Did that mean there’d been a ruler of vampires who was a woman?
I blew off Frost as best I could after that, head reeling and hands trembling from the revelation. And, by the way, thank God she didn’t see the original rubbing. As it was, she just thought I was crappy at Old Norse, and that was fine by me. Those original runes were burning a hole in my bookshelf, but I dared not take them back out now. Who could I even show them to?
Carden. I could show them to Carden. I wanted to share them with him.
Yeah, right.
Screw him. He’d apparently ridden off into the sunset, leaving me to deal with this by myself.
All right. Not screw him. Not really. I was hurt, not angry. Heartbroken. Aching to see him. Missing him physically. Longing for his touch. For the feel of our bond igniting whenever I fed from him.
How had I ever let myself get so vulnerable? I replayed our last night. As you grow stronger, as our bond grows deeper, you will be able to part from me. …Like he was setting it up so he could leave me. And though he’d said we could part for longer periods, I was beginning to feel that familiar unpleasant ache in my belly—the ache o
f the blood fever.
Why would he put me through this? What had I done wrong? Should I have gone further with him? Was that what he’d wanted?
And then there was all that stuff he’d said. Had it meant anything to him? Or had he just been trying to get in my pants? You are an innocent. You help me to remember. Blah blah blah…Helped him to remember what? That I was an inexperienced virgin who wasn’t ready for more, while he was?
Of course, his disappearance had another explanation, one that I dared not consider. He might’ve disappeared because he’d…disappeared. Something bad might’ve happened to him.
But wouldn’t I have felt it? I was certain I’d know if Carden were ripped from this earth. The thought was too painful—I couldn’t even touch it. Much easier to think I’d been blown off. And how pathetic was that?
Which put me back at squares one and two: hurt and pissed. If and when I saw Carden again, I’d be too angry to tell him anything but off.
There was Ronan—I could’ve confided the whole Sonja thing to him. Yeah, except for the fact that I couldn’t even think about that interlude in the gym without feeling heat creep into my cheeks.
Besides, getting Ronan involved in something this big could only put him in danger. First off, Carden might not want me, but he surely wouldn’t want any other guy to have me either. Confiding too much in Ronan would only set him up for some major conflict. Ronan might’ve been a Tracer with some crazy powers, but he’d never survive a fight with a vampire. Secondly, even if Carden weren’t an issue, asking Ronan to help investigate the monsters that employed him? Talk about putting the guy in harm’s way.
No, I was on my own with this.
Sonja, ruler of vampires. I might’ve been curious about the keep before, but now I was on fire with it. I needed to act, once and for all.
And Alcántara was the key. So many secrets began and ended with him.
Keep your enemies close. …Wasn’t that how the saying went? Getting closer to Alcántara could prove illuminating, and with Carden missing in action, this was my moment. At least that was what I told myself as I approached his office. Because doing what I was about to do, I needed every mantra, motto, and saying I could muster.
“Mi querida,” he purred. “What a surprise. ”
I closed the door behind me. “Good evening,” I said, using my most polite-young-lady voice.
Master Dagursson might’ve smelled like musty old papers, but the office of Master Hugo de Rosas Alcántara wrapped me in scents of aged leather, antique mahogany furniture oiled to a fine sheen, and crystal snifters of brandy. It smelled dangerous.
I pasted a smile on my face. I’d purposely come at the end of his office hours so we wouldn’t be interrupted. I reminded myself this was a good thing. For my plan to work, we needed to be alone. So why was my heart knocking in my chest, feeling as fragile and fluttering as a bird’s?
The wingback chair creaked as I sat down, the leather a deep—and deeply disturbing—oxblood red. “Thank you for making time for me. ” It was a halting beginning, but I had to start somewhere. I was in it now. And besides, I was convinced this was the best first step in my plan to uncover every secret in this place, because who was closer to the heart of the mystery than Alcántara?
The Spanish vampire sat utterly still, fingers steepled, watching me like some magnificent predatory bird. One false move, and I had no doubt he’d swoop across the room and devour me.
I had to admit, the guy sure was pretty. Long and lean, in black jeans and black sweater to match his artfully tousled black hair. He looked like a bored rock star.
Bored and silent.
I waited, because wasn’t this place all about speak when spoken to?
It didn’t take too long before I began to squirm. He was using the silence. It was his tool, his weapon.
Because I could no longer bear not saying something, I said, “I appreciate you seeing me. ”