Chapter 6
SIX
Nadi adjusted the crimson lace of her dress as the car pulled up to Volencia’s estate.
The deep red fabric clung to her body like a second skin.
She had to admit, Raziel had good taste, even if the dress showed off more of Monica Valan’s assets than the poor newly turned vampire would be comfortable with.
Her thoughts were a storm, debating between her paths ahead.
But she had to focus on the task at hand.
Tonight was going to be difficult to navigate as it was, without the new opportunity from Mael clearing the way ahead of her.
Never mind the fact that she had to play the part of vampire in front of a room full of vampires on top of it.
“Remember,” Raziel murmured, his lips close to her ear. “Not a word unless directly addressed. Most newly turned are still adjusting to their senses. You’re overwhelmed. Lost. In awe.”
“Oh, I’m sure.” She rolled her eyes. “Helpless and naive. Trembling in the glow of your sheer glory, let alone that of a room full of Nostroms.”
“Precisely. Play to their egos.” His smile was thin. “It will make them underestimate you. I was quick enough to do just that, wasn’t I? And look where it got me.”
She really hated it when he made a good point.
“You wouldn’t happen to have a huge bomb, would you? This would be the perfect opportunity,” she muttered to him under her breath.
He chuckled. “If only it were so simple… many of them aren’t so easy to kill.”
“What about your gift? Does it work on them?”
“If it did, I would have slaughtered them all long ago.”
Another good point. She sighed.
The car stopped at the foot of the grand marble staircase leading to Volencia’s home.
Unlike Raziel’s mansion with its modern wood and sleek but brooding elegance, his mother’s estate was all polished lacquered woods and detailed carved surfaces.
But despite the velvet and twisting embroidered textures, the whole space felt cold.
Heartless. Lethal. And it was far older than Raziel’s. More antiquated.
Out of date.
Like a sculpture in a museum. Where Raziel seemed to be trying to keep up with the evolution of time, Volencia’s home was frozen and locked in bygone era. And happily so.
Ivan opened the door, and Raziel stepped out first, offering his hand to help her. His palm was cool against hers—he hadn’t fed recently. Another calculated move. He would appear weaker than he was. The dance of deception never ended in this family.
The doors to the council chamber swung open as they approached. Two guards in matching dark crimson suits stood at attention, their faces impassive. Nadi recognized one of them from Raziel’s estate—a spy, then. She wondered who else in this sprawling dynasty had divided loyalties.
The chamber itself was a masterwork of intimidation.
A horseshoe-shaped table dominated the space, elevated on a dais so those standing before it would be forced to look up.
Twenty vampires sat around it, their faces ranging from ancient and wrinkled to youthfully smooth, but all bearing the same predatory stillness.
Their visible ages were no indication of their years either.
Vampires aged in strange ways—not predictably like the fae.
Some aged faster, growing old in fewer years on the calendar.
Some, like Volencia or Raziel’s grandmother Lilivra, seemed to take centuries to age a decade.
Nadi suspected it had something to do with the strength of their bloodline, but it was only a suspicion on her part. She had no way of knowing for certain.
Behind the seated vampires were their attendants, guards, and other members of the extended Nostrom clan—at least forty more pairs of eyes watching their every move.
At the center sat Volencia, resplendent in a gown of the deepest red adorned with diamonds that glittered like cold stars.
Mael lounged to her right, his massive frame somehow elegant in a charcoal suit.
Lana sat to Volencia’s left, her blonde hair elaborately styled and her magenta eyes bright with amusement.
The room fell silent as they entered. Not the natural quiet of anticipation, but the deliberate hush of a performance about to begin.
Raziel guided Nadi to the center of the open space, his hand on the small of her back. They stood together, which was strange enough for her as it was.
“Raziel,” Volencia’s voice cut through the silence. “And… Monica.” The way she hesitated before saying the name made it clear she considered it disgusting.
“Nostrom council. Brothers and sisters. Lords and ladies of your regions. Elders.” He paused. “Mother.” Raziel inclined his head, just enough to acknowledge her without showing true submission. “We have come as commanded, to face judgment for my actions.”
“Indeed.” Volencia’s lips curved into what might generously be called a smile. “How very dutiful of you. Especially after your catastrophic failure at the estate. You have embarrassed your family line. You have embarrassed all of us seated here, boy.”
