“Hand us your valuables, my lovelies, and we’ll let you go.” His voice was light, and though it had been some time since I’d spoken our home tongue, it was familiar and smooth on the ears.
“I advise you to let us pass. You have no clue just whom you’re dealing with.” Shade spoke up, pushing beside Delilah.
“A group of class acts, I imagine. A group of well-to-do’s. You’re obviously not from the crusty side of town, so perhaps you’d penny up your goods and we’ll let you go without further harassment.” The leader let out a throaty laugh.
“Really, then?” Quick as a cat, Delilah’s dagger appeared in her hand. At the same moment, Trillian pulled out his blade, and Camille backed up, sucking in energy. By now, I could tell when she was working up a spell. Vanzir had blade in hand, and Roz was holding something small but, no doubt, deadly. Shade disappeared in a puff of shadow and smoke.
I just smiled, letting my fangs descend. “Are you sure you want to take us on, pretty boy?”
“Crimsy, they have weapons.” One of the henchmen backed away a step, but the others—about twelve in all—moved forward.
“Leave my name out of this, you dolt.” The leader—apparently Crimsy—took one leap and landed in front of Delilah. His blade swept around and she barely had time to duck.
“He’s a jian-tu. Be careful!” I leaped, flipping head over heels to land by his side. Crimsy whirled around, and his eyes lit up.
“Well met—another jian-tu, and a bloody girl at that. Come on, let’s do it, love.” He gestured to me with his dagger, and I circled him around, away from Delilah, who was already beset by another one of the gang. I knew better than to take my eyes off him. I remembered my training, and chances are, he did, too.
“You’re going to find out just how bloody.” I launched myself into the air and flipped over his head, landing in back of him. As I hit the ground, I whirled to send one stiletto boot heel into his back, knocking him forward.
Crimsy rolled into a front somersault, springing to his feet. He immediately tricked into a back flip with a twist, spinning as he hit midair so that he landed facing me. As he tossed his dagger from hand to hand, his gaze never left mine.
I licked my fangs as the scent of blood filled the air and a scream rang out, cut short. I didn’t recognize the voice, so I assumed it was one of them rather than one of us and kept focused on my own fight. Crimsy didn’t flinch, either.
“Seriously, you should have targeted a different group.” I gave him a cold grin and then was down, my right hand touching the ground as I spun like a break dancer, my foot gliding in front of me to slide behind his heels, catch hold of his legs, and bring him down.
Crimsy landed flat, his hands reaching above his head to push himself up again, and within seconds he flipped back to his feet. He did a flat spin, scissoring the air with his legs, and managed to clip me in the nose. Startled, I tripped backward and rolled to my feet as he landed, coming for me, dagger aimed directly for my heart. The fun was over; he was intent on killing me now.
I’d had enough play as well. I leaped on him, all finesse gone, and took him down, slamming him to the ground. The surprise that filled his eyes told me he had never tangled with a vampire before, and I had a momentary flicker of doubt.
He was an elegant opponent, and I’d seldom met someone who could match me move for move in the air. But then reason took hold again, and I quickly yanked his head to the side, the bones shattering like a string of firecrackers. With one last breath, he was gone, and I jumped up, turning to survey the rest of the fight.
Three men were down—all Crimsy’s men. Delilah looked like she’d taken a few cuts, as had Trillian. Camille was staring at one of the men, who lay there, a blackened mess. Spellwork. She’d managed to take him out with her lightning instead of having it backfire on her.
The rest of the gang, seeing their leader dead, began to back up. I realized they still didn’t understand I was a vampire, so I opened my mouth to show them my fangs, hissing.
“Run away, little boys, unless you want to be my dinner.” I grinned as they turned tail and vanished into the alleyway.
“Everybody okay?” I glanced over them.
“Yeah, I took a few cuts but there wasn’t any poison on the blades as far as I could tell.” Delilah shrugged, wiping a trickle of blood off her forehead. “They were an easy lot, compared to some we’ve tangled with.”
