Wicked Soul (Ancient Blood #1)(63)
“Sit with me, my dove,” he said.
“Um…” I cleared my throat, trying not to blush at the term of endearment. From the grand total of two comments he’d spoken to me so far, I was getting the impression he had his formal hat on tonight. It wasn’t like he was normally the most chill dude, and I glanced at his lap, trying to determine if he meant he wanted me to sit on him.
“The floor, Snack,” Aleric murmured, discreetly kneeing me in the hamstring to push me in the right direction. Only then did I spot the pillow by one of the chair legs.
“Oh.” Oh. He’d been literal when he talked about me sitting by Warin’s feet like a dog. Grimacing at the idea of subjecting my amazing dress to the floor I stepped up next to Warin’s chair and, with the support of his grasp on my hand, sat down as gracefully as I could manage. Which wasn’t particularly graceful at all.
Only when I’d gotten into a somewhat comfortable kneeling position on the pillow did Warin release my hand.
Aleric, apparently happy he’d fulfilled his delivery obligations, nodded at his brother and walked off, leaving us behind.
I glanced up at Warin, unsure of what I was supposed to do now, but he didn’t so much as spare me a glance. He just sat there, looking as bored as before as he stared out over the slowly filling room.
Well, this looked like it was going to be a fun-filled night. I heaved a sigh and tried my best to mimic the empty doll-like expression on Aleric’s pet’s face. At least my guilt over making Warin go to Denver to visit my family with me was sharply declining.
We sat in complete silence for a good twenty minutes before a small group of people—vampires, judging by their pale skin—approached us.
“Lord Warin,” the woman said, inclining her head an inch while the two men behind her bowed deep.
“Lady Lizanne,” Warin greeted. “Elliot. And… your new Son, if I’m not mistaken?” His blue eyes swept to one of the male vampires—a tall, blonde young man.
“Yes, this is Peter, the newest addition to my bloodline.” Lizanne made a motion for Peter to step forward. She looked like a proud mother—but when he moved closer to Warin and she let a hand slide down the small of his back and over his ass, I instantly regretted the comparison. Clearly, vampire families had different moral codes than humans.
Warin nodded. “Congratulations, Lizanne.”
“And you, Warin? Still childless?” The female vampire let her gaze slide over me. “Or are you perhaps reconsidering, after all these years? This is the first time you have claimed a pet, if I’m not mistaken.”
“There is a world of difference between a pet and a Child,” Warin said, his dismissive tone making me bite back a small bloom of hurt. It wasn’t like I wanted to be Warin’s creepy vampire-daughter, either. “As I’m sure you are well-aware.”
“Of course. Nothing good ever comes from forcing a bond with a Child who isn’t worthy of the Embrace.” The woman looked back to Warin. “But to get onto more urgent matters… I have instructed my Guard to look into any irregularities with the blood supply, as well as increasing surveillance of any suspected witch activities.”
“But nothing’s been reported to you? No increase in disappearances?” Warin asked.
“Nothing. But I will continue my investigations. As unfortunate as the occurrences in Chicago are, I appreciate your warning and your diligence on the matter—no one wants these occurrences to spread across territories.”
“We will see,” Warin said. “I thank you for your participation in this matter.”
Apparently it was a dismissal, because the lady inclined her head at him again and led her two sons away without another word. And then a new, small group of vampires stepped up to Warin’s makeshift throne.
While at first I was fascinated watching the vampires interact, it quickly became incredibly boring. A few made enquiries about my presence—enough to make it obvious that the vampire elite were surprised to see Warin with a companion—but no one ever spoke directly to me. And the line of questioning always led to the same results: no one had heard anything, no one knew anything, and everyone would do their utmost to look for similar cases in their own territories.
By the time a black-haired man with golden eyes stepped up, the first vampire without an entourage, my knees were aching and I’d just about murder for a pee and a glass of water.
“Lord Warin,” he said like all the others had, but something in his voice made me look up at him. There was just the faintest hint of a purr in it, like a satiated panther. He was beautiful, with his high cheekbones and sensuous lips, but that wasn’t what kept my attention—they were all beautiful. Cold, but beautiful. No, it was the sheer power radiating off him in nearly tangible waves. Every hair on my body stood on end when his gaze briefly flickered down to me. “Miss Green.”
“H-hi,” I croaked, taken by surprise by finally being acknowledged.
His lips curved in a devious little smile. “You should let your pet drink something. Humans require constant hydration, or they simply… wither and die. Like delicate orchids. Isn’t that right, my lovely?” Though he was speaking to Warin, he didn’t take his disturbing eyes off me.
“I was not expecting you, Lord Zet. London is far away, and my notification was only sent out to the North American Lords and Ladies,” Warin said, ignoring his comment about me.