Bloodcraft (41 page)

In truth, she missed the stupid cat.

A hot tear trekked a pathway down her cheek as she sat in the foyer waiting for Angie to finish packing, and she swiped it away. She missed his stupid cat giggles and his infuriated expressions when she did something idiotic. He wasn’t the only loved one she’d lost. Victoria mourned the deaths of Aliya and a handful of witches she’d met. Aliya had been replaced by one of the priestesses she’d been training, a woman named Arielle. She’d be a worthy successor. One of her first acts as high priestess of the coven had been a proposal to strike the law forbidding relations between the witches and the vampires. As far as Victoria knew, both parties were seriously considering it.

Not that it made one hoot of difference for her and Christian. They would do whatever suited them. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized that it was the judgment of others that pushed people to unforgiveable extremes. Whether an elephant loved an ant should be of no concern to anyone but to the two of them. Leto had been cursed through several lifetimes because the Goddess Mother had deemed his love for one of her priestesses an abomination. But Thaia had loved Leto, too, and she had died defending the product of their love.

The truth was: love was
pure
, no matter its form and no matter its participants.

Victoria even mourned Lucian’s passing, though that was more for Christian than for herself. Despite all of his brother’s treachery, he’d been desolate at the loss of his twin. The vampires had suffered more than their share of fatalities. Victoria hadn’t seen it, but Christian had told her that David, one of the Elders, had been killed by two of his own progeny. David had been part Reii, but neither his age nor strength had been enough to save him when they tore his heart out. Christian hadn’t taken the news well—it was far too close to the death of his own mentor, Enhard.

“Hey,” Angie said, interrupting her thoughts. “I’m ready.”

Victoria looked up to where Angie was standing with her backpack. She’d spent the last few days of her break with Freyja, who, as it turned out, was her aunt. The leader of the warlocks was Angie’s birth mother’s sister. Angie had explained that Gabriel had kept them away because he didn’t want them to affect his hold over her gift. She had also explained that warlocks weren’t evil—they’d just gotten a bad reputation over the years because of a few rogue warlocks who had abused their powers.

Supposedly, they were descendants from the great Norse Vardlokkur. Christian had explained that they took oaths to safeguard the magic of this world against evil spirits and demons from other realms. Despite knowing that Freyja had fully intended to banish her, Victoria liked the warlock, and she especially loved how protective she’d been about Angie.

“I don’t know about you,” Freyja had told her. “Your magic is too capricious, too volatile, but we vow to watch and protect you. There will always be those who covet your power, and if it falls into the wrong hands, we invite destruction upon ourselves. We will not allow that to happen.”

“Nor will I.”

She’d meant it. The Cruentus Curse was a part of her for better or for worse and it was time she started accepting that. It was akin to the old adage of a glass being half full or half empty. It was time to start seeing her curse as a gift, one that she could use to safeguard others … not just witches, but
anyone
who needed protection.

“I wish you didn’t have to go,” she said to Angie.

“Me too, but classes start tomorrow. I’ll see you soon, though. Aunt Free wants me to visit next month.”

Victoria hugged her friend. “I’m glad you came. Pretty sure the world would have gone to hell in a hand basket if it weren’t for you. And I would have been the one to deliver it there.”

“I think the deliverer was your friend, Pan.”

“He wasn’t all bad. Leto coerced him.”

“What’s going to happen to him?”

Victoria shrugged. “They’re going to try to help him with his Janusite disorder and maybe erase his memories. He remembers everything he’s done and he’s in bad shape about it. He refuses to see anyone, even me.”

“I’m not surprised. Knowing you were the tipping point to making us all extinct has to be a heavy load. Will he be okay, you think?”

“Maybe. There are some powerful memory spells. I’m going to go over there tomorrow to see how I can help.”

“And the headmistress? Starke or whatever her name was.”

“Stripped and exiled.” Victoria shook her head. “I never even saw that coming. She was supposed to be there to teach young witches, and all she craved was the Cruentus Curse and its power.”

“Demons come in all shapes and sizes.”

“Tell me about it.”