A murmur rippled through the assembled vampires. Nadi kept her gaze lowered, playing the part of the overwhelmed fledgling, while cataloging every exit, every potential weapon, every threat in the room.
But most of all, she was making note of every single one of the vampires in attendance. And who the biggest threats were, and in which order she’d have to kill them, if things went tits up.
“I would not characterize it as a failure, Mother.” Raziel’s voice remained perfectly measured. “Rather, a change in strategy.”
“A change—” Volencia laughed, the sound like glass breaking. “A change in strategy? You were given explicit instructions. The sacrifice was non-negotiable. And now all of us who sit assembled have our power threatened and our political surety shaken because of your impudence.”
“And yet…” Raziel gestured vaguely toward Nadi.
“Here we are with a far more valuable asset than a momentary blood rite to some distant, upstart local gang lord with dreams of grandeur. This momentary upheaval from the Toths and the Rosovs can be dealt with in the same manner we always have, and you know it.” He waved a hand dismissively.
“By maneuvering or violence, they will fall in line. She is something far more rare and worth purchasing at any price.”
Volencia’s eyes narrowed, and Nadi felt the weight of her scrutiny like a physical pressure. “Step forward, girl.”
Nadi moved one pace ahead of Raziel, lifting her gaze to meet Volencia’s. She had practiced this moment in her mind—not too defiant, not too meek. A balance of respect and strength.
“You were human mere days ago,” Volencia said.
“Now you stand before the Nostrom council as one of us. For the time being, at any rate. If we deem you unworthy, your severed head will be placed upon a stake as recompense for the broken rite of sacrifice. So I will begin with this question. How do you find your new existence?”
A direct question. Permission to speak.
“Overwhelming, Lady Volencia.” Nadi’s voice was soft but clear. “But I am… grateful and honored for the opportunity to serve the family in this new capacity.”
The vampire matriarch studied her for a long moment. “And how exactly do you imagine you will serve us?”
“However I am directed, my lady.” Nadi lowered her eyes again, with a gesture of submission that twisted a knife deep in her soul. Raziel might be the only one who understood what that sentence cost her. But even still, he might not.
Mael shifted in his seat, drawing attention.
His golden eyes flicked over Nadi with an expression that might have been concern, might have been calculation.
“She seems to have adjusted remarkably well. Most fledglings can barely form coherent sentences so soon after turning. If she has adapted so well this quickly… he may not be lying about her capabilities and strength.”
Raziel’s expression revealed nothing, but Nadi felt the tension in him ratchet higher. “Monica has always been exceptional. That was the reason I kept her.”
“Exceptional,” Lana repeated, her tone making the word an accusation. “Yes, we’ve noticed her… exceptional qualities.”
Volencia raised a hand, silencing her daughter. “The council has not gathered to discuss the girl’s physical appearance or the merits thereof. We are here to address the consequences of your actions, Raziel.”
She stood, and the entire room seemed to hold its breath. Even Nadi felt the instinctive urge to freeze.
“The sacrifice at the ancestral estate is not merely tradition,” Volencia continued. “It is a demonstration of power. A signal to all vampire clans that the Nostroms maintain the old ways and the strength they represent. The strength we represent.”
She began to pace, her movements deliberate and graceful. “By failing to complete the sacrifice, you have significantly weakened our political standing. The Rosov family, in particular, has taken note.”
“The Rosovs are opportunists,” Raziel countered. “They’ve been looking for any excuse—”
“Silence!” Volencia snapped. “You do not interrupt me in my own council chamber. Not after what you’ve done.”
Raziel’s jaw tightened, but he bowed his head.
“The Rosovs control the eastern quarter of the metropolis,” Volencia continued, addressing the entire council now.
“They’ve been encroaching on our territory for decades, but this?
This display of weakness has emboldened them.
Braen Rosov has already reached out to three families that we once called allies, suggesting that perhaps the Nostroms no longer have the strength to protect their interests.
If we do not act, and act quickly, we will lose a large portion of the city we control and be cut off from our supply of the drugs that we gather from below to fund our operations. ”
Murmuring filled the chamber, concerns passing from mouth to ear in a wave of disquiet.