A hundred different emotions pass across Gideon’s features. “You… you have that kind of money?”
“Why are you questioning the only person offering to help you? I told you, I am very good at my job.”
“I believe it.” He puffs out his cheeks. “This is… I can’t believe it. I truly am the luckiest vampire to have you back in my life.”
You keep believing you’re the lucky one. Meanwhile, I’m going to enjoy my revenge.
“I want Sanctus to succeed as much as anyone.” I shrug, as if this isn’t a big deal, as if I’m not putting my life’s savings on the line to ensure he suffers for what he did to me. “Of course, as majority shareholder, I’ll be taking an active role in management decisions.”
“Yes, yes, whatever you want.” His eyes sparkle, and for a moment, I almost wish Iwasgoing to work together with him to improve Sanctus. I picture the two of us bickering over his enormous desk, and then I picture him flinging everything off the top and bending me over it…
I quickly banishthatfantasy, which has no place whatsoever inside my revenge plot, no matter how my skin heats at the thought of his hand sliding up my thigh as he presses me into that cool mahogany…
“I’ve already drawn up the paperwork. You’ll find it in your inbox…” I stare meaningfully down at his phone bobbing its way downstream. “Later. As soon as you sign, I’ll have the funds transferred.”
“Arabella, I can’t thank you enough for this. I know things between us are—”
“Fraught?” I suggest. “Violent?”
“Extraordinary,” he corrects me, and there’s a mischievous gleam in his eyes that I don’t like. It looks a little too much like hope. “But this is truly remarkable. Know that Iwantyour ideas. I truly believe Sanctus could be the start of freeingallvampires from court control. With you at my side, we can make this place—”
“Gideon,thereyou are.”
Sinead steps over the trickling stream. She glares at me before turning her attention to her boss. “I’ve been texting you. We’re ready for your presentation now. Your friend Lord Valerian says that if you don’t hurry up and unveil his statues, he’ll be forced to do it himself, using your intestine for the ribbon-cutting ceremony—”
“Tell Allie to hold his murderous thoughts. I’m on my way.” Gideon smooths down the front of his devastating suit, then reaches out and shakes my hand. “Thank you again. I can’t express in words what this means to me. And luckily, I don’t have to, because I’m about to unveil my surprise.”
Great, Gideon’s surprise.I was hoping he’d forgotten about it.
Gideon skips away. Sinead fixes me with one final glare before taking off in the direction of the trees, glass of blood in hand to deliver to some Upyr. I find Celeste and Winnie in the crowd, and we elbow our way to the front.
“Welcome, residents and staff, to the first of many events to be held in our new Midnight Garden.” Gideon beams from the small makeshift stage. The band have set down their instruments, and every eye at the party is on him. He struts the length of the stage, twirling the microphone in his fingers, loving the attention. My gaze trails down his exquisite Armani suit to his shiny patent leather Brionis. Why do clothes have to look so good on him? “I envisioned this space as a place of quiet solitude and contemplation. A good friend of mine once said that when he started painting outside, he could, in his words, ‘…feelthe landscape. It’s enchanting. It’s delicious!’?”
Howdarehe steal Claude’s words? I want to shove my wine glass down his throat and twist until it pops out of his ear.
“Unfortunately, Claude Monet refused the gift of the Kiss and remained a human, so he’s not able to be here tonight,” Gideon says with a laugh, his eyes settling on my face, the irises blowing out to darken their cobalt rims. “But I’d like to think he’d be proud to know I remember his words and I’m trying to keep his spirit alive by offering these art commissions to scrappy up-and-coming artists with fresh ideas. Without further ado, let’s begin with the first piece by a local artist who goes by the name of Quoth. His piece is titledGone.”
Gideon whips off the first cloth to reveal a large wrought-iron birdcage, bedecked with steel creepers and roses. The door hangs open. There is nothing inside the cage except for a couple of steel bones. The piece has a powerful, forlorn quality to it.
The crowd clap in appreciation. Quoth looks like he’s going to be sick. Mina squeezes his hand and beams. Behind them, Heathcliff downs a blood cocktail and promptly spits it out all over his rumpled black shirt.
Gideon moves down the line of sculptures, giving a short introduction to each piece before unveiling it. Quoth has contributed three pieces in total, all of them variations on the theme of cages. His work is stunning, and it no doubt helped ease Gideon’s fears that Alaric wouldn’t come through with enough pieces.
Not that I care if Gideon is afraid of anything.
Alaric’s sculptures are next. People gasp when Gideon reveals them one by one. They are studies of the Upyr form from our various myths, each more beautiful than the last. There is something of Rodin in Alaric’s technique – a sense of passion and tragedy and the breadth of human experience.
Finally, Gideon pauses at the last sculpture. His gaze sweeps the crowd, but he stops when his eyes land on mine. “This final piece is from a creator who is a little ashamed to have his work displayed alongside these two other amazing artists. This is his first ever sculptural work, but what he lacks in technique I hope you can agree he makes up in passion for his subject.”
Gideon yanks off the sheet, revealing…
What isthat?
It’s an abomination to the craft of sculpting. A travesty in travertine.
Bulbous blobs protrude from a lopsided base that looks in danger of toppling over beneath the weight of its creator’s ineptitude.
It might be said tovaguelyresemble a woman’s torso if the model were made out of potatoes and you were feeling extremely generous.
