Chapter 24
NATE
“Do try to look less murderous, brother. No one will pledge for our House if it seems they might meet the same fate as our cousin.” Rafe appears at my elbow on the fringes of the ballroom, a smirk in his voice.
“I see your keen sense of humour is still intact after your display in the blood house.” I glance to my left, watching Rafe’s smile fall. “Yes, I heard of it.”
“It seems all of Bath did,” he grumbles, turning away from me and looking out into the sea of vampires gathering in the ballroom. There is a string quartet playing, but they are barely audible over the noise of chatter and braying laughter — the sounds of the nobility gossiping and making bets on who will be the victors in the first round of the Tournament.
Rafe and I have not seen each other since the night in the court’s chambers. He has been back to the house, recovered from his blood-stupor that was the gossip of the nobility, and reunited with Miss Fairfax whilst I have continued to look for answers about what our sister died for. And that weight of a thousand unsaid things hangs awkwardly between us.
“I wasn’t sure if you’d come,” Rafe says.
“You thought I’d abandon our family’s interests?”
“Neither of us wants to be here, let’s face it. Without Juliette…”
“We’re at a disadvantage.” My voice is cold. There is no use addressing it with Rafe — how Juliette was betrayed, how she died to save me. He saw it as plainly as I did. “We need to discuss a strategy for the Tournament.”
“How have you had time to think of such things with our sister dead?” Rafe turns to glare at me. “What strategy is going to make any of this bearable? I have said from the beginning I have no interest in marrying, but Bath was supposed to be fun to make up for it. It has so far been nothing but an unmitigated disaster.”
My jaw clenches. “Has it not occurred to you that, for once, this might not be about you?”
“I could say the same to you!” Rafe blusters, then shakes his head. “Except it damned well is.”
“What do you mean?”
Rafe straightens up, rolling his shoulders back as if he carries the weight of the world on them. “The attack you faced. The hunters.”
My eyes narrow. “What of it?”
“It was Nikolai Azarov. He orchestrated the whole thing with the hunters and paid Aulus to stop the carriage.”
“You are certain?”
“As certain as I can be without hearing it from the bastard’s own mouth.” Rafe nods to the dance floor where Enzo has just appeared with one of the vampires from House Moreau. “Enzo found Aulus. We got it out of him.”
“Valeria didn’t kill him, then?”
“Of course not. But I did once he wasn’t useful anymore.” He looks back at me. “If you are wondering whether Grandmother was in on it, I believe her giving Wentworth to Nikolai proves it.”
“She’s done what?” I round on him.
“I might have told you if you’d come back to the damned house.”
With Juliette dead, Wentworth was a pledge without a mistress. Valeria would do nothing as charitable as to let the damned fellow go home. But to give him to Azarov…
“They are allies,” I mutter. “Valeria and Nikolai will have discussed my death. Plotted it together.” My fangs itch, ready to lengthen.
“There is a chance Azarov is double-crossing Valeria.”
I scoff. “How could they? They would have to be damned fools to instruct something like that of Aulus and expect her not to find out. Which means Valeria knows. She allowed it to happen.”
“Why would she offer you protection, then try to kill you on the road? I know our grandmother is a complicated creature, but that seems an unnecessary amount of hard work, even for her.”
Valeria comes into view as Rafe speaks. She glides through the centre of the dance floor, couples sidestepping out of her way. She looks particularly beautiful tonight; the epitome of power. If any vampires were on the fence as to who to pledge for, her presence will surely be enough to sway them.
“There is a chance it was a test.” My eyes narrow as I look at her. “That she wanted to see whether I would survive it. If what lies with Miss Sterling would be enough to save me.”
“But if that is true, then the Court has a way of speaking to the hunters. Of giving them information; of setting the plot in motion.” Rafe frowns. “And if that is true, then they could surely stop the attacks on the gutterfangs.”
Valeria’s eyes meet mine and she gives me one of her perfect, chilling smiles.
“Why would they stop the attacks when they were the behind them?”
I feel Rafe freeze beside me. “Surely you don’t…” He fades off and I see his thoughts churning. “Why would they do such a thing?”
“Because of their concern over a luna child.”
Rafe looks back at me blankly. “A what?”
