious, woman named Tasha. Treveti met Tasha when she was a child. Her youthful innocence had enthralled him and he immediately bought her and raised her under his household. I’d tasted her several times, and I must admit I can understand his obsession for her.

His hand traveled down her neck and over to her breast, and then his thumb circled the tip as her hand gripped his thigh. She leaned into him and giggled when his hand traveled lower.

I turned to Lula. “Have you been treated well in your time spent here?”

She looked at Rowan, who stood to fill his glass. “I have, thank you.”

I reached for her chin and turned it so that she was facing me. “I’m curious, have you ever visited the mansion up the bay, the one surrounded by the forest?”

She answered, not willing to look me in the eyes but stared at my chin. She was learning quickly. “I have, once actually, with my Father.”

I sat back, causing her to turn her body to face me. “And what did you think of it?”

Sophie raised an eyebrow at me but I kept my eyes on Lula.

“It’s lovely. The forests are green year-round for some unimaginable reason. And the house is so large. Although I don’t imagine I would like to live there, I would have to have an excessive amount of servants.” At this, Dominique, one of the servants we employed, offered me a glass. I took it, offered it to Lula, and accepted the next glass.

Sipping the chardonnay, I watched the movement of her neck as the wine traveled down. The thralls in the room began to sing and dance, and Sophie clapped her hands, encouraging them.

“And what do you think of the people who live there?”

She frowned. “Well, I don’t expect I know much about them, except that there does seem to be a great deal of them. I couldn’t keep track of who was what, they were all running to and fro, and all those children…” She put her hand to her chest. “They ran through the house as if it they never saw a spot of soap in their life! I had a mind to run a bath for the whole lot and dump them all in it.” Grinning, she looked at Treveti, whose fangs were now deeply embedded into the base of Tasha’s neck. Her head was thrown to the side, and her moans were getting louder. “Although,” Lula continued, “I don’t think I would mind growing up in a place like that.”

She swallowed hard as Treveti straddled Tasha, who began to unbutton his pants, then she looked at Rowan, who was staring at her with darkened eyes.

“And how do you think you would control that many children, yourself?”

Lula blinked and turned back to me. “Well, a lot like that, you’d have to rule with a firm hand. Show them kindness, of course, but you would have to keep a stiff grip on their necks to show them that they are not a pack of rats, but live in a civilized world, even though they are so far out.”

I nodded, considering her words and ignoring the thrumming noise from Rowan.

“And if one of them tried to rebel?”

“Well, I expect you’d have to make an example of him, wouldn’t you?” She blinked her eyelashes at me. “And then show him mercy and compassion, so that he understands that he’s still a valued part of the community, if he behaves himself.”

Rowan stood up now and Lula pushed herself away from me. I frowned at Rowan but he sat between us, eyeing her hungrily. I clicked my tongue and stood up; he was already pulling down the top of her gown. I watched her as she stared at him, her eyes hungry, and he leaned towards her neck while his hands fondled her softly. When she took his hand and lowered it, I turned towards Sophie who was seated next to her favorite thrall, drinking freely. One of her other thralls lay across her lap and, giving in to the temptation to eat again, I straddled her. She smiled and bared her neck, but I opened her gown to reveal the biggest pair of breasts I ever saw. Growling, I lowered myself to them. Lily sighed behind me and turned to leave, but I grabbed her hand and looked up at her with darkened eyes. “Later.”

She smiled coyly and I let go of her wrist. “Wait for me in my room.” I looked towards the window and noted that dawn would be here soon. “I’ll be there shortly, but you won’t sleep in my bed.”

* * *

As soon as I entered the hallway, the smell of Adelade pulled at me so strong, that instead of going to Lily, I went for Adelade’s room. I could hear the throbbing of her heart, feel the vibration as it tumbled down the hallway to run up my feet and throughout my whole body. I stalked her slowly, making myself unseen as I descended down the hallway. I stood outside her door, my ear to the soft wood, my trembling hand on the knob.

