Bloodspell (24 page)

Normally Christian preferred a more casual look but at these Council meetings, appearances were everything, especially for someone considered vampire royalty. By human standards, nineteen was young. By vampire standards, a hundred and seventy-five even more so. Still, after so many years, the pretense came naturally to him and his act was flawless.

He took the private elevator to the top floor where a gorgeous brunette showed him into the conference room. Human, with not a mark on her perfect, bronzed skin that he could see. He smiled and was rewarded with a warm look of unmistakable invitation. So maybe the marks were elsewhere. In a delightful breathy voice, she said, "They'll be here soon. Is there anything I can get you?"

Christian smiled again and declined, allowing himself to relax a bit after she left, although he wasn't naive enough to think that they weren't watching him, so he continued to play the part, lounging in his chair and looking indifferent to being kept waiting.

When the receptionist came back in to let him know that they would be in shortly, he stood up and strode over to the floor to ceiling windows. The city of La Défense stretched in an undulating wave below, and even when he heard the door open behind him, he didn't turn around until he knew they were all there.

"My Lords," he began, using the formal address, "I am here at your request." He stared around the long table, his gaze impassive yet respectful. Despite knowing the part that he was expected to play, he was also well aware of the power at this table. Some of the Elders were thousands of years old. He recognized many of the faces and nodded politely to those he knew. Others were unfamiliar, younger members more recently inducted to the Council. Though Paris was its headquarters, the Council was global, with twenty members from all over the world. Christian also noticed with some surprise that there were now two female members on the Council. Things
were
changing.

On the whole, he did not detect any measure of blatant hostility, although some of the newer faces were wary. Good, that meant that they knew what to expect.

Enhard, one of the Council speakers, stood gesturing for Christian to sit at the last remaining seat at the table. Enhard was handsome, his unlined youthful face belying the fact that he was several hundred centuries old and considered an Elder. Christian sat with a gracious inclination of his head.

"Your Grace, thank you for coming," Enhard said. "As the first matter of business today, we raise the issue of the prophecy. We fear that the actions of your brother, Lord Devereux, will bring war upon us. The witch clans have made claims that he has murdered innocents in his blind desire to discover Le Sang Noir. The worst offense was a thirteen year old witch killed in full view of her entire coven." Enhard paused. Christian's face remained impassive. "There is a centuries-old truce based on a violent past between vampires and witches; we don't hunt them and they don't attack us. Our agreements have been tenuous at best, and our truce is now in jeopardy. His flagrant disrespect of this law, among others, must be addressed."

Enhard stopped, his dark gaze intense. The tension in the room was palpable.

"We respect the power and lineage of the House of Devereux, and it is in deference to this ancestry that we have come to you. Lucian must be controlled." Enhard's voice was soft, but the veiled warning in it was unmistakable. Other members of the Council nodded their heads in vehement agreement.

"What is it you expect me to do, my Lords?" Christian said coolly. "I will tolerate no attack against my brother."

His manner was deferential yet imperious. There was a muttering as if they hadn't quite expected him to respond in that manner. What they didn't understand was his loyalty. Regardless of what Christian thought of Lucian and his reckless activities, he would never throw him to the wolves of the Council, no matter the cost.

One of the younger council members called Avael spoke. "You must speak to your brother and advise him of the consequences if he chooses to pursue this course of action!"

"And what are the consequences?" The astonished looks he received were almost worth the price of asking the audacious question. He leaned forward in an attitude of expectant inquiry.

"Why, execution, of course," said Avael. Christian's expression hardened. Enhard rushed to amend Avael's overzealous response.

"What Lord Avael means, of course, is that the Council will be forced to take immediate punitive action against Lucian. The massacres he has orchestrated against the witches are bringing undue attention to us. Our society is at risk. He must be stopped," he said.