“A human born under a blood moon. Juliette had written about it in correspondence. If they become one of us, they would be afforded great powers that the Court is afraid of. Joint-siring prevents such powers taking root, which is why they do everything they can to prevent gutterfangs being created.”
Rafe takes a step back, leaning into a pillar. “They are destroying them to prevent some ancient myth from coming to fruition?”
“I believe so, yes.” I watch as Valeria turns away again. “I may be wrong, of course. But it would make sense, wouldn’t it? Why they have not prevented the attacks nor done anything to help.”
He nods. “And it would make sense that Azarov had access to the hunters to plot against you. They were already in the Court’s pocket.”
“Exactly.”
“Brother, if you’re right about this?—”
“It means there will be more.”
“You think this is what Juliette suspected?”
I nod. “I think it is just the tip of the iceberg.”
As the ballroom buzzes around us, Rafe and I dissect our theories, our concerns, every last bit of news we have missed in the days since we saw each other.
My head pounds with it, but it is a distraction from the agony of the bond and wondering when Sera will arrive.
Despite all I have shared with Rafe, I know I still need to speak directly to Valeria. She will want a report on the Vosslers, even if Charlotte believes it is her that I answer to. And for now, at least, I must keep up appearances.
When I seek her out, she merely raises an eyebrow at me and hands me a glass of champagne from a passing tray. “I thought you might avoid me all evening, Nathaniel.”
“You seemed otherwise occupied.” I gesture to the huddles of vampires that have swarmed her, clamouring for her attention. She is in her element here.
“I am never too busy for my dearest grandson. Come.” She links her arm through mine and escorts me to the other side of the room, where we might have a better view of the events unfolding. “I will admit, I was surprised when you did not come to me on the Crescent after your sister died. It was a grave evening.”
“You did not seem unduly troubled by it.” The tension rises in my shoulders. “You did not object. And you were quite keen for Charlotte to take Juliette’s place.”
She smiles. “I expected you to have an opinion on it, and there it is. Why have you not shared your thoughts with me before now?”
“Because I have been upholding my end of our agreement. You ensured I survived, and I have done what I can to get to know Miss Vossler.”
Valeria releases my arm and faces me, the smile still in place. “This is exactly why I knew we could continue working together, Nathaniel. You are not swept up into foolish displays of emotion like your brother and Benjamin. You are a true lord.” She reaches back to me and squeezes my forearm with her icy fingers.
For the first time, the emotion on her face seems genuine. She is proud of me. She trusts me. And that is how it will need to stay if I am going to rip the rug directly from underneath her feet.
“I have grieved the loss of my sister, of course. But Nighthaven was chaotic, and the events dragged our House into disrepute. Juliette was at least of the good sense to recognise that.” I pull out of Valeria’s grip. “I will admit to being surprised by Charlotte as your choice of heir, however. She is but a shadow of the vampire you are.” I seek my cousin out in the crowd and find her surrounded by a flock of vampires too low in status for House Blackwood.
Valeria’s eyes flick towards her, too. “Charlotte will improve in time.”
“I do not relish reporting to her when she threatens Seraphina.”
“She needed something to do, dear. She will not harm Miss Sterling.”
To the side of the dance floor, I spot Agnes. She is grey and unsteady on her feet. I am surprised she made it to the ball. “She may feel compelled to if she does not better care for her own pledge.”
Valeria follows my gaze. “The girl looks unwell.”
“My concern, too. We cannot allow Charlotte to kill her pledge, Grandmother. It would reflect extremely poorly on our House after everything that has happened.”
It is bold to speak to her like this, but she knows I am right. If she allowed the Court to believe Juliette had failed in her duties, then Charlotte cannot be seen to be do the same.
“You are right.” She snaps her fingers and a gutterfang springs from the shadows. “Tell Lady Charlotte I have sent her pledge home for the evening. Arrange a carriage for Miss Ellington. You will escort her personally and ensure no harm comes to her.”
The gutterfang bows and disappears once more.
“Do you have a match in mind for my cousin?”
“Oh, a quite spectacular one.” A different smile descends this time — one I am far more familiar with. “I would only consider a Rassard or an Azarov for her. Perhaps a Moreau if it came to it.”
