“Promise. I have many other brothers who could use a sassy vixen to knock them down a peg or two.” His throaty laughter tickled my neck.
Asrian, Lilith, Sinjinn, and Icelyn all laughed and pointed out things to the babies they carried. People moved by them, and yet, they remained bunched together with the unmated brothers encircling them like a shield. Though, they weren’t a very great shield considering Liam, Cailean, and Lachlan were all flirting with women who had been drawn to the bait they stood beside.
“I do believe your brothers are using the babes to draw in the ladies,” I pointed out, which caused Ryder to snicker again. “Rather scandalous and underhanded of them to use the babes as honey to catch the bee they want. Don’t you agree?”
“I think it’s brilliant. They’re reaping the rewards without having to change diapers or miss out on sleep.” I snorted and shook my head at him.
Lucian, Lena, and his men were helping pass out refreshments, while some new men he’d brought with him faced off against children, who appeared to have the upper hand in the situation. A tiny girl with her hands planted on her hips was currently giving one of the larger men a piece of her mind. Lena watched with amusement, covering a laugh behind her palm when he looked to her for help.
Aodhan, Adam, Liam, and Adrian looked to be in a heated discussion about something, but I didn’t think it would end up in a brawl. At least, I hoped it wouldn’t. Adam’s eyes met mine through the crowd, and he held up his drink. A second later, Adrian did the same. I lifted mine in return before I spotted Vlad sauntering over, a smile transforming his features.
“I hear our pretty queen has blessed us with a beautiful babe?” He placed a kiss on each cheek, smiling before he pretended he hadn’t noticed Ryder standing behind me. “I guess you assisted her a bit?” he teased. “Congratulations, both of you.”
“It’s been too long, cousin,” Ryder announced, moving out from behind me to clasp forearms with Vlad, which was a sign of respect I’d learned. “Your absence has been noted, and you’ve been missed around here.” Ryder stepped back, replacing his warm arms around me before tugging me into the heat of his body.
“I’ve been unable to get away lately. The stragglers from Lucifer’s attempt to bring down Lucian are relentless, to say the least. We’re dealing with them as they come, and life is slowly returning to normal for the humans. I have had a few other things popping up that are bothersome, but nothing I cannot handle,” he reported with a tone that caught me off guard.
Vlad wasn’t one to hide things from Ryder, but he’d very obviously just glossed over something. He watched a few women moving down the path who’d turned to take him in with come-hither looks. He didn’t return even a drop of their interest.
“You’re not just going to leave me wondering, are you?” Ryder asked pointedly, reminding me how perceptive he was over issues his family tended to conceal, assuming he wouldn’t notice.
“She’s my problem, I’m afraid.”
“She?” I probed with a sharp look.
“Yeah, she’s from a time I’d rather not talk about, but she seems hell-bent on pushing me down memory lane with her. She’s stubborn, obnoxious, ungrateful, and also the most beautiful creature I’ve ever encountered in my very long lifetime. I also can’t decide what I wish to do to her more—fuck her or murder her. Since she’s immortal thanks to my intervention, I’ve already accomplished the latter, and the former doesn’t seem welcome.” I hadn’t expected that level of harshness from the normally cool and collected bartender.
“That explains it then,” Ryder stated, which caused Vlad to fully turn back toward us, scowling. “You pissed her off, and she’s here for your head?”
“I did nothing wrong. Although, if you were to ask her, I am the devil of her tale,” he explained with a pained look straining his sharply chiseled features. “I happened upon her and her sister in the year 1489. Her sister, a mere child, was already dead when I arrived. She’d been abused and left clinging to life when the Romanian soldiers set the house ablaze. I asked her if she wanted to live. She said she did, so I saved her.”
“And she’s mad about it?” I pried.
“Mad is a quaint word to describe it. She’s filled with hatred and vitriol because I didn’t save them both. If I had a chance, I would have done so, which I’ve told her numerous times. Unfortunately, she doesn’t recall anything other than my face. When she woke from the change, she cursed me. I had no idea she was a gypsy or that it was against her religion to escape what the gods planned for her.”
“That’s unfortunate, but you’re not the one who killed her sister. Why would she hold you responsible for being unable to bring the child back?” Ryder’s arms tightened noticeably.
“Because I am her devil,” Vlad said, before he wiped his eyebrow with the heel of his hand. “After she woke from the change, I tried to explain how fragile she would be and how dependent on me she would be until she found her footing in her new life. She spat on me and told me she hoped my dick fell off, so I left. It wasn’t my most redeeming moment, but I was young myself. I have seen her throughout time and have watched her flourish. Regretfully, she flourished in a wide array of weapons, which she used to hunt vampires.”
My mouth dropped open, and my eyes rounded. “Is she trying to murder you?”
“Not yet, but she will soon. She is seeking different answers to questions she already has the truth to. I cannot give her what she seeks.”
“And what is that?” Ryder asked carefully.
He scoffed before saying, “She wants to go back in time and save her sister. To her and her culture, family is everything. Had I known how deeply this would affect her, I never would have offered her life. But the past cannot be undone, and I cannot give her what she desires. It isn’t possible.”
“Have you told her that?” I asked softly.
“Several times, but she’s stubbornly clinging to the ideology that I can undo her immortality. Vampires cannot commit suicide, nor assist another of our likeness with ending their life. It removes the eternal life source of both, and we meet our fate and eternal damnation with our maker. I fear she wishes for me to end her life, and I will not kill something so ethereal and beguiling. Her soul is pure, and while darkened from bloodlust, and what she sees as blasphemy against her religion, she brightens an otherwise dreary world with her presence. This world wouldn’t be better off without her.”
“Have you tried telling her the last part? Or do you just tell her you won’t assist in her death?” I countered. He looked at me and then shook his head slowly.
“I don’t think it would make a difference.” He shook off the sadness weighing on him heavily, and turned to smile as Blane and Ciara moved in, handing off Phoenix to him.
He held her briefly before he kissed the crown of her head and handed her back to Ciara.
I swallowed the urge to hug him because Vlad wasn’t a touchy-feely person. He scanned the crowd before he promised to return and vanished so swiftly that my tresses fluttered into the air. Ryder chuckled, but we started forward without another word.