20. Sad and Romantic
SAD AND ROMANTIC
Alex
Afew days had passed since Irene had arrived at the mansion, and aside from a quick moment when yet another wili had faded, I hadn’t seen her. I’d given her the time and space to get accustomed to her new life and to mourn her father.
I sat at the desk in my study, signing bills and reading reports on the area the Dark Court controlled.
The position of Duke of the Dark Court wasn’t different from that of any other duke in the kingdom.
There were bills to pay, land agents to meet, and documents to read.
At first, this part of the job bored me, but now it gave me a sense of normality in a world that didn’t make sense.
Pencils, cushions, and books floated around me as Darius read his beloved magic book in front of the fire.
He’d found the book with a silly, long name in the ridiculously big library and claimed it was the most ancient, powerful, and complete book on magic in history. He never, ever left the book, not for a moment. He slept with it, walked with it, and went to the privy with it.
I swatted a floating pencil away. “Can you stop this?”
“I’m practising.” He popped a chocolate bonbon into his mouth.
“Two thousand rooms, nine thousand hectares, and you must practise in my study.”
“I love company.”
“I’m trying to focus.” A book hit the back of my neck. “Dammit!”
“Honest mistake. How is Irene?” Darius lowered the book. “No progress yet?”
“I’m not sure she wants to see me.”
“I wouldn’t blame her.”
“Yet you are here.” I showed him my fangs.
“Stop it.” He waved dismissively. “You know they don’t frighten me anymore. Irene must start developing her powers. She must kill a man soon, or her power will dwindle, and she’ll die. No time to waste. You must talk to her.”
“Right.” I pressed two fingers to my temples, scoffing as another book flew too close to my nose.
Irene had brought back memories and emotions of who I’d been before becoming Ravenhill, when I’d been human and my life, albeit miserable, had been simple. I hadn’t had to fight the thirst or worry if I was going to lose control and kill someone.
Darius ate another bonbon. “I haven’t finished the chapter on vampires—”
“How is that possible?” I couldn’t remove the frustration in my voice. “Burke’s Peerage has twenty times more pages than that thin book. You’ve been reading it for years. I don’t understand.”
He glowered. “That’s the right word. Understand. De Mirabilibus Mundi is extremely difficult to read, and only an exceptionally powerful mage like me can read it without going mad.”
“Are you sure about the latter?”
He shot his gaze towards the ceiling. “A legend says that four hundred years ago, a man became a vampire after selling his soul to the devil to save the life of his beloved wife. But the devil tricked him.”
“How surprising.”
“Oh, shush. His wife died, but she reincarnated. In fact, she gets a new life every time she dies, and he’s roaming the Earth searching for her, desperate to be reunited with her. If he finds her, she will live with him forever.” He clicked his tongue. “Four hundred years of longing.”
I waited for him to add something else. “And? How’s this story important to me?”
“I think it’s sad and romantic.”
“Sad and romantic?” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I don’t care about sad and romantic stories. I need useful information to keep Graves’s werewolves quiet, to stop the fairies from nagging me, and to understand why Myrtha’s power is vanishing.”
He didn’t seem to care. “It’s an interesting story.”
“What you will find interesting is the latest bill proposal from the Fair Court.” I waved the document that the Duchess of the Fair Court had sent to me. “Her Grace Esmeralda wants me to approve a restriction on magic.”
“What?” He perked up.
“She wrote…” I read from the document. “Any recreational use of magic should be banned. If I sign this, it’ll be illegal for you to use magic to get dressed, heat your tea at exactly the temperature you like, or keep your hair impeccably styled even in a storm.”
His expression was horrified. “Don’t you dare sign it.”
“I’m tempted to, only to annoy you. Esmeralda thinks that restrictions will make the world safer for humans.”
He opened his hand towards me in a menacing gesture as if he were casting a spell. “I’m serious. Don’t sign it. Or I’ll cast a spell on your tongue, and every type of blood you’re going to drink will taste of rotten fish.”
I exhaled. “You’re the kind of person who would wake me up to tell me you’re going to bed.”
He put on a pensive expression. “I think I did that once.”
I scraped my chair backwards and rose. “I’m going to see Irene.”
“Don’t frighten her. That rarely works.”
No, it worked better than he thought.
“Don’t be aggressive,” he added. “Don’t lose your temper. In short, don’t be yourself.”
“I have more important things to do than ignore you.” I paused, feeling a tingling sensation on my neck. “What did you say the name of the ancient vampire count was?”
“I never said he was a count.” He bolted upright. “Do you know something I don’t? It sounds impossible.”
I exhaled through my teeth. “Do you know his name?”
“Matthias Corvinus Andrássy, Count of Bethlen. Does it ring a bell?”
“I think…” Bits and pieces of memories flashed through my mind. “He visited me.”
“I’ll be jiggered.” He put the book aside. “He might be your sire.”
“He was looking for Odette.” The episode wasn’t exactly a memory; it felt more like a dream.
“His wife?”
“Please.” I blew out a breath. “But why did he turn me, only to leave me?”
Darius leant back in the chair, thinking. “Good question. Do you remember anything else?”