Christian stood and walked to the wall of glass overlooking the business district, clasping his hands behind his back. He knew it was not considered good manners to turn his back to the Council, but it was a strategic move. He waited several long minutes, feeling the stares boring into his back, before he turned and addressed the Council.

"What of Le Sang Noir?" His simple, direct question sent a ripple of anxiety through the conference room. Christian was resolute. He had to understand what they knew about the fulfillment of the prophecy. Several sputtered as if in shock. He could see that Avael was contemplating saying something rash. He liked to keep them off-balance. They had far too much confidence in their own power.

Enhard responded, as Christian faced them, waiting. "Our Watchers have revealed movement in the magical spheres, something big. We believe that Le Sang Noir has reappeared and caused this disturbance."

"And have you pinpointed its location?"

The Council members murmured and Enhard raised a hand slowly for silence. He knew they believed that he was going too far, sharing this much with Christian Devereux, despite his lineage and status in the vampire world. Enhard knew that if it came down to it, any animosity between Christian Devereux and the Council could only end badly. Even Christian didn't comprehend the full power of his lineage, not his human one, but his vampire lineage. It was the main reason Enhard had petitioned him for help against Lucian. Any other course of action would have meant declaring war against the House of Devereux, all in all, a very foolish proposition.

"Yes," he said, and Christian's heart lurched. "We know that she is somewhere in the Americas."

Christian resumed his position at the table, knowing that the Council would interpret the gesture as a positive action. He placed his elbows on the table forming a steeple with his hands. His body language was non-threatening, and he could feel the Council members relax now that the worst had passed. Or so they thought.

"Regardless, what makes you think I would do anything to hand my brother over to the Council?" he asked. Enhard glanced at him sharply, recognizing his double-edged tone of voice and Christian returned his gaze evenly. "Especially now that you have confirmed the existence of Le Sang Noir."

Several Council members jumped to their feet in angry response, and Christian pushed his chair back deliberately, his long, lithe body signaling danger, forearms braced against the edge of the table. His face was as hard as sculpted marble.

David, another Elder, stood along with Enhard and commanded everyone to sit down. Christian remained standing, his stance uncompromising. David spoke, his ancient voice thready.

"Your Grace, I understand your reluctance to agree, but Lucian is dangerous. His desires outweigh his judgment. All we ask is that you get him to see reason. We simply cannot risk war with the magic world." He hesitated. "You are correct to be wary of Le Sang Noir, but so should we all, for if the witch clans harness its power against us, we are lost."

Although Christian saw the undeniable truth in David's eyes, he wasn't naive. He knew that if he had given in to the Council about Lucian, they would own them both
and
the House of Devereux. He'd had enough.

"As you wish, I will speak to Lucian," he conceded. "But on my terms."

He inclined his head graciously and walked out of the conference room without a backward glance. He had almost reached the elevator when a voice called out behind him. Christian turned and saw that it was Enhard, whose face was cautious as he approached.

"Thank you, Christian," he said. "I know this must have been hard for you."

"Come on Enhard, you've known Lucian as long as I have. When has
anything
he has done not been hard for me?" Enhard chuckled in response and Christian relaxed.

Enhard had been more like a father to the two of them than he cared to admit. In fact, Enhard had been one of the vampires who had found them on the edge of death. Ever since they had been turned, he'd stayed close as a mentor and guide throughout the years.

Christian clasped Enhard's shoulders and brought him close into an embrace kissing him on both cheeks, as was the French custom. He knew that even in the foyer that he would still be closely watched, and it was always critical to keep up appearances
and
alliances especially with someone as powerful as Enhard. The Council was meticulous in the extreme, and the embrace was as deliberate as were Christian's next words.

"Meet me at L'Echiquier at the Hilton," Christian murmured, as he embraced Enhard. "My warmest regards to your family," he said in a normal voice. Then he entered the elevator, Enhard watching him until the doors closed.