I roll through the list of unmarried vampires in the three key houses who are closest to us in influence. Charlotte has a preference for a groom, and House Rassard has none competing in the Tournament. House Moreau has two, but they have always been more closely affiliated with the Sedgwicks. Which leaves…
“Nikolai Azarov.” My fists clench. Of course.
“The most promising match by far, wouldn’t you agree?”
“It is why you gave him Juliette’s pledge.” The attack on me, Juliette’s death, Wentworth, a match with Charlotte — it all links Valeria and Nikolai together.
“Nikolai needs to be strong for the Tournament. We have given him the means to succeed.”
I concentrate on keeping my face neutral, giving nothing away. “Nikolai is most fortunate. He will thrive in the upcoming trials with such a supply. It was a wise move to secure the connection between our two families.”
I search the crowd for Azarov, my stomach twisting. When I spot him, he is standing with his mother and a handful of other high-ranking nobles, Wentworth by his side.
Nikolai is tall even for a vampire — taller almost than Rafe. But where Rafe has bulging muscles, Nikolai’s are compact and lean; built for speed, not brawn.
In the years since I have seen him, he has not changed. There is the same aloofness and mocking smile he is known for pulling at his lips. His skin is pale — almost translucent — with cheekbones that slice through his features. Physically, he is not much to Charlotte’s taste. But she will already be learning that she has no say in such things as the new heir.
“I have reported to Charlotte on my conversations with Miss Vossler,” I say. I have not seen her in the crowd, though she will be here somewhere along with her swarm of brothers. “I am afraid to say I have gleaned little from her.”
“My dear, you are not the only one. When they insist on siring like rabbits, there are many points of entry. We will find a weak link.”
“You will not have me call on her again?”
“There seems little point when it has been made so clear to Miss Vossler that the match will not stand. Why would she trust you when she thinks you are nothing more than a spy?”
My fangs itch. “A spy?”
“Your reputation as my former enforcer precedes you.” Valeria looks away from me and back over the dance floor. “It was remiss of me to not consider their links to the gutterfangs. I fear you will not be trusted in their circles.”
I keep my expression neutral. “It would explain why I had such little success.”
“Yes. I believe she entertained you only to distract us. I appreciate it would have been quite the stretch for you, being away from Miss Sterling.”
I flinch at Sera’s name. I have put her to the back of my mind all evening, only because I can no longer stand and stare at the door, waiting for her to arrive. It does not mean the bond is quiet, though. It rages as ferociously as always.
“It has not been easy, but I have done it because you asked it of me, Grandmother.” Her comment about distraction echoes in my head. “You think they have been plotting something?”
“Oh, undoubtedly.”
“And you would still have me be the Tournament’s victor? Any threat you perceive from them I can right during the trials.”
“Yes, you will still need to win. It cannot be Charlotte — she has none of your talent — but your success will reflect well on her.”
“And my own union?”
“As it is a bride you seek, your match will come from the highest-ranking female.”
My brow creases. For Valeria to not already have made an agreement with another family seems unusual. But if she is so confident in my success, I suppose there is little need. I will be the victor and unite with whoever is the next strongest competitor.
“If I may put forward a suggestion for my brother.” I watch him in the crowd. He stands with Enzo, heads pressed together, deep in gossip. “Rafe will make a terrible husband. He needs a strong bride from one of the thirteen families who will not allow him to sink into such depravity as we have already witnessed this Season. Someone who knows his failings and will not end him for them, but teach him. Help our great House to rise by association.”
Valeria’s eyes narrow. “And who do you have in mind for such a significant task?”
“Bianca Vespucci. Rafe is good friends with her brother, so she knows what he is like. And I believe she would keep him in line.”
“They sit at rank thirteen. I had hoped for better for your brother.”
“You cannot surely believe House Vespucci will rank so low in the Tournament? I believe they will become one of the five. With Enzo, Bianca and their band of cousins all competing, they will do well.”
Valeria studies me. “I will consider it.”
I bow to her as I take my leave, letting the grimace take over now I no longer have to hide it.
Rafe may hate the idea of marriage, but he needs Bianca now more than ever. Because if Charlotte and Nikolai join forces and we have no allies on the Court, they could decimate our entire family before the Tournament is through.