Chapter 5 #4
Beside Matthew, Sylvain made a noise of realization. “The necklace she wears,” he said. “The diamond.”
Matthew nodded. It was Cordelia who had told him once about the Daria-i-noor and the Koh-i-noor, two famous diamonds with Persian names; the first meant ocean of light, and the second, mountain of light.
Great jewels were often given fanciful names, she’d said, sounding tickled at the romance of it all.
The memory had stirred in Matthew when he’d read Bart’s letter.
What if the Queen of Night was not a person at all, but a jewel?
One that Bart Morrow wanted, but could not get his hands on, as it was around his sister’s neck?
“I left everything else behind,” Melody said, lifting her hand to the chain at her throat.
“I told Bart I would vanish, that he could tell the world I was dead, that he could have all Father’s money.
All I wanted to keep was this—” She drew the pendant out, and even in the dim light of the room the diamond seemed to glow.
Matthew wondered how he’d ever thought it was paste.
“—because it was a gift from my grandmother.”
“Once Bart was onboard, he must have sent you a message,” said Sylvain. “Telling you to come to his room. Perhaps saying that if you signed certain papers, he would leave you alone.”
“Exactly that.” Melody dropped her hand from the pendant.
“But he was taking no chances,” said Matthew.
“He drugged you, using Orville, your thrall, as the unwitting conduit for a dose of hawthorn. He thought it would make you weak and compliant. And you were happy enough to sign the contract he presented you, signing over all your worldly goods to him. But then he demanded the diamond. And that you would not give.”
“He attacked me,” Melody said. “He had a stake with him. Crosses. He held a crucifix against my arm until the skin burned, then kicked me to the floor. I saw in his eyes he meant to kill me. He would have killed me. I didn’t mean to hurt him. But I had to fight back, and—”
“And humans are so fragile,” Virgil said, with a touch of melancholy in his voice.
“I snapped his neck,” Melody said sadly. “And I ran to Virgil and the others afterward, not knowing what to do. If Bart disappeared, there would certainly be a hue and cry raised. So—”
“So you had to hide the body,” Matthew said. “You threw him overboard, hoping his death would be written off as a suicide.”
“We didn’t know there were Shadowhunters onboard,” Virgil said. “Perhaps, if we had, we would have gone to you first.”
“What would you have said?” asked Sylvain.
“The truth,” Matthew said. “That this was a clear-cut case of self-defense.” He turned to Virgil. “There is no need for us to take any action or involve the Clave. No crime against the Accords has been committed.”
Virgil narrowed his eye. “I know that to swear on the name of the Angel is for the Shadowhunters a very serious thing. Swear on that name that you will take no action against us, nor cause any action to be taken.”
Matthew exchanged a quick look with Sylvain. Sylvain turned to Melody and to Virgil, and fixed them both with a steady look. “I swear on Raziel’s name.”
“I swear it too,” said Matthew. “On Raziel’s name.”
After a long, breath-held pause, Virgil nodded his acceptance. Immediately, the vampires began filing out the door, looking rather like theatergoers exiting an interesting but slightly confusing play. As Melody passed by Matthew, she paused, her hands clasped before her.
“I don’t know how to thank you,” she said. “This could have been such a disaster—”
“Just get rid of your thrall,” said Matthew. “Orville may not have the most pleasant personality, but he deserves better than a life like that.”
“I will. Honestly, I wished to before, I simply wasn’t brave enough to do it. But you have rather showed me the way, I think. I shall set him free as soon as we dock.”
“Good,” said Matthew, and Melody, with the flash of a smile, leaned forward to impulsively kiss him on the cheek. She turned quickly and hurried out of the room. Sylvain watched her go with a smile touching the corner of his mouth.
At last, only Virgil was left. He regarded Matthew thoughtfully, his eyes hooded. “You are a very unusual Shadowhunter,” he said.
“He is that,” agreed Sylvain.
Virgil smiled, and Matthew saw the white dart of his fang teeth. “Have you ever considered an immortal life?” he inquired. “Perhaps as one of us? You seem the sort who might excel in the theater.”
Matthew felt his eyebrows shoot up. “No, thank you,” he said, politely.
Virgil looked genuinely disappointed. “If I might ask, why not? Shadowhunters have become vampires in the past. It’s certainly possible. Or is it the thought of the blood that bothers you?”
“No,” Matthew said, and added hastily, “Well, yes. It does bother me. But that’s not the real reason.
If I were to become a vampire, I would lose my bond with my parabatai.
I would lose my days with my friends. I simply…
like my life as it is.” He paused for a moment, struck by what he’d said.
“I like my life,” he said, again, this time with a note of wonder in his voice that made Sylvain look at him sharply.
Virgil inclined his head. “If you ever change your mind, you know where to find us, Shadowhunter.”
And with that he was gone, his movements so quick that to Matthew he seemed to vanish into thin air. Matthew stood where he was, still caught in the net of surprise his own words had provoked.
He felt a warm hand come down on his shoulder, and turned his head to see Sylvain standing beside him. “Well, that was an unexpected ending to our adventure,” he said, and there was a warmth in his dark eyes that made Matthew’s stomach flutter. “Shall we return to our rooms?”
Matthew grinned. “Can I try on a few of the costumes first?”
Sylvain laughed. It was a lovely sound. “I rather thought you’d say that.”