Chapter 20 #2
The large front doors had clearly been removed, scrubbed, restored, and replaced. The large hinges shone in polished brass.
She could see chandeliers hanging in the rooms, illuminating painted wallpaper that had once been peeling or paint that had long since flaked away, now freshly redone or carefully, tastefully cleaned.
Nadi pressed herself against the cold stone of the perimeter wall, watching the celebration unfold through the newly repaired wrought-iron gates. Hundreds of lanterns had been strung between the posts that lined the main drive, their warm glow casting dancing shadows across the manicured lawns.
All of the trees were now clad once more in iron, their overgrowth harshly cut back. Lest the “Wild” attend the party, of course.
Music drifted through the night air—something classical and expensive, the kind of thing vampires played when they wanted to pretend they had culture. That they were more than just bloodsucking animals.
“The ultimate show of power,” Raziel murmured beside her, his crimson eyes reflecting the distant lights. “Mael and Lana are making a statement, now that they think we’re captured and likely dead.”
“Showing everyone that they’re able to drag everyone out here and waste a bunch of money restoring a dilapidated home?”
“No. Showing everyone that the golden age of the vampire has returned. That through them, our glorious might shall reign once more.” He adjusted the cuffs of his stolen guard’s uniform—one permanently liberated from an unfortunate patrol who had wandered too far from the main group.
The fit wasn’t perfect, but in the chaos of a large gathering, no one would look too closely.
At least that was the idea. “No one has lived here since Lilivra was in power. And this was her throne, for lack of a better word.”
“And we’re just going to walk in there.” For her, that was easy. Him? Less so.
“That’s the plan.” His smile was all teeth. “More or less.”
Nadi studied the security patterns, counting guards, noting positions.
The Nostrom estate was larger than she remembered, now that she could see it all lit up—a sprawling complex of interconnected buildings that had been built over centuries, each generation adding their own ostentatious touch.
The main house rose like a pale specter in the center of it all, its windows glowing with warmth that promised nothing but death within.
She counted at least thirty guards visible from their position, and she was certain there were three times that number inside. Vampires, each one strong enough to tear a human apart with their bare hands. Each one armed with weapons she was certain were designed specifically to kill fae.
They were outside the walls of the metropolis, after all.
“There.” She pointed toward the eastern wing. “One of Mael’s guards. And that asshole beside him—”
“Lana’s.” Raziel’s voice went flat. “They’re both here already. Good.”
The two most powerful vampires in the metropolis, surrounded by their allies and their armies, celebrating while the city they’d conquered burned and bled like a speck on the horizon.
And here they were—two assassins with a plan that was held together with little more than hope and spite.
“The security’s too tight,” she said, frowning. “Three layers at minimum. Guards at every entrance, patrols on the grounds, and probably twice as many inside. We’ll never make it past the door.”
“I’m aware.” Raziel checked his pocket watch. “Which is why we’re going to wait.”
“Wait for what?”
He smiled—that sharp, dangerous smile that meant he knew something she didn’t. “You’ll see.”
Sixty seconds later and she had her answer.
It came in the form of an explosion.
A thunderous boom that shook the ground beneath their feet and sent a column of fire and smoke climbing into the night sky.
It came from the other side of the estate. Nadi instinctively dropped into a crouch, one hand going to the blade at her hip, but Raziel didn’t move. He just stood there, watching the chaos unfold with something that looked almost like satisfaction.
Screams erupted from within the house. Guards who had been stationed at the gates abandoned their posts, sprinting toward the source of the explosion. More followed—a flood of armed vampires pouring out of the main house and racing toward the western perimeter.
“What the—” Nadi started.
A second explosion. Closer this time. Then a third, accompanied by the sharp crack of gunfire. She could hear shouts now—not vampire commands, but something else. Something that made her blood run cold and hot at the same time.
The old fae tongue. Battle cries she hadn’t heard since childhood.
“Our diversion has arrived,” Raziel said calmly. “I believe you know him. I’m just glad the little shit showed up on time.”
Kalo.
She should have known—should have guessed from the way Raziel had been so confident about tonight, so certain that they’d find an opening.
“You contacted him,” she breathed. “Without telling me?”
“I wasn’t certain he’d come. There was more to our deal.” Raziel’s tone was matter-of-fact, as if arranging a coordinated assault with a man who hated him was simply another item on his to-do list. “And I didn’t want to get your hopes up.” He smirked.
She couldn’t decide if she was furious or grateful. If they wound up surviving this, she was going to have words with them both. “Whatever. We can sort this out later.”
Raziel shrugged. “We have a common enemy now. Kalo may hate me, but he hates Mael and Lana more. The enemy of my enemy, and all that. Besides, I believe this makes us even for the fact that we handed him control of the fae on a silver platter.”
The gunfire was intensifying now, spreading across the grounds like wildfire. Nadi could hear shouts in the old fae tongue mixed with shouts from the vampiric guards, the sounds of a battle that had erupted without warning.
“Move.” Raziel grabbed her arm, pulling her toward the now-unguarded gate. “We have maybe ten minutes before someone realizes what’s happening and doubles security on the main house. Less if Mael is as paranoid as I think he is.”
They slipped through the gates and into the grounds, moving fast but not running—her in her assumed shape of a guard and him in his stolen uniform.
They were just two guards responding to an emergency, nothing to see.
The carefully re-tamed and iron-bound gardens blurred past as they cut across the lawn toward a service entrance on the eastern side of the main house.
The door was unlocked. Of course it was—in the chaos of the attack, someone had forgotten to secure it. Or perhaps Kalo’s forces had done more than just create noise. Perhaps there were already fae inside, working their own angles.
The thought should have comforted her. Instead, it made her nervous. Kalo was many things—brave, cunning, infuriating—but he was also unpredictable. Whatever game he was playing tonight, she couldn’t be certain it aligned with theirs.
“This way.” Raziel led her through a maze of service corridors, past kitchens still warm from the evening’s preparations, past storage rooms and staff quarters that were in far rougher shape than the rest of the building.
No one had bothered to fix up the spaces that the important people wouldn’t see.
He moved with the certainty of someone who had been here before many, many times.
“Where are we going?”
“The grand ballroom. That’s where Mael and Lana will be. Holding court. Playing their parts.” His voice dripped with contempt. “My brother does so love to be admired.”
They passed a cluster of servants huddled in a doorway, their faces pale with fear. None of them looked up—too focused on the distant sounds of battle to notice two guards moving through corridors where guards had no business being.