Bloodchild (10 page)

Olric left; another candidate
arrived. This one, white-haired and with a slight stoop, looked old enough to
be Olric’s grandfather, though he said he had no family left. Also dressed in
black, Savel carried a sword at his side, although Vivien thought that, once or
twice, she noticed a tremor in his hand.

She liked that his dark eyes
looked at her directly, unlike the way Olric had only glanced up every so often
as though staring any longer might have drawn her ire. He wanted to be her
guard, he said, because Rhuinn was a terrible ruler and she was the only person
who had the legitimacy to take him down.

Vivien didn’t like his answer much
more than Olric’s. She didn’t want to carry people’s hopes like this. In the
end, she knew little about Rhuinn and what he’d been doing to Foh’Ran and its
people. She opposed him because of what he’d done to her and the people she
loved.

“What do you think, Dame Vivien?”
Aedan asked when he came back from escorting Savel back to the Passing Room.
“Did your channeling reveal anything to you?”

She shook her head. She had dialed
down her channeling so as not to exhaust herself, but she was certain nothing
had slipped by her. Certain enough to risk her life and everyone who lived in
the castle on it.

“Savel seemed like he’d know what
he’s doing if we pick him,” she said because Aedan was still waiting for her to
answer. Of course he was; she had, after all, demanded to have some input in
this choice.

“He has experience being a guard,”
Aedan agreed. “But that means he pledged his loyalty to someone else before
you. He might still be under their influence, whether he realizes it or not. On
the other hand, Olric doesn’t even know how to hold a sword. He’s going to need
a lot of training, and I might not have time to train him.”

Her gaze narrowed, and she looked
at him curiously.

“Why not?” she asked. “It’s not
like you have much to do until I go back for the first duel. Despite what you
think, I don’t require anyone to guard me around the clock.”

Aedan hesitated, his mouth opening
then closing again after a tiny shake of his head that seemed to be more for
his own benefit than hers. He finally inclined his head and said, “There is
another alternative. If you accepted them both as guards, they might keep an
eye on each other and train together.”

Vivien had to grimace at that.
She’d agreed that they needed an extra guard, one who would be able to protect
her in the sun if needed, but now Aedan was trying to push it further.

She didn’t have much of a choice,
though, did she? She had challenged Rhuinn to a duel, and since she had no
intention of laying down and letting him beat her, she had to go on assuming—or
at least hoping—that she had a chance to win. If she did, she would be what
Brad and Aedan had claimed she was since the beginning: a queen. And a queen
would need more than two vampire guards, even if she wished she didn’t need any
at all.

“All right.” She sighed deeply. As
much as Aedan called her ‘dame,’ he seemed to always get his way in the end.
“Let’s take them both.”

CHAPTER TEN

Orders

When Bradan woke up and chanced a
glance outside, he could hardly believe how high the sun was in the sky already.
How could he have slept that long? Why hadn’t Aedan woken him?

He cleaned up and dressed
hurriedly before going down in search of his brother. He came across him as
Aedan was coming out of the long corridor that led to the Passing Room, Elver
walking at his side.

Aedan smiled when he saw Bradan,
though the smile faded when it wasn’t returned. He nodded absently when Elver
took his leave and gestured for Bradan to accompany him.

“Our dame and I talked to two
prospective guards today,” he said as he led the way toward, Bradan supposed,
the library. “She decided to have both of them work for her. I think it’s a
good start. They’ll come tomorrow. You can meet them then.”

Gripping his arm, Bradan forced
him to a stop in the middle of the corridor.

“Why didn’t you tell me? I would
have liked to be there to meet them as well. Instead you let me sleep like a
tired child!”

Aedan frowned at him, shaking his
head slowly.

“You
were
tired. You were
up all night. You needed to rest. And like I said, you can meet them tomorrow.”

“Sure, tomorrow,” Bradan repeated,
lifting his chin an inch higher and looking down at his brother. “When
everything is decided. After you’ve spent the day with Vivien interviewing them
and discussing what to do. I bet that’s more fun than standing in her hallway
staring at the walls and wishing you were inside with her, isn’t it? And more
fun than being outside listening in when you know I’m with her.”

Bradan didn’t even know where the
accusation had come from. He wasn’t even sure what exactly he was accusing
Aedan of. He was just hungry and angry that he’d missed such a large part of
the day, and frustrated that Aedan had been with Vivien the entire time while
Bradan himself hadn’t been alone with her since waking up as a vampire. He
missed her enough to ache from it, to argue with Aedan now—although the
argument met a swift end.

“Enough,” Aedan said in a low
voice that was very close to being a growl.

The word resonated through the
air, through Bradan’s mind, through his very bones, it seemed, and he suddenly
found himself unable to move.

