“That’s the one. See you soon? We have some catching up to do.”
Remembering that I wasn’t speaking into Beast, I exited the call screen and tapped out a quick message:
The office is soundproof <3
None of the vampires here will hurt you. I swear it.
They’re the good ones <3 <3
There was a chime on her end. Then silence.
“I’ll see you in a bit,” she mumbled.
That’s my girl.
“Will do. And text your dad to tell him you’re okay.”
The line disconnected and I tossed the phone on the chaise next to me. Shoot.
I had a whole heap of decisions to make. Fast. There were fifty emails in the Ingenium inbox to catch up on. A team to introduce myself to. Modifications to the strategy to brainstorm and implement. And the legal face of the estate to manage on top of that.
My mind whirled… though not with dread. The challenge excited me. Not because of the game. For what I could get back by playing it. My dignity, for starters. And if one of the clans did kill my grandmother, then her plea for me to move on without seeking revenge would be ignored. I wasn’t as classy as Agatha Le Spyre and perfectly fine undertaking a trashy vendetta.
Did a part of me mourn the entire situation?
Absolutely.
My grandmother’s part in it. The strain that nearly three decades of this must have placed on her life. Yes, I’d left this estate because of rich games, and now was actively choosing to play a far worse game. That did feel like a sacrifice to who I’d been.
But it felt right. Good.
Tommy slid in, slamming the door shut behind her.
I crossed and pushed the button at the back of the third shelf. Each time the door was opened, the noise-proof seal broke.
My ears popped. “Alright. No one can hear us. Go wild.”
Her eyes flared as she sucked in a massive breath, shaking her hands. “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. That was the scariest fucking thing I’ve done in my life.”
She paced the room, shuddering at intervals.
Stepping around her, I grabbed a second wine glass and returned to the chaise.
“Fill it right up,” Tommy said. “If there’s not visible surface tension, it’s not enough.”
Okay then.
I emptied the rest of the Carignan into her glass. She bent down by the table and sucked the first sip without lifting it.
“How are you travelling, Tom?” I asked quietly.
She picked up the glass. “I feel like those people who are paranoid about every single person killing them. Except now I know they’re right.”
My stomach panged. “The only way you come to harm—unless it’s through sheer bad luck—is if your connection to me is discovered. There are bad guys from—” I gurgled and felt Kyros’s focus in response. Shit.
I tried a new approach. “Bad guys who are after me. Or if the… things… figure out you know about them.” Ugh, that didn’t make sense. Stupid blood compulsion.
She licked her lips. “What do you mean by the bad guys part?”
I sighed, guilt coating my insides. “I’m being hunted by triplets.” Woohoo. Apparently I could say that.
“That’s why the seven women are here,” I added. “For protection.”
“Triplets sound hot.”
I thought of them and shivered. “Believe me, kissing them would be the last thing on your mind. They’re fucking psychotic.”
She took a sip that was far more like a gulp. “Who sent the seven women?”
“Kyros.” I still had no trouble saying his name. Made sense that his ego wouldn’t allow it.
Her face dropped into a dark scowl. “I hate that d-bag.”
My heart twisted. “Join the club.”
Tommy’s phone chimed and she drew it out, breaking into a smile.
“Anyone I know?” I asked, trying to steal a peek.
She shrugged a shoulder, typing out a reply. “Theodore. He’s worried about me. We usually see each other every other day.”
Hold the front door.
“Theodore, the same Theodore as before I started work for Live Right?”
Tommy smiled again. “Yeah. We’re dating now. He ended things after we first started seeing each other but turned out he just had some shit to deal with. We reunited the week after in a big way. If you know what I mean.”
“Oh.” My shoulders drooped. “That’s awesome.”
“Awesome is generally said sincerely.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I feel like I missed out on a huge milestone.”
“FOMO is a disease, bitch. If it makes you feel better, he was my Basi rebound at first, but things haven’t become boring or angry. I really like him.”
My friend had some commitment issues and dating someone wouldn’t have been an easy jump to take whatsoever.
I gripped her knee. “You sound happy, so I’m happy. Your first boyfriend, Tom. Cheers to that!”
We clinked glasses, guzzling the blessed nectar of our sacrificial grapes.
“What about you then? With Kyros.” Her face screwed up.
I copied her expression. “It’s complicated.”
Tommy’s eyes widened. “Holy shit, really? Then stop right there. You should just change your status and not actually talk about it.”
“Your sarcasm is appreciated, friend.” I saluted her with my wine glass. “You know about my mind, uhm, chains?”
Ha! I could say mind chains.
“The blood exchanges. You’ve had three. He can feel where you are, and you can sense each other’s emotions. That must be torture. As if being held captive in his tower wasn’t enough. He got inside you.”
Well… nearly.
I pursed my lips. “Yeah, it’s weird. Foreign and invasive. I mean, I’ve lost privacy to my own feelings forever.” I frowned as the words left my mouth. “That’s really shitty.”
Tommy set her half-emptied glass down. “What’s he feeling right now?”
I frowned, concentrating. “He’s relaxed, contemplative. He woke an hour ago.”
Her eyes rounded. “Far out, girl. That is cray. Bulk cray. How is that possible?”
I borrowed Angelica’s explanation. “A mouse looking at us would think we possessed magic.”
“A mouse?” she said doubtfully.
I nodded sagely. “A mouse.”
“You so didn’t think of that yourself.”
Laughter bubbled from my lips. “Tom, I am so glad you’re here.”
She sobered. “How do we free you from this blood thing then? Surround you with candles in the sewers or some shit? The personal GPS signal he has on you has to go. After that, we can get the fuck out of Bluff City. Except there are more of them—everywhere. Crap. Hey, can you afford an island?”
I closed my eyes. “We don’t do anything.”
She laughed. “You’re not serious. Wait, you don’t want the blood thing with him?”
“No,” I spat. The utter rage I’d felt upon reading my real name on the blood donor bag struck me with full force. “He fucking lied to me.”
Tommy stilled, lowering her voice. “I’d say that’s about the least worrying thing he’s done, really.”