He frowned. “No, you’re not. And why?”
I frowned back. “Hello? Bounty hunters? Helios-Ra? The walking undead? Pick one.”
“No one’s going to hurt you.”
“Not with this thing in my possession.” I propped the crossbow against my shoulder. It was surprisingly light. He looked as if he wanted to argue but changed his mind. I was instantly suspicious. There was nothing he loved more than to argue with me. We’d been honing our skills on each other for nearly a de cade. Instead he opened a carved wooden chest that looked as if it belonged in a pirate movie. He pulled out a silver chain, with thick, old-fashioned links.
“Here, put this on.” He tossed it to me.
I caught it seconds before it collided with my nose.
“What is this?” A cameo roughly the size of a dollar coin hung on the chain. It was carved with the Drake family insignia, a dragon with ivy leaves in its mouth, symbols of strength and loyalty, respectively. It was beautiful, accented with a single teardrop jet bead. “How come I’ve never seen these before?”
“Your parents probably have one, but they’ve never really needed to use it.”
I held it up to the light.
“Why, is it magical or something?” I rattled it gently, waiting for something weird to happen.
He smiled at me. It was kind of unusual for him but not quite the magical event I’d been hoping for.
“Not really.” He nudged me to turn around so he could work the clasp. His fingers were light and cool on the back of my neck. For some reason I had to stop a delicate shiver. “There.” His voice seemed husky. It tickled my ear. “This will keep you safe. It marks you as one of us. Vampires or the Helios-Ra would recognize this and know that to take you on would be to take on the entire Drake clan.”
I touched the pendant briefly. “Thanks.”
“Of course, I wouldn’t flaunt it until I knew for sure I wasn’t dealing with a bounty hunter.” He paused. “On second thought, maybe you shouldn’t wear it.” He held out his hand, as if he wanted me to take it off . I took a step back, clutched it protectively.
“No way.” The lights flashed twice. I frowned at them. “Power surge?”
“Silent alarm. Someone’s here.”
We both rushed toward the door, nearly getting stuck, like some bad sitcom episode.
“Stay behind me,” he snapped. His eyes were eerily pale. The weight of the crossbow was reassuring in my hands as we crept up the stairs. “And try not to shoot me in the back with that thing.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
When we reached the top, he paused, nostrils flaring. The front door shut quietly.
“Uncle Geoffrey.” Some of the tension leaked out of his stance. I lowered the crossbow.
“I didn’t know your sense of smell was that particular,” I said. “I just thought you could tell if it was vampire or not.”
“Everyone has a scent. If you’re around them long enough, you kind of catalogue it.” He didn’t look at me. “You smell like a blend of pepper and cherry bubble gum.”
“I do?”
Before I could press him further, he stepped out into the foyer, where his uncle was setting down a cardboard box.
“More gifts for Solange,” he said drily. “Bruno’s been through and scanned the bunch. Careful,” he added when we bent for a closer look at the jumble of packages, wrapped in everything from brown paper to silver tissue. The lumpy envelope on top had a brownish stain leaking through. “That one’s a cat’s heart,” Geoffrey said calmly.
“Ew.” I recoiled. “What? Ew!”
“A gift.” He shrugged, unconcerned. “It’s considered a delicacy in some of the more remote tribes.”
“Okay, gross . . .”
“That one’s a kitten’s. A love letter, I imagine.”
“A kitten?” I stared for a full ten seconds, my mouth hanging open. I only managed to close it to swallow the threat of bile. “A kitten?”
“Uncle Geoffrey.” Nicholas winced. The family dogs raced over to see why I was shrieking.
“Sorry. Sometimes I forget she’s not fully one of us.”
Later, I’d feel flattered by that. Right now I was mad. Way too mad.
“Is there a return address? Who sent that? I’m going to kick his ass.” I had to turn my back on the package. “I’m not happy about this. Seriously.”
“We got that,” Nicholas said. There was something weird about his expression. His jaw was clenched so tightly I wondered why his teeth didn’t pop right out.
“What’s the matter with you?” I asked.