It didn’t make a sound as I opened it and I stood for a moment, catching my breath, as I stared at her sleeping form. She was so innocent, her face childlike and trusting as she slept in the house of the ultimate predator.

I could see the stake tucked under her pillow, likely given her by Bennett. Good. He had warned her sufficiently.

And yet, the side of my mouth lifted at her naïveté. As if she could conquer the strigoi with a stroke of her stake. I could kill her with my pinky finger, her puny little arm held no strength against one such as I.

Her heartbeat picked up as if it knew that I was near, even though I was not visible to the eye. Her instincts were spot on. Her breathing increased and she even cried out, which drew me to the back end of the room for fear of scaring her further. I was worse than anything in her worst nightmare, my cursed living and the powers that I held, she was child’s play under my ministrations. As her blood called to me, I trembled against the back wall, willing my control over my strigoi. The fact that I had already eaten twice tonight wasn’t sufficient for her siren’s call, and I imagined the second it would take to mount her and partake of the most delicious claret known to strigoi. Blood lust: the kind kings went to war for, the real reason women were enslaved, and it bade me taste as she slept helplessly before me. It beaconed to me like I was the slave and it, my master.

I crept closer, step by step, until I could feel her breath on my face and see the trickle of sweat that sprinkled her lips. She moaned again, and I clasped the sheets of the bed. My senses reached out, uncontrollably, to feel her, to know her. I wanted to know what was in her mind, her heart. What caused her to sweat and to cry out, even though she lay unconscious?

She cared for her father, and hid her grief by working to the bone to clean my house. My house. Anger flooded through my body. My servants were given instructions that she was not to work, but to be served like royalty. She cared for Sophie and Lula, and even held a touch of concern for the people who served me, even though they treated her with disdain. She worried about them and their safety and felt that they treated her unfairly because of the rumors about her mother. I growled softly. They would be thoroughly punished, and made to bow at her feet for treating her such. I rarely lay a hand on my servants, but disobedience wouldn’t be tolerated, especially for one such as the daughter of Colleen.

She also held a secret, so deep and dark that I could not pull it from her. Intrigued, I touched her hand and a warmth traveled up my arm so quickly that I yanked my hand away. What demon magic was this?

She turned, suddenly facing me and my incisors descended as I watched the pulse at her neck beat. I breathed in deeply; it held the sweetest smell. I leaned closer and my nose was on her neck. Just a little taste would satisfy me, I only needed a thimble of her vitality. I brushed her hair away from her face and she mumbled in response. I rubbed her neck with my nose. Just a small taste, that’s all it would require to satisfy my strigoi, and she never need know.

“Detrand.”

I fell back onto the floor, revealing myself. I hadn’t even heard Sophie enter.

“What are you doing here?”

My annoyance spilled out, and my strigoi burst out of me. “Never get in between me and my prey.” I growled, low and menacing, and pounced on her.

“Detrand, you mustn’t taste her.”

“What do you know of it? Who are you to command me?” I was on top of her and she gripped my arms tightly, her back pressed to the floor. I leaned down, showing her my teeth, and I could feel her tremble in fear under me.

“You cannot yet control yourself. You would kill her.”

I fell upon her, choking, the realization that she was right flowing over me. My misgiving for killing Colleen’s daughter would rival only my betrayal to Sophie, and I forced my will over my strigoi. It fought me, and I turned to the only being who could help me. “Help,” the only words I could manage, as my strigoi threatened to overtake me again.

Suddenly I was being pulled into my room.

“Leave us.” Sophie motioned to Lily, who was gone in an instant, and then we were on the bed and she was straddling me and pulling off her nightgown. Before I knew it, I was inside her, tearing from her neck and gulping down the mercy she was offering to me. As I began to gather my mind, I realized the terrible situation that I’d put myself in; knew that this moment would forever change my relationship with Sophie, and that I’d betrayed her once again. And yet, I clasped her to me, pulling her blood deeper into my throat to chase away the demons as she cried out over me.