I frowned at the woman, annoyed by the interruption. “Apologies. The duchess is needed. It’s an emergency.”
“You will dance with me,” the woman said, voice commanding and sure.
I stared at her. Something about her was familiar, but my mind suddenly felt cottony and I couldn’t summon the capacity to place her. “I will dance with you.” I surprised even myself with this response, but my body was going through the motions, leading her out onto the dance floor and seamlessly integrating us into the sea of dancing bodies.
“Oh, really, Lucian, you’re much more of a wooden dancer than I imagined,” the woman sighed. “Loosen up or you’ll attract unwanted attention.” She glanced around nervously. “And anyway, nothing is more pertinent than this. Your other emergency will have to wait.”
I blinked slowly down at her. So familiar. Why was it so hard to think? Was I ill? And why was she speaking as if I knew her?
She scowled at my expression. “Snap out of it, Lucian. I’d think you, of all people, would be immune to the effects. I need that sharp mind of yours for what’s coming. Now, do you notice anything as you observe the room?”
I focused on her words, eyes narrowing as my mind began to clear, like a smoky room opened up to let in fresh air. I turned my gaze on the room around us. Cecelia swept by with her partner. She met my eyes with a strange, haunted look. I frowned as I followed her stiff momentum, before catching sight of Melbourne, sweating nervously while dancing with a red-haired woman. He wasn’t smiling. He was … not like himself at all. And then I noticed that most of the dancers wore similar nervous expressions, as if they were in a serious competition. What exactly had I walked into? Another leg of the marriage games?
My eyes found Cecelia again. Her partner was … Percival. Percival, pale and dancing with the energy of a man half his age. In fact, he looked ten or fifteen years younger. Melbourne danced with … my eyes widened. Nancy. Helena’s maid, pale as death. As I whirled with this familiar stranger in my arms, I caught sight of the windows, the darkness practically invisible due to the light of the room. In the reflection of glass, I saw dancers with their arms in the air, twirling without partners.
Myself included.
A shiver ran up my spine.
“Now you see it,” the woman said with a sigh. “I assume the hypnosis is wearing off?”
I pursed my lips, attention returning to the woman. I squinted down at her before my eyes widened, the scent of her gardenia perfume registering. “It can’t be.”
She grinned. “Took you long enough,” Helena chuckled at my stunned expression. “I know. It’s been a while since I looked this young. I was amazed my body transitioned so quickly, but then again, I began the process before anyone else here.”
I blinked. Helena … a vampire. Her skin was smooth and flawless, save for small laugh lines and crow’s feet. Her hair had darkened. Her eyes were a rich amber that met mine with fondness for the first time in years. No longer blind, no longer weak with age. Just the other day, she had been bedridden with sickness. Not sickness, I now realized, but rather death. On the verge of being interned into the ground, to be born anew.
“So,” I said, my mouth dry. “You finally got your wish.”
Helena cocked her head. “Does it bother you? That I’m the vampire while you’re the mortal man?” She frowned as I faltered in my dancing. “Keep up appearances, Lucian. We don’t have much time.”
I obeyed, but I was torn as I watched my old friend. I was happy to see her so young and full of vitality, but my heart ached, knowing what this meant for her: a life of blood, a life of night, a life of loneliness. Why did that bother me so much? That had been my life.
“I can tell what you’re thinking,” she interrupted my thoughts. “And you need not worry. Raven has abated our thirst. Sheep’s blood, but it does wonders to clear the mind.” She smiled. “You never would have offered a newling sheep’s blood. You were never one to bother with restraint.”
“Restraint is for the weak,” I said flatly, recalling a mantra I used to recite to her.
She snorted. “I have a feeling you’ve changed your mind on that matter these past few weeks. Humanity is a powerful thing. It gives you perspective.”
I tried to take in the room with a casual glance. There were nearly twenty-five people in the room, including servants, the competition for Ambrose’s hand having shrunk considerably. Fifteen were vampires. Those weren’t the best odds, but I also didn’t plan on going down without a fight, should it come to that. I didn’t relish the thought. It would be an absolute bloodbath, and I doubted the humans would come out on top.
I frowned, then narrowed my eyes as I returned them to Helena. “Raven did all of this. She planned it.”
Helena smiled tightly. “Of course she did.”
“That conniving little bitch,” I muttered, shaking my head. “I thought ruining me and changing Emmett would have been enough for her. But her ruthlessness knows no bounds.”
“First thing she did was cut out my tongue,” Helena said softly. “So I couldn’t warn you. She was worried you’d stop her, and despite everything, she still doesn’t trust me. To be fair, I was going to tell you. Her thirst for revenge rivals her other agendas. She fed me a lot of her blood before she drained me of my mine. Probably why I look so much younger than some of these poor souls.”
“Don’t worry,” I said bitterly. “The more blood you drink, the younger you will look, until you’re in your prime.”
“Lucian. Focus, or many may not be leaving here alive tonight.”
Cecelia whirled by in a swish of her skirts. My friends were here. Helena was right. I couldn’t let them down. And I couldn’t afford to neglect Ambrose much longer. He needed me. I didn’t have time foranyof this.
I met her eyes. “I don’t understand why you’re helping me. I’ve only ever caused you pain.” I looked away. “I know I can apologize a thousand times and it wouldn’t be enough.”
She smiled tightly in response. “This is no longer about just you and me, Lucian.”
