He turned and gestured, from the midst of the Fae a small boy walked. He appeared human, his frame thin and slight, dark hair on his head and eyes the deep color of mud that seemed to take in everything and nothing at the same time.
The men beside me went stock still.
I didn’t know enough about the Fae to be able to read the situation. I did know that nobody on the dais was happy.
Aiden looked back, obviously unsure of how to handle the situation.
“The days of trading humans has long since passed,” Thomas said, raising his hand and waving Aiden back.
Niamh moved forward, her lips curled in a feline smile.“You’ll have to pardon us. It’s just so hard to keep track of human convention. They die off so quickly.”
Thomas didn’t answer, just regarded the woman steadily.
It didn’t take a genius to know the offering was an insult, meant to goad a reaction from the vampires.
From the little knowledge I possessed, I knew the Fae had a nasty habit of stealing children away from their parents, concealing them in their hidden lands, only to release them much later when everyone they knew was old or long dead.
I didn’t know how long this boy had been gone from this world. For all I knew he could be centuries older than me.
She shrugged slim shoulders.“If you do not wish to accept, I can always get rid of the boy.”
She raised a hand. One of the red caps unsheathed a sword and advanced on the child.
Only years of standing in formation, expressionless as someone yelled in my face kept me from reacting. That, and the knowledge of the gun strapped to my thigh. If need be,I’d act, but not yet. Not until I saw how Thomas handled this situation.
From my position behind him, I could see the way his hands tightened on the arm of his chair. He was no happier about this than me.
The red cap neared the boy, his lips curling as he raised the blade.
“Your hosting gift is accepted.” Thomas’s cool voice rang out in the silence.
The red cap hesitated, the promise of a fresh kill tempting him. Only Niamh waving him off with an impatient gesture compelled him to sheath the blade and return to his place in line.
“Excellent,” she said, clapping her hands together.“We look forward to our stay.” Her gaze wandered to Liam, the expression on her face turning hungry.“Our appetites are many. Providing us with something to pass the time would help keep us out of trouble.”
Thomas showed no evidence of the suggestion being abhorrent, not even a muscle twitch betrayed him.“I’m afraid that is not possible. The enforcer has important business that would not leave him time to entertain.”
Niamh gaze turned toward me.“Her, then.”
I didn’t twitch. If Thomas tried to give me over to this woman as a plaything, I was shooting her with the cold iron at my side. Consequences be damned. I had a feeling the world would be a much better place without her in it.
“My yearling would not survive the attentions of one such as you,” Thomas said in an amused voice.“She is not far removed from her human beginnings and still rather breakable.”
Niamh made a moue of disappointment even as she eyed me like she was the cat to my mouse.“Pity. I could think of many things to do with one such as her.”
“Control yourself, Niamh. This is not the time for such transient pleasures,” a man drawled.
It was the man who had accompanied her into the room. As with all the High Fae, he possessed an otherworldly beauty that made my teeth ache. It was spoiled by the haughty twist of his lips and the way he looked around the ballroom like it was little more than a dirt hut.
His hair was the color of freshly turned earth and longer than most modern men kept theirs. It didn’t make him seem effeminate, more like someone who belonged in an older era, one that lacked the distractions and noise of today’s world.
His eyes were tilted at the corners, almost almond-shaped and the color of amber. His skin looked like the sun had lovingly kissed it. He probably never had to worry about sunburn a day in his life.
His gaze moved past me as if I wasn’t even there as he focused on Thomas again.
Niamh didn’t seem entirely pleased with her companion’s interruption, but she bowed her head and stepped back, ceding the floor to him.
“You will have to forgive my wife. She grows bored when so far from home,” the man said.
