She Dies at the End (November Snow #1) (23 page)

His mouth twitched at her discomfort, briefly revealing a fang.  “You had a falling out with my son.  He has since permitted you to refuse him your blood.  This will obvious to every creature in the building tonight, as you barely smell like him at all.  That, among your other attributes, will make you the object of some attention.  That could be . . . problematic.”  And with that, he zoomed away through the doors faster than November’s eyes could follow.

“Well, that was hella creepy,” she whispered to the empty ballroom before beating her own hasty retreat.

She forced herself to eat something, not really tasting it.  She tried to stave off her nervousness while getting dolled up for the vampire soirée.  Hot rollers and makeup went more smoothly than expected, much to November’s relief.  She packed her little evening purse with lipstick, her rosary, and her little silver knife.  She put on the earrings William had given her for her birthday.  It seemed to her to be a shame to waste them.  Fortunately, her hands didn’t start shaking with anxiety until she started struggling with the zipper on her gown.  It was a lovely dress, long and beautiful and the exact dark blue shade as her eyes.  Sleeveless, it covered up most of the rest of her skin, which was revealed only by a rather demure keyhole just below her collarbone.

Unfortunately, Zinnia wasn’t available to calm her down or manage her zipper.  November’s friend had very mysteriously explained that the fairies were meeting in the afternoon and that she wouldn’t be available after dark, but that November should come out to the garden at some point in the night to see something special.  Even Pine had ceased shadowing her about 10 minutes before sundown.  The upshot was that she was alone when the Grocer barged in.

“I suppose that will do,” Lilith began, looking her over with disdain.  She had not bothered to knock, of course.

“What?” November exclaimed, taking a step back.

“You have been summoned by his grace.  You’d best move quickly, as he is not accustomed to waiting.”  The vampire surveyed the room, seemingly disapproving of the human’s somewhat lavish accommodations.

“What am I being summoned for?” November replied, stalling.  
No way in hell do I go anywhere with you.

“Presumably for the only two things humans are good for,” Lilith said snidely.

November flushed with anger.
 
“Pardon me, ma’am, but you seem to be under the mistaken apprehension that I am one of your prostitutes.  You can tell him I'm unavailable.”

Lilith went from disdainful to violently angry faster than the blink of an eye.  With her gloved hand, she yanked November’s hair back, forcing her to look into the vampire’s face as she hissed, “How dare you defy me, you filthy human?”  November was opening her mouth to scream for help when Lord William suddenly appeared behind Lilith’s shoulder.

“Are you lost, Lilith?” he said mildly but with palpable menace.  “Because I’m sure you’re not assaulting my favorite human on purpose.”  The Grocer quickly stepped away, fear flashing briefly across her face before it was masked once again with her usual unpleasant expression.

“You need to teach her obedience,” she said.  “A defiant human needs a firmer hand than yours,” she snapped before zooming out of the room.

November’s knees gave out and she collapsed on the edge of her bed, putting a hand to her tender head.  “Are you alright?” William asked, kneeling beside her.

“Yeah.”  She took a deep breath.  “Does my hair still look okay?” she asked, peeking around him to see the mirror, trying to be nonchalant.  William, on the other hand, looked deadly serious.

“What did she say?” he demanded.

“That I was being summoned by the King.”

“What for?”  he asked, confused.  November just looked up at him from under raised eyebrows.  “Oh,” he replied, still confused.  “That seems odd.  You’re not exactly his type.  Also, he usually has better manners than to do that without my permission, though as my maker, he doesn’t technically need it.”  William seemed a bit too blasé about this summons for November’s taste.  The human was only growing more angry as her fear faded along with the smell of Lilith’s offensive perfume.

“Well he sure as hell needs
my
permission, and he sure as hell doesn’t have it,” November spat, standing up and shaking out her skirt.  “When do I need to be in the ballroom?”

“Twenty minutes.”

“I’ll be in the garden until then,” she proclaimed, pulling on her gloves, grabbing her purse, and  stomping rather inelegantly out of her room.

William called out to her, “Nice earrings!”  November smiled in spite of herself.