CHRISTIAN SAT IN the bar in a comfortable club chair. He had chosen an out of the way corner which offered a clear line of sight. He ordered a glass of cognac from the flirtatious waitress and sipped it waiting for Enhard. Even though the cognac had little effect on him, he enjoyed the taste of it.

The waitress came by again, her look suggestive and inviting as she asked him if there was anything else she could get for him. It would have been easy enough to consider her explicit invitation with her reddish hair and lush hips, but he politely said that he was fine for just then. She smiled provocatively as she walked past him, and he sighed. It seemed that Paris incited his predatory magnetism.

In Canville, life was a lot simpler. He was an ordinary student, and he liked it that way. He blended in, and tried very hard to make his dark nature invisible. He was certain that he was the only vampire in Canville, and that was why he'd chosen it—obscurity. When he took blood from humans, he had always made sure that it was well away from the small town. Christian had learned early on that his vampire magnetism was a capricious thing. Sometimes the seduced remembered him long after he had satiated himself and sent them on their way, so he preferred to err on the side of caution.

Still, the vampire magnetism had its uses ... and benefits. Christian smiled, thinking of Victoria.

"I hope that smile isn't for me," Enhard said, as he sat down on the vacant club chair opposite Christian. Christian shrugged, embarrassed.

"I was just thinking of a friend," he said.

"If she can make you smile like that when she's not around, I shudder to think what you are like when she
is
around," he said. He settled into the chair and leaned forward expectantly.

Christian deliberated momentarily, but then for some reason or perhaps because he just wanted to talk to someone about her, he decided to tell Enhard the truth. Well, the partial truth.

"Her name is Tori. She's beautiful and captivating."

Christian could see Enhard going through the Rolodex in his head, trying to make a match. He waited until he saw Enhard's brows furrow as he struggled to figure it out.

"She's human, Enhard," he said. Enhard's eyes widened because that was possibly the last thing he had expected to hear, given the besotted look he had seen on Christian's face.

"Human?" he echoed dumbly, his expression vacant. Christian wanted to laugh. It wasn't that unheard of! But he knew where Enhard was coming from, the whole royal blood thing, and the fact that any good female vampire would kill to be with a Devereux.

"Christian, there are tons of girls, good
vampire
girls from good families who would be perfect for you," he said predictably.

"Enhard, she's the one. Human or not, it doesn't matter."

Enhard sat back in his chair at a loss for words. The whole mortal/immortal issue was not a trifling one, and the fact was that Christian
had
already made one vampire. Their laws were very specific—a vampire could only be made with the approval of the Council, and in most cases, a vampire was only allowed to make one other vampire. Control of numbers was a critical part of their existence.

"Christian, I am sure you understand my concern. It's not that I haven't had my fair share of female human companions over the years, but those relationships were fleeting, because their
lives
are fleeting," Enhard said after several minutes. "You know the law."

"Yes, I do." Christian's face was impassive and Enhard sighed, leaning back in his chair. He knew when to let the matter drop. "So tell me what the real agenda of the Council is," Christian said bluntly. Enhard's face immediately went serious.

"It's not an agenda, Christian. Lucian's actions have been terrible. I understand what's driving him, but he is risking our way of life for something that may not even exist."

Christian gave him a sidelong sardonic glance. "I thought you said that Le Sang Noir was for real?"

"Yes, we believe so. But it still doesn't mean that he can use it for whatever he thinks he can use it for. It's like an urban legend. No one actually
knows
how it works." Enhard looked at Christian, noticing the suddenly shuttered look in his eyes, and rushed to continue. "Lucian is obsessed with the prophecy, and his pursuit of this obsession is bringing us to the brink of war. You know, Christian, as well as I do, that Lucian is dangerous." He took a long sip of his drink. "The Council wanted to take immediate action against him but many fear him and lack the courage to oppose him."

"Enhard, you know that I want no part of the House of Devereux. Lucian
is
the House of Devereux, not me."

"But you are first-born. It is your birthright, and you are the only one powerful enough to stop him," Enhard said, desperate.