I smile thinly at that. ‘Yes, I suppose so.’
‘So that’s why you thought he looked familiar. You must’ve known him back then,’ says Floss. I nod, waitingfor her to ask the next logical question we’re inching towards: exactlyhowI know him. But she doesn’t, not yet.
I swallow and move on. ‘As for his powers, I can confirm he has excellent shielding ability—’
Floss snaps her fingers. ‘Of course! Otherwise, you would’ve picked up that he was a vampire before now. Crazy. So he’s been hiding it from you?’
‘You could say that.’ I take a sip of blood before continuing. ‘He’s really strong...’ I think of the way Will pressed me against the wall with ease, how I liked the firm bulk of his muscles, and the comforting weight of him when he was lying on top of me, commanding my mouth with his tongue before ... ‘Uh, he can also shapeshift. I’m assuming he has all the other typical vampiric abilities like us. But yeah, shielding and shapeshifting are his two main ones.’
There’s silence as everyone digests this.
I wait for it. Sadie takes the bait as I knew she would.
‘The only vampire I’ve ever met with shielding and shapeshifting abilities is you,’ she says suspiciously. ‘Do you want to share exactly how you and Will know each other?’
I shift uncomfortably. ‘Ah, we met at court.’
‘Queen Elizabeth I’s court, right?’ Damian confirms, leaning forward, his eyes flashing with interest.
I nod at him dully. ‘Yes, that’s right.’
OK, Floss must’ve been filling him in on my backstory.But she doesn’t know all of it. None of them do. I’ve kept the Tudor period well under wraps, but it looks like my skeleton might be coming out of the closet. Especially as the skeleton has been walking around (and sometimes slithering, no doubt) for as long as I have.
‘You still haven’t said anything about how you met Will,’ says Sadie. ‘In fact, you’ve been really secretive about the Elizabethan era ever since we met. All I know is that you were turned by a vampire dude called Dimitri in a dungeon. You always clam up after that.’
She’s right; it’s a habit to keep schtum about the queen. I still think gossiping about her will get my head lopped off, even though it’s the twenty-first century.
‘However, since your blast from the past has shown up, I think we need more information.A lot more information.’ Sadie folds her arms and gives me a piercing stare. She’s not going to let this go, I just know it. Maybe there’s a reason for all this to come out of the woodwork. Perhaps it’s time to come clean and confess my sin, no matter how twisted and shameful it is. My two hours of sleep per night might be a hell of a lot more peaceful if I do.
Chapter 22
Will | London, present day
Hester’s furry tail brushes my pointy face as she wiggles through the crack in the door. I lunge but receive a kick in the face from her back leg for my efforts. The door snaps shut, and I’m alone. From experience, I know I have to rest in the dark for a short period of time in order to change back to my human form. In the past, I was always afraid that it wouldn’t work, that I’d stay as a snake forever. But then Grace locked me in the basement one day in a fit of despair, and that seemed to work quicker.
But I wish I could change back any time I want to, like Hester does. And why the hell do I have to shapeshift into a snake? Why not a bat or even a rat? A snake is fucking inconvenient. Apart from Hester turning me into a vampire, this is the other reason I hate her guts. I’m cursed to spend eternity never getting close to anyone becausethishappens when I do.
Slithering under the bed mournfully, I close my eyes, flick out my tongue, and wait until I’m Will again.
***
Of course, I change back a short time later. I always do, and I shouldn’t take any notice of my reptilian thoughts. They’re usually morbidly depressing and allkill, kill, kill.I’m in a much better frame of mind when I haul myself out from under the bed, spitting dust bunnies. Any lingering sense of self-pity is nothing that can’t be cured by a couple of quick swallows of the emergency blood that I purchased from The Pale Heart and stashed in the mini fridge.
I take a quick shower, where I relieve my hard-on from kissing Hester, and give my skull a good scrubbing with my special tea tree shampoo. I can’t seem to stop humming to myself. Maybe that’s what Shakespeare was going on about when he wrote:If music be the food of love, play on!
I feel exuberant for some reason. Perhaps it’s because Hester now knows of my existence. She seemed genuinely shocked and confused, rather than being semi-aware and not giving a damn. As I pull on a fresh T-shirt, boxers, and jeans, I try to summon my previous homicidal state of mind. But all I can think about is making sure Hester’s OK and that I didn’t scare her too much.
I’m putting on my shoes when there’s a knock at the door. Slowly, I stand, listening. Is it her? But it’s not one vampire I sense out there; it’s a whole load of them.
The knock comes again, louder this time, and a female voice that isn’t Hester calls out, ‘We know you’re in there, Will! We want to talk to you. Can you open the door? Or is that going to be difficult in your current snaky shape?’
Oh shit, it’s the coven; they’re protecting their own. I shouldn’t have chased Hester round the room, but I couldn’t help it; it’s not my fault. Surely they’ll understand if I explain?
Hesitantly, I open the door; and Sadie pushes into the room like an avenging angel, trailed by Elliott, Florence, and Damian. Hester is last, and she gives me a wide berth, but a curious once-over. She doesn’t look afraid of me, at least.
‘Make yourselves at home,’ I mutter as Floss and Damian sit on the sofa, and Elliott pulls out a chair at the kitchen table. Sadie sits on my bed against the headboard, crossing her legs at the ankles, while Hester perches in the chair she almost shredded to bits an hour ago.
She picks up a piece of foam stuffing and looks at me contritely. ‘Sorry about that.’
