I got some juice and went back to my suite to pick out something to wear. I liked Devin and Grace—they were nice and heaven knew I'd not had any female friends the entire time I'd been vampire. Radomir offered to take me to Flavio—although I could have misted there since I knew where I was. Grace explained that Adam, Merrill and Wlodek had purchased miles of land in all directions surrounding Merrill's old home, and kept it in a garden state while the lands past that had gone commercial or were covered in sprawling parts of a now-extended London and its suburbs.
The pants and silk blouse I picked out reminded me of what a 1930s film star might wear. The neck was high with buttons at the side and long, full sleeves cuffed with matching buttons. The blouse itself was in a chocolate brown, the linen-look trousers in a natural oatmeal. Low, dark-brown heels finished everything off except for the earrings. Those were diamond drops. Charles had selected those—at least he remembered what I'd liked. I was beginning to get shaky, too. I didn't think anybody was going to remember me and that made me want to cry again. I was surprised I had any fluid left in my body nowadays.
* * *
"A brief hit, days ago. That's all," Kiarra handed a cup of tea to Dragon. Dragon murmured his thanks and sipped the tea. "Pheligar says none of our shields were detected or compromised, and the Ra'Ak didn't stay long. Probably realized he'd made a mistake coming here and got away as quickly as possible."
"As long as they left no spawn behind," Dragon grumbled.
"I've checked—there's nothing," Kiarra nodded. "But I'll let you know if we detect another hit. I just want to make sure this isn't a reconnaissance mission. They'll be breaking the rules if that's the case, and I'll get Merrill and Adam to help me take care of it."
"Let me know if you want our help," Dragon rose from his seat inside Kiarra's library. "Grace, Devin and I will be happy to assist."
"I will. Take the cup with you—Devin will send it back," Kiarra smiled. Dragon nodded and folded away.
* * *
"I do not understand why we were ordered to come," Gavin muttered, climbing the steps to the Honored One's manor.
"We'll find out, I'm sure," Tony said, attempting to soothe his surrogate sire. Spring had arrived in Kent, and the night sky was unusually clear, with stars twinkling overhead. Gavin followed Tony's gaze and looked up at the stars as well. He blew out a sigh and moved to follow Anthony through the door. Rolfe was there, as always, holding the door to allow both Assassins inside.
"Flavio, Merrill and Wlodek are upstairs waiting for you," Rolfe rumbled.
"What do they want?" Tony sighed.
"Anthony, we will learn this soon enough." Gavin jerked his head toward the stairs leading to the second floor and Flavio's study.
* * *
This wasn't a good idea. I was shaking and felt ill. For the thousandth time I wished I hadn't agreed to allow Radomir and Charles to haul me to Flavio. I wasn't prepared for blank stares and ridicule—from any of them.
"Ready?" Charles and Radomir appeared at the same moment. They'd both dressed well for this, just as they'd done in the past. I suppose Flavio commanded the same sort of respect Wlodek always did. Charles was offering an encouraging smile, but I was too terrified to answer with one of my own.
"Lissa, things will surely work out," Radomir did his best to soothe my nerves; he hadn't failed to notice my shaking hands or unsteady breaths. I watched his hands—they were steady and he wore two rings—one on each ring finger, for each of his wives. He had someone to lean on—two someones, actually. After three hundred years, even if Gavin remembered me, our marriage, as declared by Wlodek, had been over for two centuries. This was a fiasco, no matter how you looked at it. And my rings—the ones Gavin had given me—were missing when I'd come to myself on Kifirin's planet. I had no idea what happened to them. It no longer mattered, more than likely.
* * *
"Charles and Radomir will arrive soon," Flavio offered seats to Tony and Gavin. "I have wine, if you wish it," he added. Merrill and Wlodek were already seated—Flavio had brought in extra seating after Wlodek informed him there would be more coming. Tony accepted a glass of wine; Gavin declined.
"I am also curious as to why we were asked to meet," Flavio nodded as Tony accepted the glass poured out for him. "My sire says it is important—to us and to the race."
"More important than you know," Merrill said softly.
* * *We didn't bother with the front door—Radomir folded us straight to Wlodek's old study. Only now, it belonged to Flavio. Wlodek's Monet was missing from the wall, as was the portrait of Napoleon I'd given him. Distractedly, I found myself hoping the painting hadn't disappeared, as the memories of me had. Charles placed a hand on my nape as I studied the wide shoulders and dark hair of one of the four sitting before me; Radomir had dropped us behind a row of seats. Gavin's scent hadn't changed, either—it still exerted a power I couldn't name, and I wanted to weep over what I'd lost. He'd turned slightly when we appeared, didn't recognize my scent and kept his gaze focused on Flavio, who sat behind a desk, staring at me in shock.