I tried to grasp more details, but they eluded me. “Not really.”
“Keep thinking about him. Your memory will return.”
I started to leave but paused. “What can I do to overcome my…you know, fear?”
“I can heal a wound on your body, not your mind.”
“Yes, yes, but what might help? There must be other things.” With Irene so close, I wanted to work on my fear so I could hold her hand or hug her.
He rested his chin on his fist as the pencils twirled around him. “Exercises, fresh vegetables, long walks, cold baths?”
“Cold baths?”
“Make your body numb. It’s worth a try.” He grinned.
“All right.” I was never sure whether he was joking or not.
As I headed for Irene’s bedroom, Fiona had the audacity to block my passage.
I stopped not to bump into her. “What?”
“Why did you claim the new wili as yours?” She stuck out her bottom lip. “Does it mean you aren’t going to drink from me anymore?”
“It means that what I do is none of your business.” I sidestepped her, but she wasn’t finished.
“I don’t think it’s right. She’s just arrived, and I’ve been your provider for a while.”
“And I’m very grateful. But what you feel during the feeding isn’t real. It’s the bite. I’ve told you many times.”
“Can’t you claim me as well?” She wasn’t listening.
“No, I can’t, and what would Myrtha say?”
She hesitated, and I took advantage of her indecision to sidestep her. I was too quick for her to follow me.
I hadn’t told Irene that I could force her to obey me since I was her master. When we’d talked, she’d been so overwhelmed that I hadn’t wanted to upset her further. But I had no intention of employing my power over her, so there was no point in telling her.
I paused before knocking. The tug on my chest drew me closer to her.
I had no idea how to make Irene forgive me or trust me.
My past life as a street thief didn’t help, and the more recent years as the duke had been about surviving, something I was familiar with.
Dealing with a special woman like Irene, who had been hurt, was another matter.
I’d wanted to keep Irene’s world and mine separate to protect her, and the result was that she was a wili.
I knocked and prepared to be sent to hell. But I already lived in hell. “Irene? Can we talk?”
No sound came. I was about to leave when she opened the door.
Her radiance stunned me. Every wili, the healthy ones, emitted a faint white-silver light that made their skin perfect. But the effect the glow had on Irene was striking. It took me a moment to stop staring at her sapphire eyes.
I clasped my hands behind my back. “May I come in?”
She held the door open. Good sign.
“How are you faring?” I steered away from her not to touch her.
“I’m better.” She rubbed her arms, making the fabric of her white gown shimmer. “I needed time to accept the changes in my new life.”
“Does it mean you forgive me?” My already slow heart skipped a beat as I waited for her answer.
“Being angry is a waste of energy. And once, you told me I shouldn’t apologise for something I didn’t control. I suppose I should return the courtesy.”
It was a start. “You need to develop your power and make your first kill before you start to fade.”
I probably should have been more sensitive, but tact didn’t come naturally to me.
She put a hand over her mouth and sobbed.
Hell. I should listen to Darius. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
She wiped her face quickly. “I wonder if I should let my power fade. What is the point of revenge? It won’t bring Papa back.”
“Revenge, no. But what about justice?”
She sat down in a froth of white fabric, and if my breath could catch because of her beauty, it would. Sunlight caressed her cheek as if it wanted to comfort her, and I’d never been as jealous of a ray of sunlight as I was now. I couldn’t provide her with the warmth she needed.
“What justice?” The tip of her nose was pink from crying, and I found her even more beautiful.
“What Sean did to you…” I shifted my weight as my imagination produced unwanted visions of the thug attacking Irene.
To me, revenge would be pure satisfaction.
“He’ll do it to another woman. A woman who trusts him.
He’ll break her and kill her, and then he’ll find someone else and start again.
Together, we can stop him, and by stopping him, we’ll save lives. ”
She regarded me with something close to respect. “I didn’t think about that.”
“You’re kind.”
She drew her eyebrows closer.
I continued. “Killing to make yourself feel better isn’t in your blood. But helping others might help you. As we speak, Sean is charming an innocent woman to destroy her.”
She flinched. “You made a fair point.” She crossed the room with the ethereal grace only wilis had and stretched out an arm towards me. “I’m ready to work.”
I flexed my fingers as a combination of longing and disgust battled inside me. Her hand remained hanging between us until she withdrew it, confused.
“You won’t shake hands with me,” she said, her tone sad.
“I don’t touch anyone, nor do I want to be touched.”
“Why?”
“I’m Ravenhill, the Duke of the Dark Court.” Emotion clogged my throat.
The urge to hold her slender hand, even for a moment, was so strong I shivered. The last time I’d touched someone, I’d been human, and since my transformation, I hadn’t wished to touch anyone. But Irene was special.
All of a sudden, the desire to be normal again, to enjoy her touch overwhelmed me as it hadn’t done before. Cold baths sounded rather enticing if they helped me.
I glanced at her hands. “You’ll start today.”
“Are you going to train me?”
“Would you like me to?”
Her hesitation answered me. It shouldn’t hurt, but it did. But then again, I frightened her.
“I’ll find someone who will train you.” I left her room before she realised how much her silence hurt.