“Yes.” My voice was bitter and from the corner of her eye I caught her watching me.
I wondered if she had the same gift as Jules, or perhaps she was merely good at reading others, because she did not press, only stroked her thumb across the stitching of my jacket once more. “And your fledglings?”
We came to a stop in front of the door of the music room and I turned her toward me. “I have never made any, Mademoiselle.”
Her full bottom lip jutted out slightly as her mouth turned down. “Never? In all this time?”
The true question stood unanswered between us: why? But the truth would have frightened her. I had never met ahuman I felt compelled to turn—no one had captured my attention, my devotion, my desire.
Not until now.
Chapter Eleven
The music room was something straight from my dreams.
Unlike the rest of the great mansion, the walls were inlaid with dark wood and framed with deep blue velvet curtains around the wide windows and glass doors. It gave the space an intimate feeling, making me want to curl up on the small settee nestled between a lush green plant and a towering bookcase filled with sheet music. But it was the pianoforte that held my attention most of all, set in the center of the room and illuminated with a shaft of moonlight.
Lord Azad flicked his fingers and the candles in the small chandelier burst to life. A small laugh escaped me at the casual display of his power. Most vampires I knew lacked most of the magical ability they’d possessed as humans. It took one centuries to rediscover and hone that power. Lord Azad’s was endless—I could sense it even from that single action.
He’d never answered my question about fledglings but I didn’t push him. He guided me into the room with a hand on my back. I cringed internally at the threadbare gown I wore. Even Jules had eyed it speculatively before we’d left the Souzterain and Gerald had raised a brow at it when he’d first greeted me. Perhaps I should have held someoyistaback topurchase a new dress. However, in the week since I’d sent the money home, I’d been surprised to receive a reply:
My jewel,
We received your letter this morning, though I regret to say that I found it lacking. There has been an unfortunate turn in your brother’s health and the healers have demanded their share. The family is in need of nine hundred additionaloyistafor the bills to ensure he is well. Send it with the post this week.
Maman
I’d readthe letter three times and by the last I was sure I’d ground my teeth to dust. Nine hundredoyistawas a little over double what I made in a single month, not even considering Louis hadn’t mentioned aturn in his healthin his most recent letter. Helplessness had drilled itself into my bones until I was haunted by my mother’s words as if she were a specter on my shoulder.
But Lord Azad’s presence washed it all away. The moment I’d stepped into his arms and the dance had begun I could pretend for a little while I was merely another witch at the ball who had caught his eye. Here in the music room, it was much the same.
“This is the pianoforte that was in Monsieur Belovuk’s shop,” I said, running a finger over the frame, the lacquered wood smooth beneath my touch.
Lord Azad was close enough to touch, but he did not hover. “It is.”
A smile tugged at my cheek. “I was so sad when it was gone. I spent many hours playing it.”
I shivered at his low chuckle. “Well, then, it is good you two are reunited.”
His wide hand covered my back again as he encouraged me to sit. Gathering my skirts, I slid onto the bench, scooting to the side enough to offer him a seat. Lord Azad hesitated for a moment, but he didn’t sit beside me. Instead, he rested his hand on the frame, on the very spot I’d traced with my finger.
A few tendrils of his hair had escaped the ribbon tying it back, framing his sharp cheekbones and golden-brown skin. I’d never realized how thick his lashes were until we danced, but now I found I couldn’t stop staring at them. His dark suit and one-shoulder cloak were different than the others I’d seen, just as lavish, but understated. In truth, it looked a bit more like something he would want to wear, save for perhaps the emerald pin.
“Would you play for me, Mademoiselle?”
Heat raced across my cheeks, but I nodded, placing my hands on the familiar keys. In many ways, it was like coming home after I’d spent so long seated at this instrument. I chose another song I knew and loved—one I played in my head when the world became too much, tapping my fingertips across my thigh. It was almost a relief to hear it aloud after days of playing it inside my mind.
Lord Azad watched with an intensity one didn’t usually have when observing a musician. His attention flicked all around me, from my hands, to the curve of my throat, around and around before finally settling on my face.
“What is it about me,” he started before pausing to clear his throat, “that terrifies you so?”
My eyes widened and I blinked at the keys. A hand covered mine, the notes falling away beneath his touch.
“I would never seek to harm you.”
In a daze, I tracked the glide of his thumb across my knuckles. “I do not think you would…”
“And yet you fear it regardless.”
