The Crimson Bond (12 page)

            I turned my attention back to Demitrie, who was looking at me intently. I really hoped he wasn’t able to read my thoughts. It was bad enough that Alex was doing it.

           
“Demitrie, I can’t deny that I am glad that the mystery of who my father is, is finally solved. But I don’t really know what this means for us. I’m pretty sure you don’t want a daughter, or you would have come and gotten me a long time ago. So I guess what I’m saying is that you don’t need to feel any obligation to me at all-- you‘re off the hook. I’m fine.”

            His icy blue-gray eyes studied me for a moment before he cocked his head to the side and I was reminded of how ancient and old-worldly he was. “Brooke, you are quick to make judgments. I had my reasons for leaving you where you were. I am aware they were not the happiest of circumstances after your mother left this world, but it was not in your best interest to come here at the time.” He raised his eyebrows and asked, “Can you imagine a little girl, a half
human
little girl, running around this castle full of vampires? How long do you think you would have lasted?” He didn’t wait for me to respond. “This is neither the time, nor the place, for us to discuss this, but I will be happy to revisit it at another time. Tonight, I need you to mingle and make yourself as likeable as possible. And you need to do that as if your life depends on it….because it does.” And with that, he turned and faded into the crowd, leaving me standing there feeling incredibly lonely and overwhelmed. But I didn’t have time for self pity. I had a job to do and I would spend the next two hours doing it even if it killed me. I put all my efforts into dazzling and engaging every person I came across; because as my father had pointed out-- my life depended on it.

            For the next thirty minutes I made my rounds while keeping my eye out for Alex, but I didn’t see him anywhere
. Here I am fighting for our lives and he is off gallivanting with Ophelia.
It’s a good thing I crave him with such an intensity I can’t stand to be without him, because if I didn’t, I would get the heck out of here, pronto
.
As it stood, I would just have to trust him and continue mingling with this crowd of vampires who‘s society I would probably soon be a part of. Surprisingly, most everyone I spoke with was pretty accepting, some more than others, but all in all it was relatively painless. If I hadn’t known I was in a ballroom full of vampires, it would have seemed like I‘d imagine any other ball to be. Whether their seeming acceptance of me had anything to do with me being Demitrie’s daughter, I had no idea. But whatever the reasons, I would take them. I just wanted to get the Regency’s permission to complete the bond and get on with my eternal existence.

           
A little later, exhausted from my efforts, I slipped out into the hallway in search of the bathroom. I had just paused in front of the large golden, gilded mirror to check my reflection in the sitting area of the powder room, when Ophelia appeared behind me. I jumped slightly, startled to see her image in the mirror. The slow smile that spread across her lips could only be described as ominous. I turned around quickly to meet her eyes head on. The adrenaline that rushed through me had turned my initial fear into a slowly building anger. My eyes flashed in challenge and I kicked my chin up a notch. Vampire or not, I refused to cower down to Ophelia. It was obvious that she had a thing for Alex, and she had another thing coming if she thought to scare me into stepping aside or running off.

            Ophelia ran her eyes over me in disdain. “Well aren’t you…..sweet.” She made the word sweet sound anything but. Her fangs descended like razors in the blink of an eye and she hissed, “Sweet enough to sink my teeth into.” She laughed at her own joke while I looked on in disgust. I sent Alex a quick plea for help.
Come save me from your wannabe girlfriend in the bathroom please.
I didn’t get an immediate response, but I was hoping that was because he was too busy rushing to my aide. Despite the precarious situation I was in and my anger towards her, I felt amazingly calm. I was actually quite proud of the way I was handling it.

            Ophelia slowly walked catlike towards me, her slinky black evening gown like a second skin on her lithe figure. She came to a stop directly in front of me. “I guess you think you can hold Alex’s attention long enough to complete the bond, but I think otherwise.” She smirked at me. “I have just as much claim to him as you. And don’t think for a minute that the Regency council is going to allow you and Alex to be together. The threat to them is far too great.” Her hand shot out with lightning speed and locked in a vise-like grip around my lower arm. I held completely still as her fingernails dug painfully into my skin. I instinctively knew that remaining calm and unaffected was going to be my best bet in this situation. She would feed off my fear and there was no way I was giving her the satisfaction. She looked at me with assessing eyes. “Hmm, I guess I can see why Alex wants you so badly. Such pretty innocence is uncommon amongst our kind. But then again if he changes you, and you’re not so innocent anymore, what will be the appeal then?”

            With a steely gaze I retorted, “That just goes to show how clueless you are. What Alex and I have is beyond anything you can even imagine. And besides, from what I hear, we literally won’t be able to exist without each other. Even if we wanted to.”

            The sly grin on her face, like she knew something I didn‘t, made me slightly nervous.  She looked way too confident when she said, “There are always ways around these things.”

She looked down at my arm where her fingernails had drawn blood. “Oops, you’re bleeding. And in a castle full of vampires. So sorry.” The sinister set of her lips made it clear she was anything but apologetic.

Before I could form a response I was ripped from her grip and standing across the room in a swoosh of air, strong male arms and a scent that was distinctly Alex. He was standing in front of me facing off with Ophelia, his stance protective.
Good timing Alex. I thought she was getting ready to feed me to the masses.

           
Though he never took his eyes off of Ophelia he responded.
Anytime, beautiful.
I couldn’t hold back the smile that pulled at the corner of my lips. When he said things like that, I couldn’t help but feel like the luckiest girl in the world.