***

November stood on the patio by the pool, mesmerized.  The garden was filled with what looked for all the world like delicate, glowing little birds, flittering around far too quickly to make out any details.  She had never seen fairies in their alternate form, at least not in person.  She’d caught a quick glimpse in vision once or twice, but the live experience was so much more amazing.  She felt as though she could watch them for hours.  One of them made a quick lap around her head before rejoining the others.  She was certain this was Zinnia.  This quick welcome from her friend made November grin all the wider. 
They do rather look like Tinkerbell.  I'd better not tell Zin that.

“Beautiful, aren’t they?” came a deep voice only a few steps behind her.  November somehow managed not to jump right out of her skin.     

Refusing to look at him, she replied, “Yes, they are,” as evenly as she could manage.

He came closer, saying in a more dangerous tone, “I am not accustomed to refusals or disobedience, November.”  He tried to place his overcoat on her shoulders, but she shrank from him and stepped away.

She forced herself to turn and face him as she replied, “I am not accustomed to being treated like a whore,
your grace
, so I guess we’re both of us disappointed this evening.”  She'd meant to sound defiant and strong, but it came out a strange mix of angry and deeply wounded.  She felt the tears she’d smothered in her bedroom welling in her eyes, and as one escaped down her cheek, she swore and angrily brushed it away, turning her back once again to the king in the vain hope he wouldn’t see it.  She had always hated the fact that she cried when she was furious.

“I have caused you pain,” he stated, sounding more confused than irritated now.  “I do not understand.”

“You don’t understand why sending a
pimp
to
procure
me for your use would upset me?”  November wanted to scream, but she struggled mightily to keep her voice down.  “You know, the only comfort I ever found in the vision of my upcoming funeral is that the people burying me seem to care about me, that you were –" Her voice broke, and she had to swallow before continuing. “And if that weren’t enough, my mother was a part-time prostitute, which fact I’m sure every one of you people is whispering about by now, and I swore I would never let anyone treat me the way people treated her.  And then this woman tells me that I’m being summoned for ‘the only two things a human is good for,’ and it surprises you that this caused me pain.”  She was shaking like a leaf and only just managed to keep her gaze on his face.

“Is that what she said?” he asked, the edge back in his voice.  “That was rather indiscreet of her.  I’m afraid I did not make clear to Lilith the reason for my order.”

“Then please, do enlighten me,” she replied, but all the fire was gone from her voice.  She just sounded tired.  She was already wrung out, and the night had barely started.  The beauty in the garden that had so cheered her now just looked alien and strange, and she realized how chilly she felt in the Christmas air.  Cold as she was, she was not about to accept Ilyn’s overcoat.

“I did not send her to fetch you in order to . . . make use of your person, November.  I had, in fact, already fed.  I don’t like feeding at parties, you see.  I prefer a little privacy.  At any rate, I summoned you because it occurred to me after our little . . . encounter this afternoon that if you entered the ball on my arm, the guests would likely leave you alone, seeing that I had apparently staked a claim on you.  Ordinarily, blood would have to be exchanged to produce such deference, but since the throne, though threatened, is still mine, the visual message should suffice.  I simply wished to spare you unwanted attention from strange vampires.  I also wished to spare my son the indignity of having to fend off his underlings.  Every vampire of any importance in his holdings will be here this evening.”

November turned her sad face back to face him, trying to see if he was telling the truth, wanting desperately to believe him.  A full minute passed as he waited patiently in silence, and finally she replied quietly, “That sounds like a good idea.  Thank you.”

“It’s rather the least I can do,” he replied.  He looked at her closely. “Please take my coat.  You must be quite cold.”

“It is a kind gesture, your grace, but I have trouble wearing other people’s clothes.  I tend to see things.”

“Ah.”  He continued, “I am sorry about the misunderstanding with my servant Lilith.  I’m afraid we are not used to having to be careful with human feelings.  The ability to enthrall makes one rather cavalier, I’m afraid.”  He looked back out toward the fairies dancing in the garden.  “They must think quite highly of you to permit you to witness a conclave.  Humans have been killed for getting a glimpse of one, I’m told.”