“I’ve tried to act toward you like
nothing more than a brother,” Aedan continued a little louder. “But clearly
that’s not working. I am your Maker, and you will treat me as such. When I tell
you to feed, you will feed. When I tell you to go to bed and sleep, you will do
it. And when I tell you to stop spouting nonsense, you will be quiet. I let you
sleep because you needed the rest, no other reason, and you insult me by
implying otherwise. Tomorrow you and I will need to go see Ciara. Believe me
when I say insulting her as you did me might be the last mistake you ever
make.”

Bradan was still trying to wrap
his mind around all that, and trying to understand how his brother’s voice
could sound like this, like law descended from above and impossible to ignore,
when a second voice, much lighter though no less serious, rose from the side
corridor.

“What was that about Ciara?”
Vivien asked as she came closer to them. “You can’t possibly mean to go to
Rhuinn’s palace to see her.”

Aedan turned to her and gave her
the slight bow that never ceased to annoy her.

“We have no choice in the matter,
Dame Vivien. It is customary for a new vampire to be introduced to the head of
his clan within three days of rising. Tomorrow is as late as we can push
things.”

Bradan felt as unsettled as Vivien
looked. He took one step toward her, only to stop when alarm and wariness
spread through the bond.

“What about your oath?” Vivien
demanded, and while she made a good show of sounding calm, her voice wavered.
Her scent was even more explicit, controlled fear coming from her in waves.
“You’re supposed to keep me safe, aren’t you? How are you going to do that if
you go to my enemy’s palace?”

“I'm not putting you in danger by
going there,” Aedan said, but the protest wasn’t enough for Vivien.

“No, you’re just putting Brad in
danger. And yourself. You can’t do that. If I’m your dame, if you’re supposed
to obey me, then I forbid you to go.”

How scared was she to resort to
giving them orders? Bradan couldn’t remember her doing this before, not so
plainly. He came closer to her, ignoring Aedan’s wordless warning.

“I am sorry, Dame Vivien,” Aedan
said very softly. “That is an order neither I nor Bradan can obey.”

Vivien’s hands gripped the sides
of her dress so tightly that her knuckles were bone-white.

“But she said she’d kill you! And
Rhuinn already did kill Brad, didn’t he? He had Loree do it for him. What’s to
stop him from doing it again?”

At the first gleam of wetness in
Vivien’s eyes, the last of Bradan’s restraint faltered. He knew Aedan didn’t
want him to risk getting physically close to Vivien, but he couldn’t bear to
watch her like this and not offer whatever comfort he could. Crossing the last
couple of steps that separated them, he took her in his arms. She wove her arms
around him and held him tight, as though by doing so she could stop him from
going to Ciara.

“Bradan,” Aedan hissed.

Ignoring him, Bradan nuzzled
Vivien’s neck, murmuring quiet words against her skin.

“It’ll be okay. We’ll be fine.
We’ll just meet her and come back to you.”

If anything, Vivien held him more
fiercely still. The heat of her body was searing, and even through the layers
of clothes, Bradan felt as though he were burning. His body responded, and his
cock stirred. He took in a shaky breath. Fear still permeated her scent, but he
thought he could smell more than that. He just wasn’t sure what it was. Fear
had been the first scent he learned to recognize, mostly thanks to the animals
he hunted. This, though, he had never smelled before. Was this what affection
smelled like? Love? Or was it lust?

Whichever it might be, it was as
intoxicating as fine wine, and while Bradan had never cared much for alcohol,
he didn’t think he’d ever get enough of this—enough of her. Soon, her scent
ceased to be sufficient anymore. He wanted more of her, all of her. He pressed
his lips to Vivien’s neck, feeling the blood beat right under the surface of
her skin. He parted his lips to flick his tongue out; it was nothing more than
a small lick, but he could feel Vivien trembling in his arms. Whether from fear
or desire, he couldn’t have said.

Belatedly, he realized that Aedan
had taken hold of his arm and was tugging, trying to pull him away from her.
Bradan turned his head to throw his brother a baleful look.

“Bradan,” Aedan said again, his
voice dropping back to that almost-growl that earlier had all but frozen Bradan
where he stood. “You can’t—”

“No,” Bradan cut in, just as low.
“I'm not going to hurt her. I'd shove a knife in my own heart before hurting
her and you know it. You wouldn't let me
anywhere
near her if you
thought otherwise.”

Not until the words passed his
lips did Bradan realize it, but he knew he was right as soon as Aedan failed to
deny it. Aedan had tried to make Bradan keep his distance, and he’d kept a very
close watch on him when he and Vivien had been in the same room, but it was
obvious now that if he had truly feared for her life he would simply have kept
Bradan away from her.

So, as afraid as Aedan might be,
he still trusted Bradan could control himself and his hunger to some
degree—just like he was doing right now, when he had Vivien in his arms for
only the second time since waking up a vampire.

“Didn't I just teach you to obey
orders?” Aedan growled.

Vivien shuddered at the sound and
raised her head from Bradan’s chest. He had a feeling she was about to say
something, but this was between Bradan and his brother.