Still the most beautiful man I'd ever seen walking the Earth, Flavio's nose still worked as well—he knew I was vampire. "Father," he muttered, turning his eyes toward Wlodek, "why have I not been informed of this one?"
"Lissa, come and sit." Merrill rose from his chair and swept his hand toward the three remaining chairs—the ones in the center—right before Flavio's desk. He knew from my silence just how angry I was with him.
"Lissa," Charles took my hand and led me to the center seat. I was numb and Tony watched me with curiosity as Charles and Radomir got me seated and comfortable before taking seats on either side of me. There wasn't a glimmer of recognition from Flavio, Tony or Gavin. Gavin took it a step farther, though, choosing to ignore me while Flavio speculated and Tony stared in wonder.
"My sire informs me that you were here, long ago," Flavio began, his dark eyes searching my face for acknowledgement. I reminded myself that one of my newly discovered nieces was married to him—along with several other husbands, including Dalroy.
"I was." My voice quavered and I cleared my throat. I wanted to weep, but I wasn't about to do it in front of Gavin. I'd seen the severe frown on his face—he had no desire to be where he was. Forcing my thoughts away from what the old Gavin might have done upon seeing me after centuries of absence, I turned my gaze to Tony.
He was more than curious, his clear, gray eyes traveling over me from tip to toe. My clothes were fine; I'd spent more than enough money on my wardrobe, but I was still too thin. I felt unattractive under his scrutiny.
"Anthony, it is impolite to stare," Gavin growled softly. Tony turned away.
"My sire also tells me you are a powerful Queen." There was a vague question in Flavio's words, but he didn't insult his vampire sire by expressing blatant disbelief. Wlodek was feeding mindspeech to Flavio, and Flavio was struggling to keep the shock from his voice.
"My sire says," Flavio hesitated, "you were once married to Gavin."
Those words infuriated me. He might have saved me much embarrassment if he'd kept that to himself. It was more than obvious that Gavin didn't remember me. Tony, too. I wanted no more pain at the hands of these, or their charity, either. Gavin's dark eyes were hard as they bored into mine, and there was nothing but contempt there. He didn't want me. Someone, somewhere, had made sure of that. If their ultimate goal had been to break my heart, well, they'd done a fine job of it.
"I can't kill Xenides again, just to prove what I am," I hissed at Flavio. "Fuck you. Fuck all of you." I turned to mist and got the hell away.
* * *
"Honored One, I have never been married," Gavin rose from his seat. "With your permission," Gavin nodded respectfully to Flavio and strode angrily from the study.
"I'll get you home," Radomir motioned for Tony to sit down again—he was prepared to follow his surrogate sire.
"Child, she has always been thus; disregard it," Wlodek calmed Flavio. "She is a Queen, and at times, her tone and her profanity are warranted."
Chapter 8
The night was calm and beautiful, until I interrupted it with a sob. The roof of the villa was my perch as I wiped my cheeks and struggled to get the vision of Gavin's contempt out of my mind. Did I love him? I did. I'd loved him from the moment he'd put his hands on my neck, eons ago, outside a mansion in Oklahoma City. That Gavin had touched me with gentleness, massaging my neck to ease the tension away. I was preparing for another night of hunting Winkler's kidnappers, and I'd been a failure at it up to that point. I would never forget the feeling of weakness that came over me at Gavin's touch. I'd wanted to melt against him and weep my heart out. I hadn't.
Winkler was gone, now, and that made me wipe more tears away. Gavin was just as gone, though he still lived. Why had I been brought back? Why? My last memory before my death was of the late afternoon sky over Veshtul as my mist floated away. Darkness had come quickly afterward.
"Baby, we just got a message from Turtle." Drew appeared on one side, Drake on the other, and both settled in comfortably beside me.
"Who's Turtle?" I wiped my cheeks, hoping the twins wouldn't comment on the tearstains.
"A Falchani Spawn Hunter, like us," Drake wiped away a tear with a thumb, his touch gentle against my cheek. "He still owns a bar on Falchan, in the border town between the Falchani lands and Reldis."
"Turtle's son runs the bar, but since it's on the border, ruffians come in all the time and they always pick a fight," Drew sounded almost happy about that.
"So, quelling a fight is always good therapy if you're upset about something," Drake picked up the story. "Come on, itty bitty pants; let's go crack a few Reldan heads. Don't kill anybody, we're not allowed," he added, grinning.