           
Ophelia rolled her eyes and it made me wonder if she too was hearing our internal conversation.
“
Oh please, Alex. Drop the knight in shining armor act. You know I was just giving her a hard time. It’s practically a right of passage here. I was just getting ready to offer her my advice, should she ever need it.” She smiled sweetly at Alex, making me want to either lose my dinner or knock her senseless.
This chic really brings out the worst in me.
I was dying to get this confrontation over with and get to the bottom of why Ophelia thought she had some kind of claim on Alex. From what I understood, he and I had an exceptional bond that, when complete, would bind us in a way that was immeasurable.
What could she possibly be talking about? 
I tried not to let her get under my skin-- I knew that was exactly what she was aiming for.

            Alex looked at her with blatant warning in his eyes. “Lia, you’re just going to have to accept that Brooke is a part of me now. Things have changed and the sooner you realize that, the better. My heart begins and ends with her and that‘s the only explanation you‘ll get out of me. Now back off.”

            Ophelia let out a short laugh. “Ha! Alex you don’t have a heart and you’ve never had a problem remembering that in the past. Does little miss innocent have any idea of you’re true nature?” When Alex shot her an icy glare she continued on, “Didn’t think so.” She glided past us and out of the powder room, leaving us staring after her.

            Alex turned to me and breathed, “Brooke. I’m sorry about her. She’s just jealous.” He glanced down at my bleeding arm. “Let me clean you up.” He guided me to the sink and held my arm under the cool water. He reached for a towel, gently patting my skin dry. I studied him while he worked, taking in his thick, dark eyelashes, aristocratic nose and strong jaw line. He had the kind of golden skin that I couldn’t achieve even after months in a tanning bed.  He was so incredibly sexy and a delicious shudder ran through me at having his undivided attention. It really was incredibly hard to stay irritated at him. He glanced up with a cocky half smile. He knew exactly why I was shuddering.

            He sighed and let go of my hand. “Brooke, you’re doing crazy things to me. If you keep looking at me like that, you’re going to be upstairs with my teeth in your neck-- among other things.”

            I tried to school my expression, but I couldn’t keep the hunger out of my eyes.
Oh God
.
The hell with waiting
. I was ready now. I wanted it all -- sex, bonding, becoming a vampire. I had to question my sanity at having ever needed time to consider whether I wanted this.

            Oh, why do we have to be surrounded by controlling vampires who think they really have a choice in this?
I didn’t know how much longer I could put up with it. Either they came to a decision soon or we were leaving regardless. I had all confidence that Alex could get us out of here whenever he decided to.

            “Brooke. You’re killing me.” Alex closed his eyes and I could tell he was fighting for control. I loved that I could do that to him.  Obviously I was having a hard time keeping my thoughts to myself.

            He opened his eyes and the blue was so dark with hunger that my eyes widened.
Oh boy, I might be in over my head.
I had zero sexual experience with vampires and not a whole lot more with humans. I hoped I could hold my own.

            Alex smirked, not taking his eyes off of mine. “Let’s go find out.”

            I smiled back, feeling more sure of him than I‘d ever been about anything. He grabbed my hand, threading his fingers through mine, and we headed out into the hallway-- intent on going to my room.

            Unfortunately, that wasn’t in the cards. As soon as we stepped out into the open foyer to take the stairs, one of Demitrie’s aides rounded the corner. His jet black hair was slicked back and his eyes were a deep clear brown. His pale skin stood out against the black tux he wore.

            With the accent I was growing accustomed to hearing, he summoned Alex. “You’re needed in the study.” I could see the same respect in his eyes for Alex that the rest of the vampires and humans alike gave him. Alex turned to me with regret on his handsome face. “I have to meet with some of the council members. I‘ll get you from the ballroom when I‘m done.” He met my eyes and brought my hand up to his lips, placing a lingering kiss on top before leaning over and whispering in my ear, “I’m fighting for us in there tonight, but regardless, you and I will finish this on our own terms.”

CHAPTER 15

            I stepped back into the ballroom with all intentions of finding Katina, when I felt a strong hand on my shoulder. I turned my head to see who it was and gasped when I saw Ethan’s bright green eyes framed in thick black lashes staring back at me. He turned me around to face him and released my shoulder, seizing my hand in a firm grasp. He led us onto the dance floor and pulled me indecently close. He leaned close and spoke quietly in my ear. “What’s about to happen is going to be confusing, but you’re going to have to trust Alex….and me.”

            I pulled back my head and looked at him in confusion. “What in the world are you talking about?”

            “Shh, lower your voice. No one is paying attention, but they have excellent hearing.” He pulled me back closer. “Just finish this dance and we’ll slip out of here and I’ll answer those burning questions of yours.”

            It took all I had to remain in his arms when I was dying to know what he had to tell me. Not that it was entirely torturous being in his arms. I just couldn’t get past him trying to turn me without my permission in the parking lot that night. It seemed like a lifetime ago. I was pretty sure he didn’t play by the same set of rules the rest of us did. Now that he wasn’t looking at me like I was his next meal, I found that I wasn‘t entirely opposed to being around him, just wary. I guess once he realized Alex and I were a definite thing, he’d decided to play nice.

            As the soft, fluid music continued to play, I tried to forget about the awkwardness of dancing with Ethan by discreetly glancing around the room to see who was missing. I knew the meeting Alex had been called to had something to do with us, and I was curious to see who had a say in the council’s decision. I didn’t see Demitrie, Lucien, Katina, several of the others I knew to be council members; and oddly enough I didn’t see Ophelia. That surprised me since she was not a council member. I had expected her to be dancing with the many beautiful men that occupied the ballroom.  If there was one thing I had picked up on about Ophelia, it was that she thrived off of male attention. For some reason her absence worried me.
Why would she be in the meeting?
I was also feeling uneasy about why they would meet during the middle of a ball. I pushed back the sense of foreboding that threatened to consume me.