“So what do I do at court?” She wouldn’t mind talking to Lothaire’s Bride—the woman transformed by the very ring Munro sought. “Should I curtsy?”
“No’ on your life. Remaining civil to Lothaire is going to be difficult enough for me as it is. I feel like we’re going hat in hand to a vampire, a trying prospect for a proud wolf like me.”
She could imagine. “Tell me more about Lothaire.” Does he need to be put down?
“He was a member of the Horde for some time. He drank from enough beings to garner a lot of information about the Lore yet no’ enough to go completely mad. His eyes are tinged red, but he’s supposed to be sane for the most part. At three thousand years old, the leech king is as brilliant as he is devious.”
“And I thought you were old!”
Munro raised a brow at that. “Age brings power to immortals. Couple that with all the knowledge he’s harvested, and he’s a formidable foe to have. Lachlain gave me a piece of advice: doona lie to Lothaire. He’ll know. And since natural-born vampires canna tell a falsehood, they despise it when others can.”
“Noted. No lies to Lothaire. What else did you learn about him?”
“It turns out that his mother left Dacia to be with his father, a Horde vampire. Once one leaves this kingdom, they canna ever find it again. His mother failed to find her way back to her own home.”
“So that’s how this realm remained hidden.”
He nodded. “Apparently, Lothaire scoured the Carpathians, futilely searching. Yet then the remaining Dacian royals invited him to rule them.” Munro’s lips curled. “My Lykae curiosity demands I investigate these idiots.”
She returned his grin. “I think you almost unearthed what others couldn’t.”
“We were verra close to finding this place. Stelian’s arrival was likely to head us off.” When a clock chimed out in the city, Munro took her hand. “Ready?”
To get one step closer to that ring? “I’m ready,” she said, “with reservations.” She had to believe she’d made inroads into Munro’s stubborn thinking. Though he’d promised he would be ruthless to protect her, he’d also shown himself to be fair. Surely he would give her the choice.
Before I take Munro’s from him. She’d considered confiding in him about her plan to eliminate Dorada but decided against it. He wasn’t ready yet.
He read her pensiveness. “We’re only going to get information. That’s all.”
Just because they visited this vampire court didn’t mean Munro was doomed to be enslaved to a sorceress and Ren was doomed to be transformed against her will.
They exited the villa and descended the stairs to a cobblestone lane. As Ren and the wolf headed toward the imposing keep, Dacians on the streets turned and stared.
In a low tone, he said, “Aside from vampires, I scent fey, nymphs, and even demons within these mountains. But a Lykae and a human must be rarities indeed.”
“Either that, or they’re looking to top off their blood fountain,” she murmured.
“Think they’d frown if I took a leak in it?”
She laughed, was still chuckling as they walked up the grand stairs to the castle.
The immense doors bore engravings of five shields, each with a symbol: a heart, a sword, a fist, a gateway, and, in the center, an eye.
All humor fading, Munro said, “Stay close to me.”
When the doors opened, Ren muttered, “Showtime.”
FORTY-SEVEN
As Munro and Kereny entered the lavish court, he committed details to memory. The black stone floor was inlaid with gold. Wall murals too. From the ceiling hung rich tapestries with that eye symbol they’d seen on the castle’s entry.
Atop a dais, the two vampire regents sat in side-by-side thrones adorned with gold-plated skulls. The queen was a pretty brunette with gray eyes. Lothaire was tall, with pale skin and light-blond hair. Arrogance emanated from him.
One look at the leech’s red eyes, and Munro’s beast stirred for a fight.
The court was emptier than he’d expected. Stelian stood off to the side near a dark-haired fey female. A blond vampire standing along the opposite wall of the court caught Munro’s attention. King Kristoff?
So Lachlain had been right; the leader of the Forbearers was indeed alive and in Dacia. Kristoff’s lieutenants had reported to Lachlain that their king had been abducted—by the Enemy of Old.
Which means my mission is in play. He was to rescue Kristoff.
Munro had figured he’d be in some dungeon like Quondam’s, but the male walked free. Maybe he’d had his teleportation bound.
At the thought of liberating the vampire from under Lothaire’s nose, a charge stole through Munro. He would fulfill his duty—as long as he could keep his female safe. He gazed down at Kereny to see how she was doing.
Gliding beside him in her elegant gown with her knife proudly on her arm, she wore her customary poker face as she surveyed the grandeur all around. In the light of the castle’s thousand torches, she seemed to glow.