His eyes dart to the paper clutched in my hand then back up to my face. A tinge of red, just the faintest hue of color, meets his cheeks. “N—nothing.”
I don’t know what is more unsettling, that Wilder had all this information about me, that he would dare accuse me of lacking ambition, or that now professor Morozov has this information about me.
And why would Wilder think I lack ambition? He is the one who is riding on his daddy’s powerful name while I’m here actually making a name for myself and not relying solely on my father’s influence.
I stalk toward him, crumpling the offending paper between my fingers. “This certainly doesn’t seem like nothing.”
Nervousness flashes across his face before it becomes as still as stone.
“Does this have anything to do with the fact that you’re a vampire?”
He flashes his teeth, I’m not sure if it’s a smirk or a grimace, but it’s enough to reveal the pointed edges. They could be mistaken for simply sharp teeth to the untrained eye, but I was raised by a vampire, and I know what a fang looks like.
My eye is very trained, and it is focused on Wilder Zubkov.
“Is this really what you want to do, Eel? Do you really intend to extort me when you’re the one who broke in here?” He lowers his voice, leaning toward me. His fingers glance across my arm, cold as ice, at least I presume that it was because of his touch that a shudder runs down my spine. His hands stop at my hand, prying my fingers from the paper and taking it back. “And what made you think you could threaten a vampire in a dark room all alone in the middle of the night?”
I snort, yanking away and folding my arms. “If you think I should be afraid of you, you have another thing coming at you.” My eyes flick up and down him, from the tips of his polished shoes to his white hair. “Cause no matter how scary you try to make yourself out to be, I know the truth. You’re nothing more than a common pest.”
“That’s a funny way to address a monster of the night.”
I step toward him, raising my chin as if daring him to make good on his threats. My neck is exposed. I notice his eyes dart down to it, and he swallows, but there is no bloodlust in his eyes. Instead, that nervousness is back.
Good.
“My father is the stuff of nightmares,” I whisper. “Compared to him you are a gnat.”
As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I regret them. No matter how far Wilder has gone, or what he has done to humiliate me, I’ve never invoked my father. It’s important that people only ever see him as a powerful and influential merchant. A businessman. A counselor and friend to some of the most powerful people of Ruskhazar.
But never anything more.
They can’t know that he runs a criminal empire, that he is a necromancer, or that he is a vampire. All are things that are highly frowned upon in polite society.
Confusion dances across Wilder’s features, but just then I hear footsteps sound outside the door. There is a growl and a, “Where is that boy?”
I feel my eyes widen as they fly to the door. I can already see a shadow moving into it. It’s too late to try to hide. I look up at Wilder half expecting him to be smirking at my trapped state, but he looks just terrified.
“What?” I begin in a low tone, but I’m cut off when he lunges forward, slamming his lips against mine.
Chapter Nine
Wilder
Apart of me is screaming that I’ve gone absolutely insane, especially as Bronwyn begins to struggle to pull away, and I am forced to circle my arms around her to keep her in place.
What would possess me to put my lips on the Eel girl? If my father is to be believed and you can become tainted by association, then I am very, very tainted by this merchant’s daughter.
Panic. Pure and simple. This is what I will blame this on. I heard Morozov coming, and I panicked. I am unsure why my panicked response is to kiss Bronwyn, but that’s something that I will have to dwell on later.
I simply knew that if the professor caught her in his office without a good excuse, then he would end her. And as annoying a creature as she may be, I don’t necessarily want to see her ended.
And so, I kissed her.Gods, I kissed Bronwyn the Eel, what is wrong with me?
“What in Skyhold’s name are you doing,boy?”
I pull away, feeling oddly lightheaded, something I attribute to the disgust I’m sure I’m currently experiencing. It isn’t helped by Bronwyn immediately shoving me away. I reach out, grasping her hands to keep from losing my balance.
I drop her hands immediately, but she is still looking at me. Unmitigated murder flashes in her eyes.