“Good think I’m so popular, then, because that would be pretty inconvenient.”  She gave him a little smile.

“Indeed it would,” he responded before offering his arm.  “Shall we?”

William was waiting for them outside the ballroom.  He looked relieved when November and the king came into view arm-in-arm.  The hum of conversation behind the doors indicated that it was a full house.  November’s eyes widened as two guards threw the doors open.  The room was full of vampires and humans dressed to the nines.  She knew security was tight, and that every one of them had been thoroughly searched, guests, servants, and human snacks included.  The whole household had been talking about the preparations for weeks.  

Still, she was nervous.  She hated crowds.  And this crowd was composed mostly of vampires who all knew her name and had heard of her gift and would be watching her like a hawk.  Then there were the humans, enthralled and creepy.  She prayed that she wouldn’t fall into random visions.  She hoped, with some reason for optimism, that a crowd of vampires would be easier for her than a crowd of humans.  The party on New Year’s Eve would be even crazier, she’d been told, with out-of-state lords and their entourages added to the mix.

The moment had come, and the king entered, the most valuable human on the continent on his arm.  Curtsies and kneeling ensued until the king ended the reverence by signaling the band.  November began to panic as Ilyn led her to the center of the ballroom.  The guests pulled back, leaving them alone in the center of the dance floor.

The king sensed her distress and said, “You’ll be fine.  You practiced, after all.”

“You might have warned me,” she hissed.

“That would have only given you more reason to be nervous,” he replied in a most reasonable tone.  “Relax, little one,” he said.  “Follow my lead.”  So she did, since there was nothing else to be done.  She tried to ignore the eyes boring holes in her back.  The song was long.  It gave her the time to learn the steps and slow her heart.  

Eventually, she even relaxed enough to laugh with when Ilyn dipped her or tossed her in the air.  She tried to look in his eyes, but she found that rather too intense and settled for gazing over his shoulder with the occasional glance at his scarred but somehow still handsome face.  By the time the dance ended, she was almost a little disappointed to have to stop.  He released her and bowed slightly.  She curtsied deeply, and they left the dance floor, which was quickly filled as the band played on.

Ilyn passed her off to Savita so he could work the room, and November was smiling brightly until she caught sight of Lilith’s face.  The Grocer’s eyes were fixed on November, and they burned with hatred.  Savita saw this as well, locking eyes with her father’s servant until Lilith wavered and turned away.  It continued to surprise November how many people were afraid of her friend Savita.  She tried to shake off the feeling of doom Lilith provoked in her stomach and pasted a smile back on her face.

“I don’t believe you’ve yet met my wife, Noemi,” Savita said, steering her to a beautiful Latina vampire leaning casually against the wall in a hot pink ball gown in a style more punk than prom.  Savita herself was wearing a black and gold sari.

“I’m so thrilled to finally meet you!” November cried with genuine enthusiasm.  She’d caught a glimpse or two, of course, in her months of working with Savita, and her friend had told her a little about her love.  She knew that Noemi was young by vampire standards, barely one hundred years old, and the couple had been together nearly all that time.  Savita had not turned her.  Greg was Savita's only child.  Noemi’s maker had turned her for love but had let her go when it became clear to them both that she had been born inclined to love a woman rather than a man.  He had even given her away at the wedding.

“Likewise,” Noemi replied with a smile.  They continued chatting for some time.  November was under strict orders to stay near vampires she knew, and she required no persuasion to comply.  She felt like a goldfish in an ocean of sharks.  Various vampires approached her throughout the evening, getting introductions from Savita, whose presence along with the king’s attention kept everyone on his best behavior.   She did her best to be charming and to show loyalty to the king and his house.  She left no room for anyone to think they could woo her away.  She was much relieved that no one but William and Greg asked her to dance and assumed she owed that relief to her entrance with the king.  She did enjoy watching the dance floor, especially when they recreated centuries-old group dances.  The band, composed entirely of vampires, was, of course, wonderful.  She was a bit sad that Zinnia wasn’t there to see it.  She wondered if Ben could hear them from the dungeon.