Angie eyed her, the somber look on her face replaced with a mischievous grin. “Speaking of, how are you feeling? Any murderous inclinations? Blood magic behaving today?”

“It’s under control,” Victoria said, swatting at her.

“That’s good to know,” Angie said, her grin widening. “And not just because you have a super hot boyfriend, who, by the way, is now powerful enough to handle you, being Reii royalty and all. Maybe you can, you know, continue where you left off last time now that you have your house to yourselves.”

Victoria felt the blush consume her from tip to toe at her suggestive tone. “
Angie
!”

“What? I’m just saying. Nothing wrong with taking advantage of a windfall, right? Carpe diem, as they say.”

“He’s not ready,” Victoria confided as they walked out to the car where Christian was waiting. “I don’t know that either of us wants to go there so soon after … everything.”

“Understandable.”

Christian’s slate gray eyes met hers in the driveway, and Victoria’s knees almost buckled at the look in them. Stupid vampire hearing. He’d likely heard every word of that last part of the conversation. She fought a second flush and hopped into the passenger seat. Christian loaded Angie’s bag into the car and they got in.

“Thanks for driving me to the airport,” Angie said. “I could have taken the metro.” Victoria rolled her eyes. She could have easily teleported Angie, and Christian could have
flown
her back to the States in a vampire minute, but Angie had insisted on normal human travel. Victoria guessed it had something to do with decompressing after the events of the last few days. She didn’t blame her one bit.

The ride to
Charles de Gaulle
airport was quick. Too quick. And soon, they were exchanging tearful goodbyes at the curb. “I’ll pop in to visit,” Victoria promised. “We’ll be back stateside soon.”

“You better.”

She watched as Christian hugged Angie and handed her a blue box. “What’s this?” Angie asked, opening it. Nestled on a bed of velvet was a gorgeous ring. It was old, inlaid with sapphires and a delicately carved crest.

“It was Lena’s,” he told her. “She asked me to get it before she died. She wanted you to have it. It was her mother’s.”

“
Me
? Why?”

Christian smiled. “I think she saw something of herself in you—the Lena she used to be. I agree,” he added. “You have the same force of will and the same strength of spirit.”

Angie blushed and stared at the ring. “This looks priceless.”

“It is. The Kurzberg Dynasty fell during the war. This is one of the few remnants of their House.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “In the old days, the gift of a family heirloom was a great honor. She told me that you made her remember who she really was—the girl before the vampire.”

“She saved my life.”

“I think in the end you saved hers.”

Angie’s voice shook as she answered. “Thank you.” She tucked the box into her backpack and hugged Victoria hard before walking toward the sliding doors, her face rigid as if she was determined not to cry. “See you around. Love you guys.”

Victoria stood staring at the spot where Angie had disappeared for a long while until Christian placed his hand on her shoulder. She turned to stare at him, surprised to see him standing there with the morning sunlight glimmering off his hair. The immunity to sunlight was yet another of his Reii gifts, he’d explained. Normally, he’d be sticking to the shade or sitting in the comfortably dark interior of the car, and Victoria still hadn’t gotten used to seeing him moving around in the daylight. She slid closer to him and told him so.

“Me too. I feel like I should be running for cover. But the sun feels nice. Warm.”

They climbed back into the car. “Did you talk with Sezja?”

“Yes. She was sorry she did not get to speak with you more, but she wanted me to tell you that she approves.”

Victoria laughed. “Good to know. I wouldn’t want to piss off the only prospective mother-in-law I have.”

Christian quirked an eyebrow, shooting her a sidelong glance. “Mother-in-law? Do I take that to mean getting married is an option?”

“Do vampires even get married?”

“On the odd occasion, yes.”

“Well then, I suppose it’s something to look forward to. I’m only eighteen, after all.” She glanced at him and giggled. “Even though you’re an old man. We’re such a creepy couple.”

“Speak for yourself,” he tossed back, his teeth glinting in a wolfish grin. “I am a spritely young man and not creepy in the least.”

“You’re a perv who’s dating a teenager.”

“And in my day, you would have been well on your way to being ensconced on the shelf. A spinster by all accounts.”

