A Cursed Bloodline (WG 4) (19 page)

“Uh, cherry, please.” I pushed a curl behind my ear nervously and stared at the mountain of food. “Can you, um, hear all of my thoughts?”

A hungry and sinful smile split the expanse of Edith’s face. “Only if you want us to.”

“I don’t, actually.” I took a few gulps of water before speaking. “Okay, look. There’s no way I’m qualified to run a dynasty. Therefore, you’re going to do it.” Funny enough, the vamps lacked the enthusiasm I was hoping for.

“Why us?” Hank asked.

“Because young vamps or not, you’re the strongest and most trusted in Misha’s keep and have firsthand knowledge of his business ventures.” I pointed to Maria. “I know for a fact you advise him on his financial affairs and that you sit in on meetings.”

“Only when his business involves Portugal and my native Brazil.”

I slammed my palm on the desk. “Good to know. You’re in charge of Misha’s European empire with the exception of France. Liz, you’re originally from Iceland, right?” She nodded. “Then you help Maria. Hank, do you want Asia? You’ve traveled there with Misha the most.”

“Ummm.”

“Excellent, it’s yours. Michael, you studied business while human, correct?”

Michael nodded. “Finance at Howard. You wish me to assist Hank?”

“No. I want you to handle the American companies—all of them. Ying-Ying and Chang can help Hank. Agnes, since you and Tim both speak French I’ll put you in charge of the Canadian companies and France.”

Tim raised his palms. “Celia, slow down. There’s no need for this. The master has appointed board members to handle each company.”

I dipped an onion ring in ketchup and took a bite. “That’s nice. But it will be your jobs to keep them in line. If there’s even a hint of corruption I want you to—”

“Kill dem?” Maria offered.

“I was thinking you could fire them, but I guess that could work, too. Now, Edith, as for you…”

Edith bounced in her thigh-high boots, eager with anticipation. “I’ll do whatever you want, Celia. You’re really turning me on right now.”

“Er, thanks, but why don’t I just put you in charge of all of Misha’s homes. Make sure they’re maintained and don’t fall into disarray. I want this empire to function like a well-oiled machine—even if it’s only on the surface.”

Emme walked around the desk and held my hand. “What about us, Celia? How can Danny and I help?”

“You can keep me from tearing my hair out.” Emme’s face paled to chalk. Perhaps I could have picked a better choice of words.

The vampires dispersed, ready to set my plan in motion. Emme called our sisters to update them on the latest threat to my life while Danny and I tore into the food like it was our damn job.

We’d almost finished when Edith sashayed back into the office. “Your room is ready, Celia.”

I wiped my hands on the cloth napkin. “The contractors are done repairing the guesthouse?”

It probably took everything Edith had not to ram the last onion ring up my nose. She swallowed hard and tried to smile. “I meant your room upstairs. As head of our family, you can’t possibly reside in the guesthouse. I’ve prepared the master’s room to fit your tastes so you’ll be more comfortable.”

Edith was taking her assignment seriously, so I felt bad refusing. “Thanks anyway, but I need to stay near Bren to look after him.”

She pursed her lips tightly before forcing another smile. “We’ll place the mongrel in the suite next to yours.”

“What about Danny and Emme?”

Her protruding fangs made it difficult for her to speak.
“They can sleep here as well.”

Danny eyed her warily. “Just do it, Celia. It will be safer if everyone stays close.”

I stood and stretched. “Fine.”

Edith rushed around the desk and clamped on to my wrist. “Wait until you see your room!”

I let her lead me up the grand staircase. Danny followed close behind. With the assault by the wolves, the invasion of the psycho shape-shifters, Aric’s hideous behavior, and Misha’s kidnapping, I couldn’t wait to lie down and put the day behind me. And yet when Edith threw open the double doors to Misha’s suite, I wasn’t sure how I’d manage to sleep. Let’s just say Edith had a different take on what I liked.

Dark wood furniture and different tones of brown, white, and gold made up the décor of my Dollar Point bedroom—pretty, but not overly feminine. Misha’s room was the epitome of Mountain Craftsman elegance—high beamed wood ceilings, slate stone fireplace, tones of brown and red, heavy dark mahogany furniture, and a bed roughly the size of Vermont.