“Nothing.”
“Nicholas, you just bent your ring, you’re clenching your fists so hard.”
“It smells like candy.”
“What does?” I asked, confused. “What are you talking about?”
He glanced at the stained envelope. “It’s still covered in blood.”
“You are not serious.” He nodded once, as if it was the hardest thing he’d ever done. “That’s disgusting,” I told him. “Seriously.”
“I know.”
“Okay then.”
We went into the huge living room, where his uncle was already busy at the library end, pulling books off the oak shelves. Then he sat down at the table. Lamps burned behind ruby glass. Byron, the oldest Bouvier, licked my fingers, sensing my lingering agitation. Seeing vampires drink blood or snap each other’s necks and crumble into dust was different than craving kitten hearts. Thatwas just too much.
“Easy,” Nicholas murmured. Geoffrey glanced at us.
“Lucky, sit down, your heart’s racing. If it goes much faster, you’ll pass out.”
“She’s still mad.”
“She can be mad sitting down.”
I sank into one of the chairs, leaning my elbows on the wide table, the same weathered oak as the shelves.
“Has your aunt Hyacinth come home yet?”
Nicholas shook his head. “You’re the first.”
Geoffrey frowned. “Am I?”
“Why?”
“She’s not answering her phone or her pager. Hmm. Well, never mind, I’m sure she’s fine.” He looked around. “Where’s Solange? Is she asleep?”
Nicholas sat next to me. “She’s not here. She was summoned by Lady Natasha.”
“What?” Geoffrey was on his feet so fast he blurred around the edges. “Why?”
“London wouldn’t say, or more likely didn’t know. If she had known, she’d have bragged about it.” Nicholas frowned at his uncle’s reaction. “And she wouldn’t have come to fetch Solange if there was any real danger.”
“She’s rather dazzled by royalty, my boy.” Geoffrey closed his eyes. “Damn.” He reached for his phone. “We know who set the bounty, Nicholas.” He pressed a button and the number dialed itself quickly.
“Who?”
“Lady Natasha.”
CHAPTER 13
Solange
We left the car just inside the property line of Geoffrey’s house and used his tunnel access. The tunnels smelled of damp and smoke from the torches in the lesser-used parts of the corridors. It was very quiet— there were only soft footsteps and my ragged breathing. It was the safest route to Lady Natasha’s royal court. She stayed in the mountains during the summer months in a complicated cave system. She traveled the rest of the year between her different holdings, like a medieval queen. Our town is considered her summer retreat, simple and countrified but relaxing enough for the odd week or two. And everyone knew the real reason Lady Natasha had chosen to come here was to keep an eye on our family.
“Are you sure she didn’t say anything else?” I asked London. If Lady Natasha expected me to embroider or dance a waltz, I damn well wanted a little notice this time.
London shook her head. The flickering light glinted off her tight leather pants. “She’s a good queen, Solange. You don’t have to worry.”
“London, in case you failed to notice, there’s a bounty on all our heads. Yours included.
And our side of the Drake family has been exiled for years.”
She shrugged one shoulder negligently, though I did see her hand tighten. “It’s not the same for me. I was turned, I wasn’t born into the Drake family.”
“Your dad married your mom and then he turned you on your twenty- first birthday. I’d say that makes you a Drake.”
“Whatever.”
“It’s no different than our dad turning our mom after Solange was born.”
London shrugged again. It was starting to get on my nerves. We couldn’t all be as blasé as she was. Some of us were going to be very grounded by morning. And by some of us, I meant me.
“Mom and Dad are going to freak,” I muttered, stumbling into Logan. “Oof.”
He steadied me. “Careful. You’ll wrinkle the velvet.”
Connor stopped as well, in the lead. He held up a hand.
“Someone’s coming.”
“Stay close to me.” Logan’s fangs elongated, gleaming wetly.
“It’s probably just an honor guard,” London whispered. “Lady Natasha’s big on ceremony.”
Quinn shook his head, nostrils flaring. “I don’t think that’s it.”
