Chapter 34 | Skartovius
Skartovius
I let out a heavy sigh after sending off the most recent group of my court to arm our allies in the northern caves of the Military Ward.
If we are going to win a revolution, I’ll need pockets of informants and fighters in every corner of Olhav. The evening has been trying and exhausting, speaking to no less than twenty commonbloods and noblebloods hailing from five different covens.
If I can trust even a third of them, it will help. At least I have Mistress Helget and her remaining mate, Demilord Godial, as well as Demilord Tymon, Indokkus Shirin, and a few others I can trust to get the jobs done.
“So they’re all gone?”
The light, cautious voice causes me to tense, coming from the doorway of my study. I glance over and see Sephania poking her head into the musty room.
Smiling at my beloved, I sit on my single chair and beckon her to me, patting my knee. “A sight for sore eyes, love. You’re awake.”
“I slept for nearly twelve hours. It would be more concerning if I wasn’t awake, don’t you think?
” She shuffles into the room. At first I don’t think she’ll sit on my lap, but then she whines and does it anyway.
“You act like I’m a waif weighing less than a pebble, love. Do you forget I’m a sizable lady?”
I laugh as she settles down on my thigh, leaning slightly off to the side.
The heat of her rolls off in waves and makes my senses run wild.
I wrap an arm tight around her middle, bicep and forearm digging into her curves, and pull her against me.
“I’m a vampire, little temptress. I can handle the weight. ”
She chuckles and leans forward to kiss me on the side of the mouth, wrapping both arms around my neck.
Her lips are soft, full, and inviting. It seems we’ve gotten past whatever frustrations and differences we shared last night, thanks to the hours-long fucking that took place and calmed our collective worries.
I lace a finger under her chin. “I know that look,” I mutter, noticing her batting eyes. “An ask is coming.”
“Can I not simply enjoy your presence, Master?”
A snort leaves my lips. “And she calls me ‘Master,’ stroking my ego? The ask must be bigger than I imagined.”
Her smile is ripe with promise, a lovely contrast to the sheer boredom and annoying day I’ve had. It’s a smile that lights up whatever room she’s in, and when it’s directed at me, I have no defense against it.
“. . . Well, I do have a minor request,” she whispers in my ear.
My cock stirs at the closeness of her voice. I’m sure she can feel it bunching against her ass, lifting from my thigh, but she says nothing of it. “I’m guessing it’s not to be bent over this rickety desk and railed into oblivion?”
“Maybe later, love.”
I give her another kiss, draping my tongue around hers and pulling her close, until I can practically feel every inch of her soft, strong body against me. “Ask and you shall receive.”
“First, where is everyone?” She pulls back slightly, eyeing the door.
“My court? Gone on their various missions.”
“I mean Garroway, Vallan.”
My brow furrows. “Last I checked they were here, somewhere. I’ll admit they have a tendency to sneak off, and I haven’t been keeping close tabs on them this evening. I’ve been too busy, love.”
“Right. Well, they’re gone.” She makes an adorable scowl, as if them missing is somehow my fault.
I simply keep my smile, shrugging. “We’ll make do without them for a night.”
“Fine. Okay. Erm.” She struggles with the question. “I was hoping you might provide me with, uh, an escort. Into Nuhav.”
My brow pops in surprise. “An escort, love?” I toy with her hair in my fingers, gently grabbing the back of her neck. “That seems rather . . . prudent of you. What’s the catch? Surely it’s not to try and get back on my good side.”
“When the punishment for being on your bad side is so good?” She scoffs. “I would never. There’s no catch, Skar.”
I open my mouth to answer, pleased with how she seems to be taking her safety more seriously after my stern reprimanding last night.
Then she lifts a finger. “Well, I suppose there’s one minor catch. We have to take my mother with us.”
My face sinks. “Oh. That’s . . . quite good.
” I say the words but they’re dripping with sarcasm.
Jinneth annoys me, and she hates me. For good reason, because I’ve defiled her daughter.
But she had the nerve to be something other than the “Relic” we were hoping to find, and I hold the fault to her personally.
I suppose it’s just as much the Iron Sister’s fault as it is Jinneth’s, since Keffa is the one who led us on the wild goose chase to retrieve her lost lover.
“You don’t have to like it, Lord Ashfen, but you have to do it,” says the brat princess.
“Might you tell me why you need to go into Nuhav? The place reeks of destitution.”
“Don’t hate on my people, ass. Jinneth thinks she’s discovered a way to detach my blood from my body—no, don’t get fussy, not in the way you think.
