“And who are these guests you’ve brought to our home, Mother?” Lucian asked in an attempt to channel the conversation away from Lena’s misdeeds. He gestured grandly to her half-dozen guards. I recognized their garnet robes fastened by a pewter carving of a black boar, the warborn’s insignia.
“These are our royal guardians, a gift from the warborn to keep us safe. I’ve invited the Grigori elders and their entourages for a visit. We’ll be bringing on additional security during their stay. Anika is my personal bodyguard, should anyone try to harm me.”
Anika, the owner of the sabre, pulled back her hood to reveal a small, oval face and a long braid of shiny black hair. She bowed slightly to our mother. Her weapon was at ease but the tendons in her wrist were tense from her grip.
“Anika has trained with the warborn since she was a child, and she’s very good with a blade.” Lena assessed me briefly. “Perhaps even better than you, Henri.”
Not a challenge, but a threat.
“And you, Vincent, we’ll need to prepare you for your debut. The Grigori are all so thrilled to meet you. OurParousia.” That last word was said with a purr of seduction, as if you might need convincing. Little did she know, you’d already committed yourself to the cause.
“You owe me something first,” you said.
Lena’s head tilted, feigning interest. “What’s that, my son?”
“Azrael took my human father prisoner. I want him here with us where we can protect him.”
Lena’s eyes narrowed as she studied your face. This negotiation was a test of wills, one I hoped you’d win.
“I’ll make you a deal, my precious. You help me convince the other tribes to join our campaign, and I will give you any mortal you wish.”
“I want my father to be safe and I want Azrael defeated.” You shot a glance toward me. “And I want Henri as my own.”
I’d never warmed so immediately at being regarded as a possession.
“You may change your mind when you see all that the Grigori have to offer,” Lena tempted. “So many strapping godlings to choose from. An alliance with another tribe could be a great advantage.”
“I’m not interested in being your stud. I am the Parousia. You need me more than I need you, so if you’re going to try and manipulate me into doing something I don’t want to do, you’re going to have to get a whole lot better at it.”
Lena studied you closely, delving into the depths of your soul to determine your grit. “Very well, my pet, but we do need to discuss how we might highlight your many attributes. The Grigori are an ancient race, and some of them are quite fundamental in their thinking. They’ll need some convincing before they take orders from a youngblood, Parousia or not.”
You glanced over at me as if to say,Is this woman serious?You shook your head and addressed her again, “I am too drunk to deal with you right now. We’ll be back in the morning to discuss your plans for world domination, and I’ll be bringing my cat.” You glared at Lena’s troupe of assassins. “No one is to harm my cat, understand?”
The guards grunted in assent. You nodded to Stefan and Lucian, then strode away from the fire. I followed without another word. We didn’t speak until we were both seated in my boat, and I was rowing us home.
“I should have believed you when you warned me about her,” you said soberly. “She has no guilt or remorse. I used to think she loved me, but she only loves what she thinks I can do for her.”
“She’s a demon wearing human skin and a convincing one at that. And she’s selfish to her core. Nothing and no one will come between her and her ambitions. She worships power above all else.”
Your lips pursed as you mulled over my words. “Well, in this case, maybe that’s a good thing.”
“Why is that?”
“It makes her completely transparent. And that’s something we can anticipate.”
The next daywe fell into what would become a familiar routine. Lena and you trading barbs, me threatening Lena’s personhood, Lena’s assassin silently weighing the veracity of my claims, and Lucian trying to persuade everyone to get along by plying us with food and drink. And Stefan, slyer than a pickpocket, drifting in and out of our company to pilfer a pastry or scone from the buffet table before skulking off again. Every long look of Lucian’s on the young man’s retreating form told me he’d rather be rebuffed by his pet than endure our contentious company.
“We’ll need you to display your powers of seduction.” Lena pivoted in a tight circle and addressed you as though we were in a war room discussing battlefield strategy. “Perhaps we can demonstrate on the Grigori themselves. Nothing too provocative, though. We don’t want to start a civil war.”
“I can’t seduce them,” you said, staring up at her from where you were seated on the edge of an extravagantly upholstered chair with your elbows on your knees
“What do you mean,can’t?” Lena seemed to interpret this as some bout of youthful rebellion.
“I tore out my own eyes.” You blinked rapidly as if to provide evidence.
“You didwhat?” She clutched the gold medallion that encircled her throat.
You didn’t provide any more explanation, so Lucian filled in for you. “You see, Mother, Vincent was actually very clever. He knew that Azrael wouldn’t release him so long as he was useful as an interrogator and so…”
