A Call of Vampires (A Shade of Vampire #51)(59)

“Blaze.” Jax looked at the fire dragon. “Normally I’d take you with us for this one, but we’ll have plenty of armed guards with us and the Druid. I’d rather you stay behind, take Caia, and start interviewing the victims’ families. The more you can cover over the next few hours and tomorrow, the better.”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to come along?” Blaze frowned slightly.

“Nah, you’re like the nuclear option.” I grinned. “Jax won’t whip you out unless he has no other choice. We’re doing recon for now.”

“Don’t worry, Blaze, once we switch to extermination mode you’re the first creature I’ll let loose in those gorges.” Jax gave him a reassuring smile.

“I’ve never seen you in dragon form, though. How big do you get?” Heron muttered, then glanced at Jax. “How big does he get? You don’t want him getting his ass stuck in those gorges. That would be terribly counterproductive!”

Chuckles rose from our group as Blaze rolled his eyes, then groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. Heron gave him a friendly pat on the back.

“It’s okay, buddy, I’ll get you out if you need help.” Heron winked. “I’ll have these lovely Imen ladies pack a barrel of oil to use and we’ll be good to go.”

We burst out laughing, and I noticed the Imen girls, including Hera, blushing and looking away, pressing their lips together. Leave it to Heron to make every female in this room blush. My gaze shifted around the table again, and I found Caspian once again staring at me, a permanent frown casting dark shadows over his eyes.

I raised an eyebrow in response, as I no longer had the patience to tiptoe around him. Whatever problem he had with me, he could either voice it or shut the hell up. He didn’t. Instead, he scoffed and looked at his fellow Lords, as if deeming me unimportant.

Darius then stood up, his hands behind his back, and bowed.

“I’ll go get my people ready then,” he said. “They will bring out horses, as well. Can we meet downstairs in the Main Square in, shall we say, half an hour?”

“Sure, we’ll be ready by then.” Jax nodded. “Thank you.”

“It is the least I can do, on top of the bravery you’re already demonstrating.”

The Mara walked out, followed closely by two servants. I glanced back at Caspian and noticed the defeated look on his face, while Rowan and Farrah seemed to deliberately ignore him, and Emilian was busy smiling at us.

We didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into, but my suspicion that Caspian was hiding something began to scratch the inside of my skull. I’d have to find out more about him, maybe even follow him, but I needed to go over this with Jax. Whether Caspian had anything to do with these disappearances or anything else that was shifty in Azure Heights, I didn’t know. But my instincts rarely failed me, and I’d learned to pay attention, even when there seemed to be nothing there.





Fiona





(Daughter of Benedict & Yelena)





After the dinner, Avril, Heron, and I walked with Vincent and Rowan to the Roho mansion. It was situated three levels above the Broken Bow Inn. The platform was huge, carved into the mountain’s limestone ridge to hold five large villas with three floors each. They were similar in design and architecture, with pure white facades, sculpted columns, and French windows, fit for kings and queens.

The Roho mansion was situated on the right side of the level, beautifully framed by dark green pines and flowering bushes, with a white marble fountain at the front surrounded by a narrow strip of beige slabs that contrasted with the brown cobblestone. We couldn’t help but stop and stare at the world that lay beyond the hedges bordering this top level of Azure Heights, including the Valley of Screams and the smooth plains, now glazed in darkness beneath Pell, one of the three moons of Neraka.

“By midnight, all three moons will be shining bright.” Vincent’s voice broke me out of my reverie. He stood behind me, his face surprisingly close to mine.

Our eyes met for a second before I turned around and moved closer to Avril and Heron. Rowan smiled, then climbed the white marble stairs leading up to the main entrance. We followed quietly, as did Vincent.

“You are all welcome in House Roho,” Rowan said as she pushed open the double doors and invited us into the sumptuous reception area.

The house looked even bigger on the inside, with white walls, beige-and-white marble flooring, and brushed brass details. The reception hall was tall and round, with two sets of stairs leading up to the first floor, and open archways on both sides leading into other parts of the ground floor. The candlelit chandeliers cast a delicate amber light, revealing a massive living room to our left, and the dining and kitchen area to the right.

Painted portraits of Roho family members were hung on the walls along the stairs, depicting them in their finest clothes. I recognized Rowan and Vincent in a family scene, accompanied by a beautiful young female Mara with bright jade eyes and red hair.

“I assume that’s Sienna?” I pointed at her, and Vincent followed my gaze, then smiled.

“Yes. We had that portrait made about ten years ago,” he replied, a hint of sadness in his voice. “She’d barely made her debut at the time.”

“Hers was one of the most beautiful debutante balls in the history of Azure Heights,” Rowan sighed, gazing at the image of her daughter.