Sina, ancient of the Pacific Sea, looked hardly older than Tenzin. Her deep brown skin was free of any tattoos, but her eyes were highlighted by intricate white and yellow face paint. Her hair was a tightly curled light blond, twisted into thin locs that coiled on top of her head like a crown. Sina wore a dress of deep red and a massive necklace made of gold and colorful shells.
Power radiated off the small vampire, and she made no attempt to hide it. As she walked down the center of the hall, Ben could see her effect on the immortals nearest her amnis. There was more than one quiet gasp, and whispers buzzed around the room.
Ben glanced at Tenzin, who was watching Sina with wide eyes.
“What is it?”
Tenzin couldn’t seem to take her eyes off the woman. “I want to know her.”
“Why? Even from here, I feel like she could suck us dry and leave us a husk of our former selves.”
“I know.” Tenzin’s eyes were bright. “Don’t you want to know her?”
He shook his head. “You’re a very strange woman.”
Mahina and Sina reached the front of the hall, and every elder on the dais rose and—as if via a secret signal—bowed at a precise forty-five-degree angle. The bows were returned by Mahina, Sina, and their entourage.
Elder Han was the one who spoke to the assembly. “Most honored Sina of the south, mother of oceans and Rumak of the Fire Islands,” he said. “And my dear and honored mate, Mahina, daughter of the dragon king and holder of the Heilala Throne, you and your company are most welcome in the court of Penglai. It has been too long since your people have favored us with a visit such as this.”
Sina nodded but didn’t say anything. Mahina motioned to the humans with them, who placed elaborately decorated weapons, large rolls of red and orange cloth, and mounds of flowers at the base of the dais.
“Elder Han,” Mahina said. “My sire and I are most grateful for the welcome of the Elders of Penglai, and we request a private audience with you and Elder Lu Dongbin when it is favorable to you.”
Though there had been a temporary seal put in place, there was no doubt in Ben’s mind they wanted to know what had happened to Mahina’s Eye.
“We may be getting a call,” he whispered to Tenzin.
“I expect so.” She kept her eyes on the dais, where Elder Han was responding to his mate.
“Of course.” He stepped off the dais. “Your journey has been long.” Elder Han was clearly ready to have his mate to himself. “Allow us to see to your comfort here in the palace.”
The vampires from the south departed with their entourage, and the formal gathering in the great hall started to break apart. Ben’s thoughts were bouncing around as vampires and humans milled about.
What would Sina say about the disappearance of the Pearl Seal?
What would they say to Sina?
Would Elder Han and Mahina be able to announce her move during the visit as they had intended?
Ben and Tenzin still had no idea where the seal might have gone, and he could hardly justify his wild hair about grain supplies on the island being pertinent to the investigation they had been tasked to head.
Did Tenzin really want to get to know the tiny, frightening water vampire who was even older than she was?
But really, why the hell had Myung ordered extra grain from the mainland, and could it have anything to do with the theft of the seal?
“It’s a delicate balance.”
He turned and saw Tenzin watching him. “What?”
“All this. The system you were talking about. The humans on the island. The monastery. The vampire courts. The rituals. The presentation of gifts and the delicate scales of favors, alliances, and territory.” She stepped closer and switched to Spanish again. “I knew our world before this, Benjamin, when negotiation was done at the edge of a blade.” She looked around. “All this—the court, the island, the priests, the people who make all of it happen? I may chafe at the formality, but those careful systems have maintained peace for thousands of years. It’s diplomacy instead of conquest.”
“I’m not denying that,” Ben said. “But does that mean it’s as good as it can be? That it can’t get better?” He looked around. “Not just for the vampires. For everyone?”
She stared at him, and her eyes didn’t waver. “If you want to make something new, my Benjamin, be aware of what you unmake in the process.”
Chapter Fifteen
As Tenzin had expected, they were called to Elder Han’s compound less than an hour after Sina and Mahina had arrived. When they walked into the entry hallway, Jae met them with a nervous expression on his face.
“Sina is very unhappy.” He was all but wringing his hands. “Mahina’s Eye was rare and huge. She dove for the pearl herself, and seeing it gone…”
“Calm yourself,” Tenzin said with authority. “We’re going to find it, but careful investigation takes time. I’ll make sure she understands.”
Tenzin was trying hard not to let her excitement at meeting Sina show in her expression. Though she could feel Ben’s skepticism through their mating bond, she felt nothing but anticipation at meeting the mysterious ancient that so few had ever seen.
Jae led them into a meeting room that had been decorated with lush tropical plantings. The room was heated nearly to uncomfortable levels, and the windows were dripping with condensation from the cold air outside.
Inside the reception room, the air smelled of earth, lush greenery, and tropical blooms. Heat emanated from the floor, and the humidity in the room dampened her amnis.
Clever, clever Sina.
Her eyes met the ancient’s and locked. Sina watched Tenzin with as much interest as Tenzin watched Sina.
“Daughter of Zhang.” Sina didn’t wait for their introduction. “Long have I heard stories of your prowess in battle. Better still for us to meet here in peace.”
“Sina of the Fire Islands.” Tenzin bowed deeply. “It is my honor to meet one of such renown.”
“I try to keep my renown in check.” Her dark eyes were amused. “I have found the less the world knows of me, the better it is for my survival.”
Was it Tenzin’s imagination, or was the water in the air reaching for her exposed skin? She felt it in the space around her, trying to dampen her elemental power. In reaction, the air in the room hugged her and Ben, unsure of this foreign presence, clinging to them as they waited for Sina’s water to settle down.
The silent elemental battle made the leaves of the tropical greenery around them rustle as the air and the water bounced and deflected in the room. The dripping on the windows was audible as water dropped and pooled on the wooden floor, misted again from the heat, and dissolved into the room.
“Mother.” Mahina’s voice cut through the tension. “Enough. Elder Zhang’s children are here to help find the pearl.”
“Ah.” Sina’s eyes never wavered from Tenzin. “Is that so?”
“Yes.” Tenzin’s amnis reached out for Benjamin, and when it touched his power, she felt her amnis grow stronger, more confident, and press against the water with more vigor. “We have experience in finding objects that have been lost or stolen.”