“You’re overreac—”
Vampires raced down the hall toward us, some scuttling on the walls like giant ants. Every hair on the back of my neck stood up. Maybe they weren’t Hel-Blar, but they were warriors; either sworn to Lady Natasha or seeking the bounty for killing us. Connor, Quinn, and Marcus formed a front line of defense, and Logan and Duncan circled around to guard our backs. London and I stood in the middle. I took the stake she handed me. I didn’t have anywhere to keep a weapon in this stupid borrowed dress. I wouldn’t make that mistake again. Adrenaline flowed through me, making my fingers tremble slightly.
The hissing rolled over us, crackling like static. One of the vampires caught Marcus on the shoulder. He immediately used the dagger in his wrist sheath to turn his attacker to dust. A battle cry rang through the corridor. One of the vampires broke through the line, leaping down from the ceiling, snarling at me. I kicked high, catching him off guard. London’s knife caught him even more off guard. Dust billowed briefly.
“We are so grounded when Mom and Dad find out about this.”
“They aren’t Araksaka,” London said. “This isn’t the royal guard.”
“How do you know?”
“No tattoos.”
“Bounty hunters then,” Duncan said with a grunt, catching a fist to the eye. “Ow, damn it.”
“No hard feelings.” The female attacker grinned, jumping nimbly out of range of his return blow and kicking out at the same time. “But you’re going to make us a fortune.”
“Bite me, you vulture.” Quinn sprawled on the tiles, groaning. An older man in a pinstripe suit grabbed Quinn’s ponytail, yanking him up.
“Hey!” I yelled, leap frogging Duncan and the girl and elbowing another vampire, who reared up at my passing. “Get off my brother!” I wasn’t fast enough or strong enough, not like they were, but I was angry and scared and they’d underestimated me. I broke Quinn’s attacker’s kneecap and staked him before the others could react. Quinn jumped to his feet, grinning.
“Thanks, little sister.”
I grinned back, wiping my hands clean.
“Duck!” he added.
I ducked.
Vampire dust drifted over me like pollen. I sneezed.
One of the vampires, newly turned by the look of him, smiled at me as if we were on a date. “Fancy a shag?” He sniffed the air and licked his lips. “Come on, love.” He sauntered over, or would have if he hadn’t tripped over Logan’s foot.
“Might I suggest you get the hell out of here?” Logan said, yanking on my arm. “Run, you bloody lunatic.”
I ran a few steps, stopped when no one followed me. “I’m not leaving you guys here!”
“Just go!”
“No!”
“Solange!” All five of my brothers hollered my name.
“No!” I hollered back. “Come on!” I knew it didn’t sit well with them not to finish off the last two vampires, and Mom certainly wouldn’t approve either. But I just didn’t want any more deaths on my hands. In the movies when a vampire dies, there’s a puff of dust and everyone cheers because the bad guy’s dead. In my world, the vampire might well be one of my brothers. And technically, though the bounty hunters did want me dead, I wasn’t sure if they were the bad guys yet. I mean, they were following orders, right? Did they even know that I didn’t want anything to do with Lady Natasha or her stupid crown? There were rules to this sort of thing, even if nobody else wanted to play by them. I also had no qualms about using guilt to my advantage.
“Who knows how many others might be out there? You want me to go alone?”
They made a collective chorus of annoyed grunts, knowing full well what I was doing, but they reluctantly came with me, which was all I’d wanted. We tore down the hall, skidding slightly on the tiles. My breath was ragged and hot in my lungs, tearing at my throat. Connor scooped me up over his shoulder, barely pausing to adjust my flailing limbs, and kept running. He was so quick, as were the rest of them, that they seemed more like washes of color around me. My stomach bounced painfully on Connor’s shoulder, but we didn’t stop until we’d reached a rusty door. It swung open to the moonlight trickling between the trees down onto the forest floor. Connor tossed me to my feet. I rubbed my bruised stomach.
