Blanche looked around, as if we might be overheard. “Tomorrow.”
I nodded and watched as she got to her feet. She headed for the door.
“Blanche,” I called after her.
She paused to glance back at me. “Yes?”
“Thank you.”
She held my eye for a moment before leaving the room.
I leaned back into the sofa and sighed. It was a lot to take in. A whole world of supernatural machinations suddenly come to life. I needed the night to absorb it all before I saw Henri in the morning. I wasn’t sure what to think, but I was worried for him. The way he kissed me, the way he held me … hadn’t seemed like the work of a monster. But I’d also seen him struggling against his uncle, claws raking with deadly accuracy.
I shuddered, wondering just what sort of world I found myself in now.
Montoni watched me as I lifted a cup to my mouth at teatime the next afternoon. He seemed to expect something from me. Maybe he thought I would run from the room screaming as soon as I laid eyes on him. I’d certainly felt the urge to flee. My body knew now that he was an alpha predator, and being so close to him made my hair stand on end. But I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me cower. I met his eyes with a level gaze.
“Bertolino, you may leave us,” Montoni said.
Blanche shifted in her chair uneasily as the servant scurried from the room, closing the door behind him.
My aunt added a cube of sugar to her teacup, oblivious to the tension in the air. “A little strong, isn’t it?” she muttered, giving it another taste, and deciding it was good enough, taking a healthy sip.
“Do you have something to say, Emile?” Montoni asked.
My eyes darted to my aunt, who frowned, before finding the
count again. “No, I don’t think I do.”
“You don’t find me disgusting? Abhorrent?” He leaned forward. “Monstrous?”
“What are you going on about?” Aunt Cheron wondered, watching the proceedings with confusion. She turned to me. “Emile?”
“How is your cheek, Aunt?” I asked.
Her hand flew to her face, where she had done a worthy job of covering up the bruise, but it still swelled. “Clumsy of me. I should have had a light.”
“Indeed.”
I found Montoni’s eyes again and wondered what he was playing at. He couldn’t intend to reveal what he was to my aunt. I was sure she didn’t know. There was no way she could have carried on as she had with the knowledge.
Montoni picked up his teacup and swirled the contents. “It seems that I cannot let you leave, Emile. You’ve put me in a difficult position, but I do think something can be worked out. However, I must now insist on a marriage to Lady Morano if you ever wish to leave these walls again.”
Aunt Cheron was staring at me in wonder. I couldn’t tell what she was thinking, but clearly she realized that I had come into knowledge of a secret that Montoni could not let out. I had some power over him now. Little did she know, he could end me in an instant if he chose to.
“He won’t say anything, Uncle,” Blanche spoke up. “Even if we weren’t to marry, he has too much affection for us to hurt us.”
“That may be so, but I want assurances.” Montoni set down his teacup and tapped its side. “It has also occurred to me that if you are no longer going to be taken out of the picture, the inheritance will go to you, after all.”
I blinked, unsure. I sent Blanche a questioning look, but she seemed as clueless as I.
Montoni smiled at my confusion. “I don’t like complications, Emile. I am a simple man. If I want something, I take it. I remove any obstacles, any extra pieces on the board, so to speak. And as I come to these conclusions, I realize that I really have no further use of your aunt.”
My eyes widened and I sat up. “No. I beg you. Don’t … don’t hurt her.”
Aunt Cheron stiffened and stared at Montoni. “What are you saying? That you would murder me in cold blood?”
Montoni’s smile widened. “Oh, the blood will be warm.”