“No poison,” Trillian said. “I recognized the crest on their tunics. They belong to the Asa Tone Asa gang, and they have an honor code that forbids the use of poisons and venoms. But we’d better be going. They’ll head back to headquarters and report what happened. And then, the big boys will come out to play. These were penny street thugs. Their masters won’t be so easy.”
“Let’s get moving then—” I paused as the sound of horse hooves clattered down the street, a large carriage pulled by a quartet of Friesians. Not as grand as the noblas stedas, the gorgeous Earthside horse had been imported to Otherworld. Their black coats gleamed in the light of the eye catchers.
The carriage stopped in front of us and the door opened. Out stepped a man, a little taller than Camille, who looked just like her. Sephreh ob Tanu. Our father. He glanced at the bodies on the ground.
“I apologize for my tardiness. I was held up by official business. Please, get in. We have little time and much to discuss.”
Without a word, we climbed into the spacious carriage that was made for large groups. I looked at Father as he settled in beside Chase, but he said nothing as the door shut, and we were off, once again, into the night.
But Father didn’t take us to the palace. Instead, we headed for a smallish building on the outskirts of the Court. A step down, definitely, from an office under the Queen’s watchful eye, but also providing more freedom.
As we pulled up to the building and clambered out of the carriage, my father lingered at the door, reaching up to help the three of us girls down. I looked at his hand, ignored it, and leaped lightly to the grass. Camille stared at him, then took Trillian’s hand and stepped gracefully down the steps. Delilah bit her lip, but then accepted Father’s hand, for only a moment, and let go the minute her foot touched the ground.
“So, is this where you’re working now?” Somebody had to break the ice and though I was willing to let it stay frozen, for Camille’s sake, I decided to take the bull by the horns.
Sephreh nodded. “Yes, these are my new headquarters.” He paused, then let out a long sigh. “You’re going to find out soon enough. I’m no longer the Ambassador. As of yesterday morning, I’m now back in the Des’Estar, but I’ve been promoted to special ops. I’m the liaison between the OIA and the Des’Estar.”
“Congratulations?” I wasn’t sure what to say. Being demoted from the status of advisor and ambassador couldn’t feel good, but this was a major promotion in the Guard, something Father had worked toward for years. They’d passed him over time and again because of Mother’s human heritage.
Sephreh perked up. “Thank you, Menolly. I’ve waited a long time for this. As to the position of advisor, it was an ill fit, shall we say. And before you ask, the Queen and I are no longer…involved.” He didn’t look all that upset. I had a feeling their breakup hadn’t left him heartbroken.
Camille gave him a long look, then swept into the building, Trillian behind her. Delilah hesitated, then followed her, along with Shade, Vanzir, and Roz. Chase glanced at me. I nodded for him to go in. After my father and I were alone, I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms.
“You going to apologize to Camille? Because if you don’t, we might as well pack up and head home.” It was time for straight talk. No more pussyfooting around. Camille wouldn’t talk to him, and Delilah couldn’t bring herself to confront him, so it was up to me.
Our father tilted his head, giving me a mirthless smile. “You were never one for subtlety, were you? You always were independent. But I never expected Camille to disobey my wishes.”
I snorted. “I have no use for diplomacy. Not in situations like this one. Face it, Dad. You fucked up. You cast aside all of Camille’s love and devotion, and everything she ever did for you. For us. You left her out in the cold. And when she was captured by Hyto, you were a total prick.”
“I realize I made a mistake—”
“Mistake my fucking ass. Do you know what happened to your daughter? Do you know what that pervert did to her? He ripped her heart to shreds, and bruised her body along with it. Her own father-in-law raped her, humiliated her, and beat her senseless. But she survived. She survived like I survived what Dredge did to me.”
“Please, don’t—” He held up his hand, but I wasn’t hearing any of that bullshit.
