My stomach churned. I had a dream. Some of it I couldn’t make sense of, but there was one part that seemed more memory than dream. I needed to talk to Eve. Alone.
I pinched the bridge of my nose and looked up to see a ridiculous set of clothes. There was no way I was wearing any of it. I stomped across the room and wrenched open the door to find Asa standing on the other side.
“I was about to wake you for dinner. Eve said you’d likely be sleeping. She knows you very well, it seems.”
His gaze flicked to the left side of my head. I reached up to find my hair standing on end. Clearing my throat, I straightened my spine to at least look a little taller. Not that Asa didn’t tower over me anyway, but it made me feel better for a second.
I ignored his insinuation. “What’s for dinner?”
“Nothing, if you do not dress like a gentleman. I’ve provided you with proper clothing. Do not insult me in my own home by refusing to wear it.”
“I don’t even know how to wear it,” I answered sheepishly, hoping to smooth things over. Asa wasn’t Enoch. I had to remember that.
“You’ve figured out how to travel through the ages; surely, you can manage a pair of breeches and a shirt, waistcoat, and cravat.”
I think he underestimated my cravating ability, but who was I to argue with someone intent on eating me? Asa hated us. Though I didn’t know what his current game was, he was our opponent. Asa stared for a long moment before turning on his heel and walking away.
I closed the door and turned to face the ugly-ass clothing punctuated by the cravat. Why did such a long, thin piece of bland material scare me worse than Asa? I had no idea.
Muttering a string of curses just because I knew Asa would hear, I begrudgingly pulled on the shirt and breeches, securing them over my tech suit. No way would I take it off when Asa was around. And don’t even get me started on the mess that was Terah.
She could sashay around in fancy gowns all she wanted, but I knew what she was like in the shadows of the past. Her nature hadn’t changed, and I doubted she had the fortune of a willing group to feed her in this day. Eve and I would certainly find out tonight.
My stomach growled as I fastened the buttons of what I assumed was a waistcoat, otherwise known as a coarse, burnt-orange vest made of fabric too thick for summer, even at night.
I grabbed the cravat and started winding it around my neck. Asa’s looked neat and proper. Mine was a mess but it covered the high neck of my suit, so in the end, the cravat and I came to an understanding.
On the ground floor, past the empty sitting rooms, was a large room with a single table long enough to be ten tables. Terah, with her fancy curled hair and dress that matched my waistcoat, sat at one end while Asa occupied the other. Eve was at his right hand, and she didn’t look particularly happy. The pair of them matched as well. I puked a little in my mouth at the thought of the pairs of us matching like cute little couples. Things like this, these little pokes, made me want to stab Asa’s eyes out before I staked his heart.
The seat to the left of Asa was empty, so I made my way around the assembled vamps and humans and took that seat. Eve pinned me with a wide look.
“You look beautiful,” I told her. She wore a red dress and her hair was twisted into a sophisticated knot.
“Thanks,” she replied in a low tone.
Glancing down the table, I saw there was a pattern. Plates heaped with steaming food sat in front of the humans who wolfed it down, while the vamps only had cups in front of them. It didn’t take a genius to know what was in them.
Even if I didn’t know what they were, the scent of blood hung like a cloying fog in the air. Maybe Asa was manipulating the scent of the blood like he did the mists outside.
Asa sawed away at a piece of meat, pausing when finished to point the sharp blade at a pile of steaks, greens, and freshly sliced bread. Tantalizing steam wafted up from all of it. “Feel free to take what you’d like, Titus.”
I chose a piece of meat, piled the greens high, and grabbed a few wide slices of bread. I was hungry, but more than that, I didn’t know when my next meal might be. Traveling was hard on a body. I needed to fuel up and keep it that way.
“Darling, would you like another drink?” Asa offered graciously. I paused to see who he had spoken to. No one was behind him.
Finally, Eve turned to him. “That would be lovely, thank you.” She gave him a grin that was equal parts sugar and poison, but Asa rose from his chair, took her cup, and walked away without hesitation.
“What did I just see and hear?” I asked incredulously.
She swallowed. “Just my fiancé seeing to my thirst.”
My brows rose. Fiancé?
I couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. When Enoch got here, Asa was going to pay for the ruse he was playing. Enoch didn’t even like me joking around with Eve, but pretending she was going to marry him? Enoch might kill Asa and save Abram the trouble. Not that his vampish ass would be able to do the job.
Or would he? Maybe being turned made him strong enough to fight them…
Asa sat Eve’s cup down in front of her and scooted his seat forward as he sat back down.
She took a dainty sip from her cup and then Eve’s caramel eyes narrowed at him. “This isn’t water.”
“Neither is it blood.”
“I don’t drink alcohol.”
“It’s wine, and watered-down, at that. A single glass won’t hurt you,” he promised.
She pushed the cup away from her. “I won’t drink it.”
“Suit yourself,” he replied with a shrug, taking a long gulp from his own glass.
Were Nephilim affected by alcohol? Or was he drinking blood? And where had they gotten so much of it?
A loud thump and screech came from under the floor. The humans still chatted, oblivious to the noise, while those with advanced hearing – myself and Eve, as well as the vampires – listened intently. Another bump came, followed by a bang.
“Vermin issues, Asa?” Eve asked conversationally.
“Exactly that. But don’t fret, love. I will keep you safe from the things that go bump in the night.”
“Have you received word from Enoch, Asa?” a vampire halfway down the table asked. He was older, but his eyes were sharp as he swirled the blood in his cup, waiting for a reply.
“I expect he should arrive within the next few days. I will tell him of your concern for his wellbeing, John,” Asa replied, promptly ending the conversation. An awkward silence stretched over the room, but as it evaporated, chatter began again.
I mouthed the words A few days to Eve, who nodded.
“Have the two of you settled on a wedding date?” Terah asked loudly from across the room. Everyone went silent again as they waited for Asa to answer.
“Indeed,” he replied, grabbing Eve’s hand. She tried to pull away, but he held tight. “We no longer want to wait. In times like these, it’s better to move forward with life instead of continually delaying it. After all, we’ve declared our independence from England. It’s time to begin anew. Don’t you agree, Eve?”
Eve’s face turned red. “Yes,” she finally gritted out.
She looked to me for help, but I didn’t know how to help her out of this sticky situation. I thought landing in a pile of rotting, plague-ridden bodies was bad, but landing between two feuding Nephilim brothers might be even worse.