“And what order is that?” Bradan
asked, holding Aedan’s gaze without flinching. “Not to hurt her? You know I won’t
do that. Not to love her?” He shook his head and lowered his voice to a murmur.
“Maybe you can pretend to yourself you don't love her, that doesn’t change the
fact that you do. And I’m not going to pretend. I can’t. So please don't ask me
to.”

It was the same shock ringing
through the bond like a large toll bell and shining in Aedan’s wide eyes;
shock, even betrayal, but again, not denial. Bradan wished he had confronted
his brother in private, but he refused to regret having done so now.

From the moment they had returned
to Foh’Ran with Vivien, Aedan had reproached Bradan his feelings for her, had
reminded him, over and over, that she was their dame and Bradan ought to keep
his distance. Who had he been trying to convince, though? Bradan, or himself?

For another few seconds, they held
each other’s gaze in silence. The moment came to an end when Aedan abruptly
turned on his heel and walked away. His stiff back hinted at his wounded pride,
though what filtered through the bond was too jumbled for Bradan to make any
sense of it. He watched his brother disappear past the corner of a corridor and
turned back to Vivien, embracing her closer once more.

Something had changed. He could
feel it in the tightening of her body. As low as he had spoken, she must have
heard him, and she had to wonder whether what he’d said was true. Had she ever
noticed that Aedan did not always look at her the way a guard ought to regard
his dame? Probably not; after all, she and Aedan had clashed from the moment
they’d met.

The bang of a slammed door echoed
through the hallway, coming from somewhere out of sight. Bradan supposed it was
Aedan’s temper finding a way out, but the sound made him realize that he was
hugging Vivien in the open where Elver or Doril might see. He trusted both of
them, but there was no reason to encourage gossip.

“Come on,” he murmured, releasing
Vivien. “Let’s get somewhere more private.”

She let go of him, though she was
quick to find and take hold of his hand.

“The library,” she said simply,
and they walked there together.

She entered ahead of him and
hurried to the window to draw the curtains closed. Bradan was grateful for her
thoughtfulness; he’d entered the room without even considering that the
sunlight cascading in through the window might hurt him. He’d need to learn,
and fast.

In the now darkened room, she
leaned back against the window and took a deep breath as she considered him.
Bradan watched her as well, all too aware this was the first time they’d been
alone since her birthday.

“I’ve been meaning to apologize,”
she said after taking a deep breath. “It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t run after
that girl, if I’d stayed with you instead, I could have helped you, I could
have healed your wound, and you wouldn’t have died and… and…”

He could hear the tears rising in
her voice, could practically smell their salt even from across the room, and he
couldn’t bear the idea that they might roll down her cheeks. It took him no
more than a second to get to her and close his arms around her again.

“No,” he said, pressing the word
like a kiss against her forehead. “It’s not your fault, and you couldn’t have
done anything. Healing wounds using the Quickening is tricky. I could never
heal more than scratches, and honestly I don’t think you’d have been able to
change anything. Besides, you needed the insignia. If she’d stolen it, then
everything would have been for nothing.”

She tilted her head back and
sought his mouth with her own. A first press of lips on lips remained gentle
and chaste, and lasted no more than a second. She pulled back, looked at him,
and whatever she saw spurred her forward again. She flung her arms around his
neck and drew him closer for a much fiercer kiss.

He shut his eyes and let himself
melt against her, into her heat and passion, returning every touch of her
tongue, every caress of her lips. He’d missed her. It had only been a few days
since they had kissed like this, since he had felt her give herself to him, but
by all the Quickening, how he had missed her!

As close as they were, she was
quick to notice the effect their kissing had on his body, and started to rock
against him, shifting her upper thigh against his hardening cock until he was
moaning against her lips. A delicate shiver traversed her at the sound, and she
dropped her hands to the front of his shirt. It took him a couple of seconds to
realize she was undoing the buttons, and a few seconds more after that to find
the strength to break off the kiss.

“Vivien,” he started, breathless.

“I’ve missed you,” she whispered,
leaning forward again to press a kiss to the triangle of skin she had exposed
at the top of his chest. “I want you. Please say you want me.”

Had her lips always been that hot,
that soft when they trailed upon his skin? Had she always smelled so sweet? Had
her heart always beat that fast?

“I want you,” he said, choking up.
“More than I can say.”

More than he dared to say, too. He
wanted more than her kisses, more than her body. He wanted the hot, flavorful
blood he could hear pumping through her, could already imagine the taste of her
and at the same time knew she’d taste so much better than anything he could
imagine…

He didn’t need the alarm rising in
his mind through the bond to realize that this was not a path he should let his
thoughts dwell on.

Capturing her hands in his and stopping
her before she finished unbuttoning his shirt and started on his pants might
have been the most difficult thing he’d ever done. Keeping up his resolve when
she looked up at him, her eyes wounded, was almost worse.

“Not… not here,” he murmured. “Not
like this.”