“Oh no! You don’t get off that easy. You made a mistake? Well, pity you. We’ve paid for your mistakes. You may not like the fact that we’re independent, and that we make our own choices, but motherfucking know this: You raised survivors. You raised women unwilling to knuckle under. Unwilling to take it lying down. You raised us to believe that family matters. Well, the three of us are family—we stand up for each other. Did it really surprise you that we turned against you when you turned against us?”
Sephreh leaned his head back, his ponytail trailing down his back. “No,” he said after a moment. “No, it doesn’t surprise me. Believe as you will, but I’m more proud of being your father than of anything I’ve ever done in my life.” He sucked in a long breath. “It’s hard for me to admit this, but yes, I was wrong. I was wrong about Trillian. I was wrong in my actions toward you. Toward Camille. I have been blind.” Tears flickered in his eyes. “I wish I could take it all back. That I could have the chance to start again.”
“Earthside, we call it getting a do-over. But there’s no way to pretend this never happened. All you can do now is haul your ass in there and beg Camille for forgiveness. And apologize to Trillian for the way you’ve treated him. And then, maybe, we can talk.” I gave him a long look. “You burned your chances with me, but if they forgive you, I’ll go along with them and we’ll play nice-nice again.”
Sephreh winced. “I am sorry. I have a gift for you—it’s not finished yet, but I truly want you to have it. I think…I think you’ll like it.”
“Prove yourself. Do everything I said, and then…maybe I’ll accept it.” And with that, I turned. Leaving him in the dark, I swept into the building. Let him know what it was like being left out in the cold, alone. Let him struggle with his conscience for once.
As I entered the hall, I realized that Tanaquar had basically cast our dear father into the likes of Siberia. Oh, it was luxurious, by many standards, but by the standards of the Court and Crown, it might as well have been as spartan as a cell with bread and water. Tanaquar really was pissed with him.
The hall was about the size of a grand ballroom, with several doors leading off to each side. And a stairwell led up both sides of the room, leading to a second level that overlooked the main floor. More rooms were up there. The décor was simple—blue and gold, the colors of Y’Elestrial. No velveteen drapes, no gold leaf, no marble statues, just a few simple pillars running from floor to the high ceilings. But the marble was polished to a high shine. And the hall felt clear and open.
“This is nice.” Shade looked around. “I like it.”
Sephreh glanced at him. “In our city, it would be considered a slum by the Queen. She has one thing, at least, in common with her sister Lethesanar. A love of luxury.”
He turned to Camille and went down on one knee. “I’m sorry. I was wrong, about you, about Trillian, about your path. I can never apologize enough, but I beg your forgiveness. Give me a chance to earn your trust again. I wasn’t there when you needed me. I can never make it up to you, but if you’ll allow me, I’d like to try. Your mother would have been ashamed of my actions. As am I.”
Camille sucked in a long breath. She glanced over at Trillian, who wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
“Trillian, forgive my blindness. You have treated my daughter with the love and kindness that I should have given her. You are the better man. I was wrong about you. And, if you’ll allow, I would like to formally welcome you into our family.” Sephreh broke down then, tears trickling down his face. “My Maria, she would have handled this so much better. She would have kept me true to myself rather than letting me get mired in politics.”
It was then that we all realized how much he still missed our mother. He’d never let go of her, never been able to say good-bye.
Camille slowly stepped forward, one hand still holding Trillian’s. “Do you mean what you say?”
Father nodded. “With all my heart. You, my daughter, have withstood my tirades and demands that you take over for your mother, that you be perfect. And no one, not even my beloved Maria, could have filled the shoes I tried to make you wear. Even my beloved wife could not have competed with the ghost of her memory.”
Camille cocked her head, looking unsure. But then, her face clear of tears, she placed one hand on his heart. “I hold you to your oath. I hold you to your words. I will give you a second chance, but only one. Break my heart once more, and you will never hear from me or see me again.”
Trillian pulled her back, gently. “Lord Sephreh, don’t take her threat lightly. As for me, I will abide by my wife’s wishes. I will eat at your table, treat you with respect, as long as it cuts both ways. But know this: I will not stay where I am not welcome, nor suffer my wife to do the same.”