A Call of Vampires (A Shade of Vampire #51)(68)

He called the gentlemen callers “fleeting crushes”, and said that Sienna would have confided in him, had there been someone in her life with whom she’d gotten serious in any way.

I stood on the edge of the gazebo, watching five Imen servants from the Roho household as they came down the stairs of the back porch and stopped in the middle of the flower garden, a couple of yards away from me.

“Please be so kind as to answer all of Fiona’s questions,” Vincent told the four males and one young female. “She’s here to help us find Sienna.”

The Imen nodded, then glanced at me, curiosity and willingness twinkling in their eyes.

“When was the last time any of you saw Sienna?” I asked, noticing the girl looking away, her gaze darting all over the garden in an attempt to avoid me. My instincts flared then.

“I saw her in the kitchen at noon, five days ago,” one of the servants replied.

“As did I,” another nodded.

“We saw her in the garden. Here, by the gazebo, at sundown, five days ago,” a third said, while the fourth sighed his agreement.

“What about you?” I asked the girl, but she refused to look at me, her lips pressed tight together.

“Arrah, please answer Fiona’s question,” Vincent said slowly. I analyzed his tone carefully, but there was nothing but softness in it.

Arrah looked at me and shrugged, but the fear in her eyes was unmistakable, though not obvious. She knew something, and she wasn’t telling me.

“In the garden, milady, at sunset,” came her automatic response. Her pupils dilated and her nostrils flared a little, enough for me to know that she was lying.

I nodded, then gave her a reassuring smile.

“Did she seem upset? Was she with anyone? Did she have any visitors during the day?” I asked, but only got one muttered “no” and five heads shaking.

I sighed, then looked at Vincent.

“I don’t think they’re able to help much, but I’m hoping Avril might have caught Sienna’s scent by now,” I said.

“I understand,” he replied, looking somewhat disappointed. “Would you like to go back inside?”

“Yes, I would, thank you.”

Vincent led the way up the stairs, and I followed, while the servants waited quietly for us to leave before I assumed they would retire to their rooms. I got another glimpse of Arrah, and that worried look on her face did not go away.

She knew something, but she didn’t want to speak in front of the others, and certainly not in front of Vincent. I had a feeling that Sienna had been keeping secrets from her family.

We reached the grand salon, with red velvet sofas and decorative glass cabinets filled with porcelain figurines depicting dancers and various animals. Avril and Heron were both there, quietly waiting for us, their eyes fixed on me. I knew Avril well enough to understand what the look in her hazel eyes meant. They had info.

“Will that be all for today?” Vincent asked politely, smiling at us.

“Yes.” I smiled back, then moved to Avril’s side.

“Good, well, thank you all for coming here and for trying to help us find my sister,” he replied, then bowed. “I’m sorry we couldn’t assist more. It’s just that… The day of her disappearance was a day like any other. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing wrong. She just… vanished.”

“That’s okay,” I said. “Maybe Avril caught her scent. We’ll investigate this further tomorrow, anyway.”

“I haven’t caught her scent yet. It’s like she was never here,” Avril muttered, then frowned.

“Oh, wow, really?” I took a deep breath, then decided it was best to continue our conversation outside and away from Vincent. Things were getting weirder with every minute we spent inside the Roho mansion. “Okay, we’ll be going now, and we’ll see you tomorrow, once we decide what our next course of action will be.”

I gave him a curt nod, then headed toward the exit, with Avril and Heron by my side.

“Fiona?” Vincent’s voice stopped me in my tracks.

I turned to face him. He looked nervous, his jade eyes twinkling and restless.

“We’re having our annual Spring Ball tomorrow evening,” he said slowly, a slight tremor in his voice. “I was wondering if you’d like to join me. I mean, if you’d all like to join us. It’s an annual celebration of the Nerakian spring. It’s held in the Kifo mansion. Their ballroom is absolutely stunning. We serve special floral-infused blood cocktails on this occasion. I think you’ll like them very much.”

A few seconds passed before I could formulate an answer, with no help from Avril or Heron.

“I don’t… I don’t have a dress. None of us brought dresses,” I muttered. “We didn’t come for parties here.”

“Yeah, I didn’t bring one either,” came Heron’s acid remark.

“Our tailors will be more than happy to assist.” Vincent smiled, pleased to have solved the problem so quickly. “They’ve served the Lords and Ladies of Azure Heights for each of these occasions, and they’ve also helped their personal guests look the part, as well.”

I wanted to say no, but Avril’s finger digging discreetly between two of my ribs made me squirm and confirm.

“Ugh, yes, okay, yes,” I managed to say before I briefly gave her my deadliest glare.