My eyes landed on Sebastian. He was to the right of my father at the center table. Even sitting, he loomed over the entire room. He was far bigger than everyone else and far more menacing. The back of my neck pricked at the sight of him. He seemed so still, as if he were carved from the stone of an immovable mountain.
“Tonight is a little different,” my father continued. “The newborn numbers are increasing everyday, at an alarming rate. We had been able to keep their numbers below ours, but as of yesterday, they have surpassed us. The king has released an emergency decree. Losing this many citizens to the demons is a horrific tragedy. We are living through a dark plague.”
I blinked through my father’s chilling words. I had always thought he had things under control. He certainly behaved as such. The vampires that came through from the underworld were turning humans, which meant we had to kill our own. Our people were dying everyday. And apart from what he would have everyone believe, I wasn’t sure my father knew how to stop it.
“Because of this, I’ve decided that tonight is the night for another purge.” Everyone in the room went rigid. The air itself stilled. “A tincture with powdered black tourmaline has been added to each of your drinks, which you all have now consumed. If thereare any demons among us, we will know now.” His blue eyes glowed as he surveyed the room in anticipation.
I looked to Sebastian, to his cold exterior. I waited for the slightest crack. He was so indifferent, I almost wanted him to break. But he appeared to be fine, bored even. The sudden clink of glass from one of the far tables caught my attention. A member I did not know clutched the white tablecloth, his entire body seizing. The member next to him raised his dagger without a single thought. I squeezed my eyes shut and didn’t open them until my father began speaking again.
“That’s one less informant.” He grinned, raising his glass again. Everyone else did the same, though more hesitantly this time.
* * *
I pulled on my cream-colored silk nightdress. It was lightweight with thin straps, and the hem sat at my upper thighs. I was brushing my hair, looking out the window to the darkened expanse beyond. I could not watch myself through a mirror because they were all covered with white linen. Any reflective surface was covered right before sundown, which included windows. The vampires could come through reflections but only at night. I should have had the curtains drawn, but I extinguished all light in the room, banishing any threat of reflection. The moonlight poured into the room, bathing me in silver. As my eyes rested over the slumbering gardens, movement caught my eye. I squinted, trying to make it out through the dark. I gasped. My hairbrush slipped through my fingers to the floor. He was on his hands and knees. His head hung low.
I grabbed a cloak and rushed out the door.
Perhaps, I should have called for help and let someone else handle it, but all thought escaped me. I fled down the dimly lit hall. The flames of each sconce stretched after me as I trotted by. Even when someone needed help, I was still afraid to run.
I made my way to one of the back doors leading to the gardens. I stopped abruptly as I exited the door, pausing a moment, looking him over. He was still on the ground. As I neared closer, I could see his back heaving as he took in ragged breaths. I took cautious steps forward.
The quiet night swallowed up my soft voice. “Sebastian?”
CHAPTER FIVE
He went rigid at the sound of my voice. His head turned slowly towards me. I stopped at the movement. His dark hair fell over his eyes. A twisting sensation wrenched my stomach as I began to regret my impulsive decision. I took a small step back. He was my father’s secondhand. I should be safe.
“Are you alright?”
He didn’t answer me. He only continued to stare at me through hooded eyes. I could barely make out his features through the dark, but I felt his gaze burn through me.
“Do you need me to call for someone?”
“No.” His answer was harsh and immediate. I stifled a flinch.
I wrung my hands together, holding them up at my chest.
“Do you need help?”
“No, Charlotte. I’m alright.” His tone was laced with pain. He did not sound, nor look, alright. But who am I to argue? I supposed I’d just leave him to it. I already found him odd. Maybe this is just what he did.
I started to turn but paused as scenes from the Society dinner flashed through my head. Father had added a tincture to the wine. It clearly affected that one member who turned out to be a vampire. Sebastian had seemed fine throughout it all, but he didn’t seem fine now. I didn’t know how he would not be able to react if he were a ...
No. He couldn’t be. He practically didn’t even blink during the initiation ritual. He should have spiraled into bloodlust upon scenting the other initiates’ blood. Maybe there was a way around it that we weren’t aware of. And if it was a coincidence that he just happened to get sick on the same night Father delivered that tincture, then why was he indisposed at one of the darkest corners of the garden? He didn’t appear to be inebriated.
I slowly turned back to him. His head turned towards me as I did so. The movement appeared menacing, as if he dared me to speak my thoughts. Maybe I shouldn’t. Maybe I should just keep this to myself, pretend I knew nothing. It wouldn’t be the first thing I kept hidden.
I searched through his eyes for anything that told me I was wrong.
“Is something wrong, Charlotte?” His voice made me flinch, each word wrapped with nefarious promise.
Our eyes spoke words we didn’t voice.
I was far out of my element, but I was too far in to back out now. He already knew that I knew. I didn’t have my dagger. I cursed myself. Of course, the one time I needed it, I didn’t have it. Father often used me as bait for the vampires, ever since they had tracked me down during a carriage ride into town. The members with me that day had said they appeared in some heightened state of bloodlust. My blood was particularly desirable, yet another part of me that was not normal. After that, Father used me to draw them out for particularly complex missions. Perhaps, I could have died many times. But I was always surrounded by members who protected me. Now I wasn’t sure if who was before me was truly a member or the demon they hunted.
I took in a breath, though it did not calm my shaky voice. “You’re ... you’re a ...”
“Charlotte.” He said it as a warning. “Don’t run.” His voice was deathly low.
