He had. And a part of him hungered for blood, especially upon smelling a fresh spill in the air from another booth. Dmitri’s words returned.I am damned without salvation, and you belong in this hell with me.And there was a piece of truth in that, wasn’t there? Hunters were blind in their hatred of the supernatural, but it stemmed from what the supernatural could do to the helpless. The power, the magic, the control they could effortlessly wield in the matters of a human’s life and death terrified hunters, and for good reason.
This is no place for a crisis of conscience. The pit, which had been cleared of furniture for the party, hosted several pods of booths. Toward the center was a large one, and Seamus sat in the center of it, his back to the door and face toward the stage. Roger had the opportunity to continue glancing around the club. Reflexively, he nodded greetings to the vampires he knew.
Which was a good portion of them. Roger spotted at least a dozen vampires over a century old out among the crowd. Lucille and Dempsey had a booth, each had a mortal pet, and another two vampires were with them. Their sirelings, Roger realized.Every branch traced back to Seamus, but the vampires sharing a booth tended to be closely connected.
Some few, like Nathaniel, remained solitary. Nathaniel was Ezra’s first sireling and someone that Roger had had to save from that wretched farmhouse in 1947. He had a wary look in his good eye, the other an unfocused milky white. It had never fully healed from what the hunters had done to him.
The older coven members did not turn out like this unless there was a celebration or a summoning. And Seamus never casually summoned them.
Centuries of practice aided Roger in keeping his easy-going demeanor. His smile felt natural, even as part of his mind screamed for him to run. As he approached Seamus’s low-backed booth, he put an arm around Zack’s shoulders and kept him pressed close.
“You called, I answered, master,” Roger said with a purr in his voice.
Seamus showed him one of his unreadable smiles. He had drops of blood that almost blended into his dark red shirt. Though he had dark slacks, he’d foregone any suit jacket. His cuffs were rolled once, and his brown hair was ruffled, as if he was attempting a casual attitude. But the sharpness of his eyes betrayed his otherwise relaxed appearance. He was aftersomething, but whether that was to punish Roger or to orchestrate a vampiric bacchanal, Roger wasn’t sure.
Several of Seamus’s pets sat on the floor near him. They leaned against each other, cuddling in a pile, except for Vincent, who sat on the couch beside Seamus and remained curled up against his side.
Candide occupied one side of the U-shaped seating arrangement. Her sleeveless dress was a crisp black with a plunging neckline. She had a gorgeous ruby necklace that caught glints of light and dazzled with a bloodred color. Alongside her,Ezra leaned into one side while her black-collared pet had her head in Candide’s lap. Ezra was clothed, wearing a matching black shirt and pants to Candide’s dress, and he was without his collar.
Three more of Candide’s pets were on the floor. One was the fey boy, Dryden, and he was bound in a kneeling position. Rope crisscrossed his body with intricate knots, and he had a ball gag in his mouth. He shimmered faintly with fey dust, particularly at his temple, and his cock was locked in a cage. One pet beside him plucked at one of the ropes, causing Dryden to shiver.
Roger lifted an eyebrow and glanced at Candide.
Candide rolled her eyes. “Honestly, when the brat’s lord said that disciplining him would be a challenge, I thought he was bluffing.”
“I’d offer to take him off your hands, but I’ve no time to break in someone new,” Seamus said. “I am pleased you came so early, Roger. I was afraid you’d show at midnight and then bolt again.”
“Forgive my quick exit from the party, master.” Roger undid the button of his suit jacket and took a seat. Takashi sat between him and Seamus while Zack sat closer to the outside edge and up against Roger. Kit and Carver curled up together on the floor, using the couch to support their backs. “My collection is very new, and I couldn’t stand to see them lost in the sea of others’ pleasures.”
“A worthy excuse, I suppose,” Seamus replied. “You brought them again, which I was hoping you’d do. Hello, Takashi.”
Takashi nodded to Seamus.
“Neither of you have been pressing me about Takashi’s application,” Seamus said.
Roger slouched against the couch. “We have all eternity, don’t we? I’m hoping you’ll accept him sooner rather than later. We’ve held off on house hunting until you do.”
“You should start!” Seamus said. “We’ve missed you dearly, Roger, and it’s so good to have you home. I’ve been thinking of investing in an additional building. Plenty of condos, all for our kind, naturally.”
“I’m not sure.” Roger put his hand on Takashi’s thigh and nuzzled Zack’s cheek. “I do adore my privacy at times.”
After giving Zack a quick kiss on the cheek, Roger swiveled his gaze to Seamus. Each word and action were steps in the delicate balance between them, a chance to stub a toe or accidentally slam his foot on Seamus and draw his wrath. His genial demeanor had been a façade leading to a trigger of violence before.
Seamus flashed a broader smile. “I suppose I can’t blame you for that. And you’ll want space to grow your collection?”
“Naturally.” Roger draped his arm around Zack.Happy-to-be-here is the name of the dance.“We fill our suite too well, and three hardly meets our needs.”
“I’ve not taken any for myself, technically,” Takashi said. He slid his hand over Roger’s and then linked their fingers together. “I’ve longed to pick out a Midwest wolf. There’s a pack of absolutely gorgeous men that seem to be dying to be matched with a vampire, but I haven’t arranged a meeting with any of them yet.”
“Mm,” Seamus said. He pivoted his attention toward Candide. “I hear that you’ve added something unique to your collection lately, darling.”
“Dryden?” Candide caught Dryden by the braid and forced him to tilt his head back. The boy gave a performative moan that made Roger snort. She glared coolly down at him, and Dryden settled from his light squirming to an awed stillness. “He’s hardly special.”
Dryden blinked rapidly. When Candide released his hair, he hung his head forward. The emotions drifting from himshifted dramatically from impish lust to a lingering need. Roger had seen Candide discipline pets before. If he had to guess at the boy’s thoughts, she’d finally punished him for his latest transgression in a memorable way. Candide made a gesture, and a pet beside Dryden undid the gag. After an initial gasp and breath, Dryden bit his lip.
“Fey brats are as common as mortal spawn these days,” Seamus said dismissively. With a hungry gaze, he turned his focus to Ezra. “Come now, don’t tell me she let you out without any collar at all.”
Roger could’ve sworn the air dropped a degree around them, and Candide went entirely still, not a single motion in her limbs.