I don’t know how Edith did it, but she’d somehow painted all the furniture white. Instead of the more traditional and classic colors there were about seven different shades of pink. Yes,
pink
. Girly, lacey, and frilly fabrics covered the bed and floor-to-ceiling glass doors leading out to the terrace. Yet what threw me over the edge were the unicorns. Yes,
unicorns
. A dozen or so stuffed unicorns fought for space amid the lip- and heart-shaped giant pink pillows. Not to mention the immense velvet painting of a unicorn at full canter, hanging over the bed.

Edith clapped her hands together. “Do you love it?”

Danny gnawed on his lip, appearing more unnerved than amused.

“I appreciate all your hard work, Edith.” It was a lame response, but it was all I could manage.

Edith pulled me into a tight embrace before skipping off in her thigh-high stiletto boots.

Danny nudged me toward the bathroom. “Why don’t you get a shower? It might help you relax.”

I opened the doors to more pink. Edith had redecorated the entire suite. As I pushed soap out of the pink unicorn dispenser I began to think I’d put the wrong vampire in charge of maintaining Misha’s homes.

I went to help with Bren’s care following my shower. Emme had already taken care of him, just not in the way he would have preferred. He slept in a king-sized bed wearing blue silk pajamas. And although he was in adult diapers, it was damn obvious he’d missed Emme.

A twin bed had been brought in and set up on the opposite side of the room. Emme and Danny argued over who should sleep with Bren. For a moment, I thought the matter might come down to blows. Emme crinkled her nose at him. “He’s your best friend!”

Danny pointed to where Bren lay snoring. “He has an erection—we’re not that close!”

Hank entered and flashed Emme a panty-dropping smile. “Forget the wolf. Spend the night with me.”

Emme’s entire face reddened. “That’s not something I do with someone I barely know.”

Before you could say “There’s a virgin in the house,” all of the Catholic schoolgirls were ringside. Maria eyed Emme like she was the freak. “You can’t be serious.”

Emme sidestepped her way closer to me. “
Yes,
I am.”

Edith turned to me. “So does that make you the whore of the family?” she asked with a little too much enthusiasm.

Danny clasped my arm while Emme defended my honor. “Celia’s only slept with two men.”

“At the same time?” Liz asked, confused.

My cheeks burned.
“Of course not!”

“Don’t worry, Celia,” Agnes said. “Sexual incompetence is nothing to be ashamed of.”

“Yes, it is,” Maria muttered.

“I never claimed to be bad in bed!”

Liz ignored me. “But we can fix that—Tim, get up here!”

Tim appeared before I could blink. “What?”

Liz yanked off his skin-tight T-shirt. “Celia wants to be better in bed. Be a dear and help her, would you?”

I backed away when his jeans hit the floor. “What the hell are you doing?” I smacked his hands away when he reached for me. “Tim, stop! I’m not having sex with you.”

Tim shrugged and left with his clothes wadded up in his arms. “Fine. Call me if you change your mind.”

“Would you prefer a human?” Edith asked.

“No. I prefer you get the hell out of here.”

I slammed the door behind them. It did little to silence Liz. “She’ll be in a better mood once we get her some.”

Emme’s expression split between horror and worry. “Celia, you can’t assume the care of them—you’re nothing like them.”

Danny, who had been at a loss for words, finally spoke. “They’re trying, Emme. In their own way they’re trying to be kind to her.”

“But Danny, they’re all so…
bizarre
. What if she’s stuck with them for the rest of her life?”

“The way things are going, that won’t be much longer.” Emme’s sweet face creased with sadness. I didn’t mean to sound so melodramatic. Embarrassed by what I said, I left them and went to cuddle with a stuffed unicorn.

Danny entered the room a few minutes later and crawled into bed with me. He knew I was awake. “You’re not giving up, are you, Celia?”

I gripped the fluffy pink monstrosity against me. “No, it’s just that things seem so bleak. Every time I manage some degree of peace, it’s robbed from me.”

Danny pushed my hair from my face. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

I turned and stared into the soft dark eyes of my friend, whose messy curls always made his hair appear unkempt. Danny’s face was so different now that he no longer needed glasses, but his expression carried the same compassion it always had. He didn’t want me to suffer in silence. So I took a breath and told him exactly what I was thinking. “I want Misha not to die. I want the scary things to stop finding me and trying to kill me. I want my baby to be safe and grow up happy.” I tried to stop my tears, but they fell anyway. “I want Aric to hold me and tell me he doesn’t hate me. I just want everything to be all right.”