Victoria swallowed an indignant gasp and chucked him in the shoulder. “Are you calling me an old maid?”

“What of it? You’re going to fight me, young slice?” He squinted at her, those silver eyes teasing. Victoria nearly snorted at Christian’s ridiculous slang.

“Name your time and name your place, old timer.”

“Now. In bed.”

The jovial atmosphere in the car turned electric at his low response. Victoria felt her bones turn to water and every cell in her body fired at his words. She swallowed hard as he reached across the center console to grab her hand. The breath left her body in a wild rush as his thumb stroked across the sensitive skin of her wrist. She could have whisked them home in a second, but she couldn’t move, much less think.

By the time they pulled into the driveway at Fontainebleau, her entire body was humming from the light touch of his fingers. She glanced at the house and stiffened, drawing her hand away as if burned. She’d thrown herself at him the last time for all the wrong reasons. A rush of shame filled her at the memories. She had lied to Angie—
she
wasn’t ready, not Christian. And not because she was afraid … she was ashamed. She had bartered her body in return for the cost of breaking up. He’d accused her of twisting his love and she’d deserved every bit of it. The truth was she didn’t deserve him.

Christian switched off the engine and turned to her as if he could read her mind. “I love you, Victoria. And regardless of what happens between us moving forward, that is never going to change.”

“But what I did … and said—”

“Is forgotten.” He stroked her face. “We have had so many beginnings, you and I. What’s so different about this one? Bumps in the road have never stopped us. I told you before, when we make love, it will be my pledge to you. That hasn’t changed. But I will wait until you are ready to take that step, for however long it takes.”

Victoria stared at his face, her misery threatening to choke her. “I made it ugly.”

“Nothing you do is ever ugly.” Christian smiled, making her heart leap. “Even your breakups have an innate grace.”

“I hurt you.”

“As I have hurt you in the past, and as I expect we will continue to do so over the next hundred years. We’re two different people, Tori. While I would never
want
to cause you pain, we are going to say things we don’t mean and make foolish mistakes. But that’s part of life and love. We take the good with the bad. My parents argued like cats and dogs, but they loved as hard as they fought. I’d rather have a life of passion than one without it. Wouldn’t you?”

She sniffed through her tears and nodded. “Why are you so amazing?”

“With advanced age comes great wisdom.”

She wanted to laugh at his solemn tone, but something deliciously warm was spreading inside of her … something that had its own agenda and its own goal. She leaned forward so that her lips could brush his. “Take me upstairs, Christian.”

She didn’t have to ask twice, and within the space of half a breath, they stood in the bedroom they shared. She stared at the bed and looked away, the memories—and the humiliation—coming back in full force.

“Forget about what happened before,” he told her and she nodded, even though it did nothing to calm her sudden feelings of inadequacy. “Wait one moment,” he said.

“What are you doing?”

“Running you a bath.”

“Oh.”

By the time he returned to the bedroom, she had worked herself into a frantic state of nervousness, but Christian scooped her into his arms and took her into the adjoining bathroom. He’d lit candles, she noticed, and the oversized soaking bath was full of steaming scented bubbles. Two glasses of wine sat on the edge of the bath. She didn’t know where he had gotten the wine so quickly and then she smirked—vampire super speed, of course.

She moved to take off her clothes, but Christian beat her to the punch. She held her breath as he lifted her hands high and drew off her t-shirt. But other than the slight flare in his eyes, Christian kept his hands clinical as he removed the rest of her clothing with deft detachment. She fought her shyness as he stripped away the last of it before helping her into the tub.

“Is that better?” he asked, his voice husky. “Temperature okay?”

“Yes,” she squeaked.

“You looked like you needed to relax.”

He pressed a swift kiss to her forehead and handed her one of the glasses. Victoria stared at the love of her life sitting on the edge of the tub. She’d fought a demon, for heaven’s sake, and now she was letting her own insecurity get in the way of her happiness. She swallowed hard. “Don’t you need to relax, too?”

“No, I’m—” he began and then his eyes slammed into hers as he realized what she was getting at. “Are you sure?”