I turned my head to look at him. “Why not my room? If you were planning to stay with me…”
“Because if Savion woke and decided to taste you, and this was your room, I wouldn’t be able to refuse him access to you. Here, this is my room, you are a guest, and I can protect you better.”
I rubbed my eyes and realized I had to use the bathroom. Levering myself off the bed as well, I spied the door that led to relief and headed that way.
The screaming started, and I turned to Aiko. “What the hell is that?”
“What?”
“The screaming. Don’t you hear it? It happens every day, at different times. Sometimes twice a day.”
He cocked his head and looked up at the ceiling. “Oh. That.”
“Oh,that?” My eyes went wide. “There’s a woman screaming in this place, and yelling something I can’t make out, and your response isoh that?”
Aiko swallowed. “It’s the queen.”
“Excuse me?”
“The Queen. Niniane. She screams for blood and for someone she lost millennia ago. Mostly for blood.”
“You see nothing wrong with this?”
Pausing, he shook his head. “I grew up hearing it. It’s not out of the ordinary. I think most of us just don’t realize it’s there. Until someone who doesn’t live here points it out to us.”
I shook my head. “And no one tries to figure out how to stop it?”
“The only way to stop Niniane is to kill her.” His voice was matter of fact and didn’t brook further discussion.
I was about to walk to the small bathroom but stopped myself again. “Odom. What about Odom?”
“He’s away,” Aiko said. “He slipped out immediately after the doors unlocked. I expect that if he was galloping his horse most of the way, he’s at the hideout already.”
“So, I’m next out of here?”
“That’s our plan.”
“Good.” I nodded and resumed my walk to the bathroom. “Let’s get some food. I’m starving.”
Aiko was standing in the middle of the room when I walked back out, and he looked confused and a little lost. He was staring at the bed.
“My lord? What’s wrong?”
“I…” He cleared his throat. “I feel wrong for having taken your blood last night, Kimber. It shouldn’t have happened. I should have realized how strong the bloodlust was going to be. I just—”
“Stop,” I said, holding up a hand. “There was no harm done. I don’t regret it—but in fact, it’s better now because…”
I trailed off. Aiko quirked an eyebrow at me.
“Because I was going to have sex with you instead of offering my blood. I couldn’t do it, though. I love my men too much to have done it. The blood was the better choice in the end.”
“Men? More than one?” His shock was visible.
My cheeks flushed red. “Yes. It’s a long story…”
His face clouded, and there was a hint of sadness hovering around him. He nodded. “Then yes. The blood was the right choice.”
Snapping back to himself, he walked to the door and pulled it open. “Food. And then we will meet with Kane to discuss our plans for getting you out of here after Savion’s open audience.”