Danny hugged me tightly and kissed my forehead. He didn’t tell me things were going to get better. He only gave me the comfort I needed to get through one more night.

Chapter Seventeen

The vampires I assigned to handle Misha’s affairs took turns traveling the world to keep things in order. Or at least that’s what I hoped they did during their long periods away. To add to my stress, they constantly bombarded me with requests to contact Misha. I tried to reach him through our
call
. Yet despite my best efforts to focus and connect with him, I failed to sense anything. Still, I remained certain he was alive—tortured and no doubt suffering, but alive.

Uri hit a wall everywhere he turned. The European Alliance Leaders refused to meet with him to discuss Misha. The collective thought was that now that the Tribe numbers had dwindled, it was time to strike and eliminate every last threat. No Alliance members would be spared to help find one master vampire.

Even with my constant worrying about Misha, Anara, and the things that went bump in the night, my thoughts always returned to Aric. It hurt to know he despised me. But he was alive, and that gave me hope that should I survive, maybe one day Aric would meet our son.

Son?
I touched my belly and smiled.
Are you a boy, little one? Will you look like your daddy?

Danny staggered into the suite, interrupting my thoughts. “Hey. Do you mind if I crash in here again tonight? Bren went into full salute the moment he heard Emme’s voice.”

His bleary eyes blinked back at me and he clutched a pillow, ready to keel over. He’d spent another day researching shifters and trying to locate their strongholds. “Sure, but if you want more privacy Emme could sleep here and you can take the other bed in Bren’s room.” His shoulders drooped slightly. “What’s wrong?”

“Celia, Liam pitched a major fit when Emme decided to live here with you. He’s worried about her safety and made her promise she wouldn’t sleep with you in case…”

My entire body stiffened. “In case I tried to kill her.”

Danny held out his hand. “Don’t be mad. He still considers you a friend, but he’s convinced you knocked out Emme that day at the house.”

I let out a frustrated sigh. “I know. I just wish I could tell them.”

Danny wrapped his arm around me. “Someday, you will. Someday they’ll all know what Anara has done to you.”

My stomach tightened. “Not if I want to keep them alive.”

Although I remained on edge, Danny’s presence and calm demeanor settled my nerves. We both slipped beneath the polka-dot pink covers and fell asleep.

Pounding on the door and the sound of music in the distance jerked me awake less than an hour later. I flipped on the unicorn lamp next to me. “Yes?”

Liz stormed in, ice-blond hair mussed from sleep, fingernail file pointed right at me. “Celia, I’m a patient vampire.”

“No, you’re not, Liz.”

“Okay, fine, I’m not. But your freaky friends are getting out of control.”

Danny sat up and rubbed his eyes. I didn’t know what the hell Liz was bitching about. Emme was asleep and Bren lay in a coma.

Edith stomped into the room next, wearing an itsy-bitsy nightie and her damn boots. “Did you ask her if we could kill her?”

I yawned. “Who do you want to kill this time?”

“The
were
doing the really bad John Cusack impression.” Tim strolled in with a naked woman riding piggyback as his only accessory. She bit his earlobe and couldn’t give a fig that Danny and I sat there gawking at her.

Agnes bolted in with binoculars. “Follow me. You’re not going to believe this.” She swept past me and threw open the doors leading out to the terrace. Tim and his snack were kind enough to pull back the pink heart curtains so I could pass. I gave them ample space. Agnes shoved the binoculars into my hands and pointed out to the lake.
“Look.”

There, standing on a rowboat in the rain, holding an old boom box over her head, waited Heidi while Peter Gabriel blasted away on the gigantic speakers. I put the binoculars down, blinked a few times, and then looked again.

Emme poked her head through the drapes. “Is something wrong?”

I ignored her and addressed Danny. “Has Heidi been calling you?”

“Yes, why?”

“Have you been returning her phone calls?”

He watched me carefully. “No. I told her we needed time apart.”

“I think you should reconsider.” I handed him the binoculars and moved aside.

“Holy crap!”

Danny thought it best to “talk” with Heidi in the guesthouse. I returned to Misha’s room, ready for some much-needed uninterrupted sleep.