Lucia watched as Holly bit her lip and
her mate paced the length of the room, his head almost brushing the
low ceiling.
“The Mer have picked up Constantine, as you
know.” His eyes slid over to Lucia and she held his gaze with
difficulty. Con had been of Exotic blood and she'd hoped to save
another of the precious and rare lineage. Essentially, Exotics were
vampires who had psychic talents, not the least of which was
telepathy and precognitive abilities. Kier went on, “Disturbing
tales of demons have been mentioned as well, and a horrific
mixed-blood demon angel.”
Lucia gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. Sacrilege , she thought with horror. To have both demon and
angel blood was to live within a contrary nature. It was an
abomination to be sure.
Kier nodded at the expression on her face. “That
is our belief as well.”
“What else are we to believe?” Tarrin asked
with an obvious tone of certainty. “In all my centuries, I have not
encountered a mixed-blood of the celestial realm and Hades. He stared
intently at Kier. “You are certain?”
Kier dipped his chin. “Aye. Further, he revealed
himself before his demon kin while protecting a demon breeder.”
This made Tarrin sit up straighter in his chair.
“How does that affect us here?”
“Constantine has killed Desmond.”
Lucia hung her head, the guilt over forcing Tarrin
to release Constantine spearing her.
Tarrin put a hand on her nape. “Do not, my dark
dove. Self-recrimination will not bring our ally back.”
“Why?” she asked mournfully. Why had he killed
their ally? Couldn't he just... meld into a group peacefully. Of
course, Lucia already knew the answer to that.
“He is not like the other vampire,” Kier said.
“But the product of former abuses that are unparallelled to any
I've ever seen.”
Holly dismissed that, saying, “The
why of this isn't important. He got a second chance and blew it all
to hell. That's how I see it.” She shrugged as if to say, that
was that .
Lucia rolled her lip
into her mouth, lightly biting it with her teeth.
“I am sorry, Lucia.”
Tarrin shrugged and added, “you tried to protect him.”
“Yet, there is no
protecting him from himself,” she murmured in a quiet voice.
Tarrin and Kier nodded.
“We have to retaliate. Nothing short of the mongrel's life will do.
It will be seen as indifference if we do not expunge his life from
the surface of this earth.”
Lucia nodded, then
threw out a last hope, “What if we find that he is somehow innocent
of wrongdoing? That perhaps there was a sound reason that he murdered
the Mer?”
Holly snorted and Lucia
gave her a long-suffering look. Barely more than an infant in
vampiric terms, Holly could not be expected to think things through
to the final degree in the way of a more mature Druid.
“Then we would
abstain,” Kier paused, giving her a weighted look. “However, I
will not hesitate to slay him myself if there is even a breath of
truth to the Mer's claims.”
“Tell them the worst
part of it, Kier,” Holly instructed softly.
Kier looked at his
ancient and most trusted advisor, a pure Druid Exotic. “He has
killed Desmond, their prince and taken their princess.”
The tension in the room
swelled with this informative tidbit, becoming nearly unbearable in
its duration. “Wonderful,” Lucia said.
“Not really,” Kier
observed in a droll voice.
Lucia's gaze flicked to
his. “It does look quite damning.”
“Because it is,”
Holly said, rolling her bluish-green eyes.
Lucia silently stewed
at Holly's insistence on assuming that the fault lay with
Constantine. Of course, Lucia realized she was loathe to kill another
of Exotic blood... and whatever else Con was, for he was many things.
Tarrin leaned back in
contemplative silence with his arms crossed. “I am not keen on the
demon presence.” Kier nodded in agreement.
“Nor I,” he
concurred.
“They do not usually
cross our paths while on a mission to find their
her mate paced the length of the room, his head almost brushing the
low ceiling.
“The Mer have picked up Constantine, as you
know.” His eyes slid over to Lucia and she held his gaze with
difficulty. Con had been of Exotic blood and she'd hoped to save
another of the precious and rare lineage. Essentially, Exotics were
vampires who had psychic talents, not the least of which was
telepathy and precognitive abilities. Kier went on, “Disturbing
tales of demons have been mentioned as well, and a horrific
mixed-blood demon angel.”
Lucia gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. Sacrilege , she thought with horror. To have both demon and
angel blood was to live within a contrary nature. It was an
abomination to be sure.
Kier nodded at the expression on her face. “That
is our belief as well.”
“What else are we to believe?” Tarrin asked
with an obvious tone of certainty. “In all my centuries, I have not
encountered a mixed-blood of the celestial realm and Hades. He stared
intently at Kier. “You are certain?”
Kier dipped his chin. “Aye. Further, he revealed
himself before his demon kin while protecting a demon breeder.”
This made Tarrin sit up straighter in his chair.
“How does that affect us here?”
“Constantine has killed Desmond.”
Lucia hung her head, the guilt over forcing Tarrin
to release Constantine spearing her.
Tarrin put a hand on her nape. “Do not, my dark
dove. Self-recrimination will not bring our ally back.”
“Why?” she asked mournfully. Why had he killed
their ally? Couldn't he just... meld into a group peacefully. Of
course, Lucia already knew the answer to that.
“He is not like the other vampire,” Kier said.
“But the product of former abuses that are unparallelled to any
I've ever seen.”
Holly dismissed that, saying, “The
why of this isn't important. He got a second chance and blew it all
to hell. That's how I see it.” She shrugged as if to say, that
was that .
Lucia rolled her lip
into her mouth, lightly biting it with her teeth.
“I am sorry, Lucia.”
Tarrin shrugged and added, “you tried to protect him.”
“Yet, there is no
protecting him from himself,” she murmured in a quiet voice.
Tarrin and Kier nodded.
“We have to retaliate. Nothing short of the mongrel's life will do.
It will be seen as indifference if we do not expunge his life from
the surface of this earth.”
Lucia nodded, then
threw out a last hope, “What if we find that he is somehow innocent
of wrongdoing? That perhaps there was a sound reason that he murdered
the Mer?”
Holly snorted and Lucia
gave her a long-suffering look. Barely more than an infant in
vampiric terms, Holly could not be expected to think things through
to the final degree in the way of a more mature Druid.
“Then we would
abstain,” Kier paused, giving her a weighted look. “However, I
will not hesitate to slay him myself if there is even a breath of
truth to the Mer's claims.”
“Tell them the worst
part of it, Kier,” Holly instructed softly.
Kier looked at his
ancient and most trusted advisor, a pure Druid Exotic. “He has
killed Desmond, their prince and taken their princess.”
The tension in the room
swelled with this informative tidbit, becoming nearly unbearable in
its duration. “Wonderful,” Lucia said.
“Not really,” Kier
observed in a droll voice.
Lucia's gaze flicked to
his. “It does look quite damning.”
“Because it is,”
Holly said, rolling her bluish-green eyes.
Lucia silently stewed
at Holly's insistence on assuming that the fault lay with
Constantine. Of course, Lucia realized she was loathe to kill another
of Exotic blood... and whatever else Con was, for he was many things.
Tarrin leaned back in
contemplative silence with his arms crossed. “I am not keen on the
demon presence.” Kier nodded in agreement.
“Nor I,” he
concurred.
“They do not usually
cross our paths while on a mission to find their
Similar Books