Quinn eased ahead, peering into the undergrowth. Ferns waved their green fingers all around us. We moved quietly behind him. I might not have vampire speed or scent-tracking, but I did have Drake training and I knew how to move without being heard or seen. And I knew the forest as well as anyone, certainly better than Logan, who preferred the city streets to mud on his expensive boots. The heady scent of pine needles and earth was soothing, cooling my throat. There wasn’t a single bird or rabbit or deer. They all knew the smell of a predator, animal or otherwise. The wind tickled the oak trees. Quinn halted, held up a hand. I strained to hear what he was hearing, but all I could make out were ordinary forest sounds: the wind, the river, an owl.
“We’re not alone,” Logan mouthed to me.
I froze, trying not to breathe, hoping my heart wasn’t pulsing like a beacon in the center of the dark woods. I might know how to step so I didn’t snap twigs or crush acorns underfoot, but silencing my heartbeat was a trick I wasn’t all that keen on learning. We could be as silent as we wanted, but if the vampires were near enough, they’d hear me. Frustration hummed through me. Something rustled, like bat wings.
“Get down,” Logan snapped, but I was already hitting the ground. It was so dark and the vampires were so fast, it was as if shadows had collided around me, hissing. Bones shattered and mended; blood sprinkled like rain. Someone grunted. I couldn’t see very well—not only was it dark, but I was half sprawled in a thicket of ferns. I scrambled up into a crouch. Logan hurtled past, cursing. The moon silvered the gleam of fangs and eyes. Another vampire rolled past me, landed on his feet.
“I smell her.” He looked nearly drunk. “She’s here. She’s mine.”
“Oh, I don’t think so,” I muttered grimly, reaching for a branch and breaking off the end so it was sharp and splintered. I hadn’t been raised to sit around wringing my hands. We’d all known this was coming, even if I was only now truly realizing the scope and magnitude of my bloodchange. Everyone basically thought of me as a vampire broodmare, meant to give birth to lots of little royal vampire babies.
No amount of red roses sent to my door was going to make that okay.
I slammed my heel into the back of his knee as he whirled to attack Marcus. He stumbled, turned. His angry hiss shifted into a grin.
“Solange.” He took a step forward. “I’m Pierre.”
I lifted the branch threateningly. “Look, this is just a pheromone thing. Get over it already.”
“You’re even more beautiful than I thought you’d be.”
“Great.” The sarcas
m in my voice didn’t appear to register. “You know, it’s been a really long night. Could you be creepy later?”
“I love you.”
“Apparently not.” I was feeling tired. Incredibly, I felt like yawning, even as someone grunted in pain.
“Incoming!” Quinn yelled. “There are more of them than we thought.”
I tilted my head at Pierre, tried a winsome smile. Marcus stared at me.
“Are you going to be sick?”
Brothers.
“Pierre,” I said. Would fluttering my eyelashes be overkill? And did I even know how to flutter my eyelashes? “Could you help me?”
“Anything for you, my love.” Okay, so maybe this pheromone thing might be useful after all.
“There are bounty hunters coming.” I tried to look innocent. Lucy would have fallen over laughing if she could see me now. “They want to kill me and my brothers.”
“I will not let that happen,” he promised fervently.
“Great.” I patted his shoulder. “Go on.”
He made a very dramatic departure while Marcus and I watched. Quinn and Logan joined us.
“What’s going on?”
“Solange just got some sappy vamp to fight for us.”
“Then what are we standing around for?” Connor said. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
We ran, leaving behind the sounds of Pierre and his friends battling the bounty hunters. I really hoped he’d win. I didn’t like the thought that I might have sent him to his death.
“Slowing down’s not exactly the goal here,” Logan said.
“Shouldn’t we help him?”
“No, run faster.”
“But . . .”
“Solange, you’re so pale you practically glow. Move it.”
I might have argued further but I was feeling very sluggish. I was barely able to push one foot in front of the other, never mind performing heroics to save a vampire who I was probably going to have to stake anyway, if the pheromones had anything to say about it.
“I feel . . . funny.”
Connor scooped me up again. I was too exhausted to feel particularly alarmed, though some part of my brain registered that this was hardly the time for a nap.