” She lifts a palm before I can reply. “As a way to further my bloodbond to anyone who drinks from me, without the debilitating effects of drinking from me. It’s a good thing!
But she needs to meet someone there first, and it’s someone I know. So—”
“Fine, fine.” I groan as I lift Sephania and all her “sizable” weight off my leg so we can both stand. “I knew spending an evening alone with you was too good to be true. Seems we’re destined for a date with your mother.”
She smiles charmingly.
“Let’s go get the carriage and get to it, while the moon is still high,” I say. “Your slumber already wasted nearly four hours of night.”
Minutes later, I return to the study with a frown, running a hand through my auburn mane. “Got some bad news, love. The carriage is missing. Seems whatever frolicking adventure Garro and Vall went on, they needed the horse and buggy to do it.”
Seph throws up her arms. “Shit! After gathering Jinneth, we’ll never get to Nuhav before daybreak!”
I smile devilishly at her and tap the wall. “Nonsense, love. Do you forget what I can do?”
A circle of blotchy shadows coils in from our bodies, circling and cloying until the shadow portal is created on the wall. I draw a hand out, reaching for Sephania’s. “Come, love. Step into the darkness with me.”
Thirty minutes later, and after Sephania fights off the brooding headache that pulses behind her ears from the shadowwalking, we’re just about ready to do it all over again with Jinneth in tow.
I directed us to the Chained Sisters, though it was no easy task. I can already feel my power waning, and I know the next time I do this I’ll need rest afterward. Catapulting people dozens of miles across the earth in a matter of seconds is draining.
Luckily, my power is heightened based on my proximity to Sephania. With her so close, I have enough in me to get us to Nuhav and where she needs to go.
Jinneth fusses with a potato sack she’s filled with provisions for the journey.
The elder human yells from the hallways and rooms of her abode, “Hold on, hold on, handsome devil. Don’t rush me!
I need to make sure I have my apples. Seph, would you like one?
I’m bringing you one. You’re looking frail. ”
“Frail, Mother? Have you seen these curves? Save your apples for the stick girls here who actually need them!”
When Sephania joins me at the front door, I spot Keffa nervously fidgeting in front of her belly, watching Jinneth’s tizzy.
Sephania puts a reassuring hand on the Iron Sister’s arm. “Don’t worry, Keffa. We’ll have her back by daybreak. I promise. It’s just a short jump—”
“Oh, it’s not Jinneth I’m worried about. I was without her for twenty years; I can last a day without her. It’s you and Master Skartovius. I hope she doesn’t bring you two to murder with her fussiness!”
Sephania laughs and turns to me. Her eyes glint with joy, which makes me smile. I care nothing for Jinneth, and even Keffa I can do without, though I consider her an ally. I’m a vampire, after all. My feelings on anyone are minimal.
But Sephania? That smile brings out something in me I haven’t felt in eons. She is my weakness and strength. My flickering light that dares to pierce through the sturdy veil of my darkness.
As I begin to form another shadow portal on the wall of the Chained Sisters’ abode, drawing “oohs” and “ahhs” from the younger Sisters watching, I say, “I’m glad you came to me, Sephania. I assume it’s because of what’s been happening in Nuhav that you decided not to charge headlong by yourself.”
“Nonsense. I can make the trek by myself, and I have. It’s my mother and her, uh, advanced age, I worry about. Besides, what’s been happening in Nuhav?”
I turn to her, brow furrowing. “You haven’t heard?”
Worry forms on her features.
“It’s changed, love.”
“In a matter of days? I was just there recently!”
I sigh, turning from her to focus my powers on the wall. I’ll need a healthy dose of Loreblood after all this, and I can’t wait to taste her essence on my tongue.
I wouldn’t mind tasting her blood, either.
“The way I’ve heard it, the city is running amok with humans fighting each other, fomenting rebellion, battling the Bronzes. Rumor has it a new leader has emerged, invoking a name I haven’t heard in ages. He’s calling himself the Silverknight, and he sounds like a dangerous menace.”
Once I’ve ported us to Nuhav, I have to take a break. For nearly an hour, we wait in an alley as I gather my strength, seated on the ground with my head between my knees, struggling for breath.
Finally, Sephania says, “Mother, turn around. You won’t want to see this.”
Jinneth, standing at the mouth of the alley to make sure no one approaches us, looks over her shoulder. “What are—oh martyrs and Truehearts, girl, what are you doing?!”
I stare up at the sharp scent of blood, the aromatic smell inches from my face, and find Sephania leaning over me with her wrist sliced open.