Chapter 16 #2
“I want you to start looking at land—get an idea of how much it might cost, since that will be a significant investment. I know several people in construction. I’ll talk to them and see if they can give me a few ballpark figures and some time estimates.
We’ll know more when we have some solid numbers.
Let’s plan to meet about this again next month. ”
“Really? You’re going to think about it?”
“I don’t see why I wouldn’t.”
“It’s going to cost a lot of money.”
“I could buy you all of Glenwood Springs if you wanted.” He tilts his head slightly. “Do you want that instead?”
“Uh, no,” I say, slightly disconcerted. “But thank you for humoring me. Even if this doesn’t go anywhere, I appreciate you not patting me on the head and sending me on my way.”
“Who did that?”
“Every bank in town.”
He shrugs. “Financial institutions don’t have the flexibility to follow vision, no matter how brilliant it might be.”
Needing to change the subject before my heart overflows, I say, “So, did Noah tell you we have someone new watching the place?”
“He did.”
“I’m sorry you have to babysit me.”
“There are worse tasks. Besides, what’s a conservator for?”
“There’s broth downstairs if you want it.”
“Is that your polite way of telling me to go away?”
“Yes. I need to finish up these emails.”
“Fine.” The handsome vampire stands, stretching. “I have a few business calls to make anyway. I’m thinking of investing in a new garden nursery.”
I smile as he goes, and then I get back to work.
A few hours later, I wander downstairs. Cassian’s in Noah’s usual spot at the dining room table, staring at his laptop.
“What’s Noah doing today?” I ask, stirring blood into cranberry juice because I don’t feel like making a smoothie this afternoon.
“He didn’t say,” Cassian says absently.
“Did Sophia give you any information after we left?”
He looks a touch uncomfortable, but he shakes his head. “No.”
If Noah doesn’t have any new leads, he’s probably at the office. Hanging out with his new plant.
“Oh, get over it,” I say to myself.
“Excuse me?” Cassian asks, lowering his reading glasses.
“Not you.” I’m just about to take a sip of my juice when I pause to scrutinize the vampire. “Why are you wearing glasses?”
“Oh, do you like them? I ended up getting a pair.”
He slides them back on and poses thoughtfully. The frames are thin black wire, and like everything else, they look good on him.
“The lenses don’t have correction,” he adds. “They’re just a fashion accessory.”
“It must be dull living so long.”
“Does that mean you like them or not?”
“Yes, I like them.”
“Good.” He looks back at his computer and then promptly scowls again.
“What’s the matter?”
“Vampire politics. Jorgen is hounding me to meet with him.”
“Olivia mentioned someone came by while she was visiting…” I say, hinting heavily.
He shoots me an amused glance. “Yes, that was him.”
“Is he still pushing for you to claim the…dukedom?”
“Dukedom?” he asks, amused.
“I don’t really know the technical term.”
“We usually just call it the throne.”
“Oh, right.”
“And yes. He is.”
“If he’s so passionate about it, why doesn’t he do it himself?”
“He has a dark past—a Viking, you know. He’s reformed, but with that sort of history…” Cassian shrugs.
“All you princes are pretty old, right? Don’t most of you have bloody pasts? You didn’t have medication until recently.”
“We managed.”
He looks uncomfortable, which I find intriguing. “How?”
“Well, first off, you didn’t let yourself get hungry. Bloodlust is the root of the madness, so if you kept yourself on a schedule, you were fine.”
“Why do you need the medicine then? You’re good at taking your blood, aren’t you? And you’ve had two centuries to form a solid habit.”
Cassian removes his glasses like they’re bothering him now and gives me his full attention. “I can answer your question, but you won’t like it. I don’t even like it.”
I pull out a dining room chair and sit across from him. “I can handle it.”
“We consumed human blood.”
“Noah already mentioned that.”
“Yes, but did he tell you human blood curbs the madness?”
I open my mouth to respond…and then close it again.
“Technically, animal blood and the synthetic prescription meet our bodies’ needs. But…neither one is as complete. They’re not as satisfying, I suppose.”
“So, when Archduke Nicolau banned vampire creation, he basically banned human blood at the same time? You can’t feed if you can’t, you know, bite.”
“Not yet—that came later. At that time, civilized vampires already consumed donated blood. Many houses had donors, along with nurses in their employ who could draw from them.”
“Ew,” I whisper. “You kept humans like milk cows?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“All the pamphlets, all the printouts, everything I received from my doctor and NIHA say the prescription and animal blood are sufficient.”
“Of course they do. We don’t want baby vamps going out and snacking on humans, do we?”
“So, they’re basically lying to everyone.”
“Hard to imagine a government institution would do that, right?”
I laugh. “Noah said you were the one who pioneered the research—that thanks to you, we have the synthetic blood and the medications.”
“If you’re going to live a long life, you might as well have a mission.”
“Maybe you should be our archduke, Cassian.”
“Don’t start that.”
Smiling, I walk back into the kitchen. “I don’t know. Perhaps you should think about it. Your Grace has a nice ring to it.”